scholarly journals Neural bases of audio-visual integration of socially meaningful information in macaques

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mathilda Froesel ◽  
Maëva Gacoin ◽  
Simon Clavagnier ◽  
Marc Hauser ◽  
Quentin Goudard ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Interactions ◽  
Functional Neuroimaging ◽  
Social Meaning ◽  
Emotional Information ◽  
Visual Integration ◽  
Visual Deficits ◽  
Social Events ◽  
Sensory Modalities ◽  
Communicative Signals ◽  
Meaning Representation

Abstract Social interactions rely on the interpretation of semantic and emotional information, often from multiple sensory modalities. In primates, both audition and vision serve the interpretation of communicative signals. Autistic individuals present deficits in both social communication and audio-visual integration. At present, the neural mechanisms subserving the interpretation of complex audio-visual social events are unknown. Based on heart rate estimates and functional neuroimaging, we show that macaque monkeys associate affiliative facial expressions or social scenes with corresponding affiliative vocalizations, aggressive expressions or scenes with corresponding aggressive vocalizations and escape visual scenes with scream vocalizations, while suppressing vocalizations that are incongruent with the visual context. This process is subserved by two distinct functional networks, homologous to the human emotional and attentional networks activated during the processing of visual social information. These networks are thus critical for the construction of social meaning representation, and provide grounds for the audio-visual deficits observed in autism.One-sentence summary Macaques extract social meaning from visual and auditory input recruiting face and voice patches and a broader emotional and attentional network.

scholarly journals Neural correlates of audio-visual integration of socially meaningful information in macaque monkeys

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mathilda Froesel ◽  
Maeva Gacoin ◽  
Simon Clavagnier ◽  
Marc Hauser ◽  
Quentin Goudard ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Facial Expressions ◽  
Visual Information ◽  
Insular Cortex ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Functional Network ◽  
Visual Integration ◽  
Macaque Monkeys ◽  
Social Events ◽  
Communicative Signals ◽  
Social Scenes

Social interactions rely on the ability to interpret semantic and emotional information, often from multiple sensory modalities. In human and nonhuman primates, both the auditory and visual modalities are used to generate and interpret communicative signals. In individuals with autism, not only are there deficits in social communication, but in the integration of audio-visual information. At present, we know little about the neural mechanisms that subserve the interpretation of complex social events, including the audio-visual integration that is often required with accompanying communicative signals. Based on heart rate estimates and fMRI in two macaque monkeys (Macaca mulatta), we show that individuals systematically associate affiliative facial expressions or social scenes with corresponding affiliative vocalizations, aggressive facial expressions or social scenes with corresponding aggressive vocalizations and escape visual scenes with scream vocalizations. In contrast, vocalizations that are incompatible with the visual information are fully suppressed, suggesting top-down regulation over the processing of sensory input. The process of binding audio-visual semantic and contextual information relies on a core functional network involving the superior temporal sulcus (STS) and lateral sulcus (LS). Peak activations in both sulci co-localize with face or voice patches that have been previously described. While all of these regions of interest (ROIs) respond to both auditory and visual information, LS ROIs have a preference for auditory and audio-visual congruent stimuli while STS ROIs equally respond to auditory, visual and audio-visual congruent stimuli. To further specify the cortical network involved in the control of this semantic association, we performed a whole brain gPPI functional connectivity analysis on the LS and STS cumulated ROIs. This gPPI analysis highlights a functional network connected to the LS and STS, involving the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), area 46 in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), the intraparietal sulcus (IPS), the insular cortex and subcortically, the amygdala and the hippocampus. Comparing human and macaque results, we propose that the integration of audio-visual information for congruent, meaningful social events involves homologous neural circuitry, specifically, an emotional network composed of the STS, LS, ACC, OFC, and limbic areas, including the amygdala, and an attentional network including the STS, LS, IPS and DLPFC. As such, these networks are critical to the amodal representation of social meaning, thereby providing an explanation for some of deficits observed in autism.

Amygdala Processing of Vocal Emotions

2018 ◽  
pp. 472-494
Author(s):  
Jocelyne C. Whitehead ◽  
Jorge L. Armony
Keyword(s):  
Emotional Processing ◽  
Functional Neuroimaging ◽  
Neural Mechanisms ◽  
Social Discourse ◽  
Emotional Information ◽  
Human Voice ◽  
Pitch Frequency ◽  
Sensory Modalities ◽  
Lesion Studies ◽  
Vocal Quality

The human voice is a highly regarded tool for conveying and interpreting emotions, essentially to relay one’s intentions while communicating with others. During social discourse, our autonomic nervous system evokes physiological changes within our body, allowing us to project our emotional state through alterations of vocal quality, pitch, frequency, and intensity. Our current understanding of the neural mechanisms involved in processing emotional information has come primarily through studying the neural response to visual stimuli, specifically facial expressions, by means of functional neuroimaging and lesion studies. Recently, there has been a surge of inquiry as to how emotions are perceived and processed via other sensory modalities, most notably, the auditory system. The aim of this chapter is to outline the neural structures that are known to be involved with processing vocal emotional information, and to address and discuss the inconsistencies found in both lesion and neuroimaging studies. Many of these discrepancies can be attributed to differences of experimental design, as the literature continues to expose a complexity to emotional processing that necessitates a number of valid controls.

Use and Function of Multi-Articulator Versus Multi-Sensory Acts in the Close-Range Communication of Orang-Utans

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marlen Fröhlich ◽  
Natasha Bartolotta ◽  
Caroline Fryns ◽  
Colin Wagner ◽  
Laurene Momon ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Interactions ◽  
Nonhuman Primates ◽  
Human Face ◽  
Social Tolerance ◽  
Wild Populations ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Sensory Modalities ◽  
Close Range ◽  
Communicative Act ◽  
And Function

Abstract From early infancy, human face-to-face communication is “multimodal”, comprising a plethora of interlinked articulators and sensory modalities. Although there is also growing evidence for this in nonhuman primates, the functions of integrating articulators (i.e. multiplex or multi-articulator acts) and channels (i.e. multimodal or multi-sensory acts) remain poorly understood. Here, we studied close-range social interactions within and beyond mother-infant pairs of Bornean and Sumatran orang-utans living in wild and captive settings, to examine to what extent species, setting and recipient-dependent factors affected the use of and responses to multi-sensory as well as multi-articulator communication. Results showed that both multi-sensory and multi-articulatory acts were more effective at eliciting responses (i.e. “apparently satisfactory outcomes”) than their respective uni-component parts, and generally played a larger role in wild populations. However, only multi-articulator acts were used more when the presumed goal did not match the dominant outcome for a specific communicative act, and were more common among non-mother-infant dyads and Sumatrans across settings. We suggest that communication through multiple sensory channels primarily facilitates effectiveness, whereas a flexible combination of articulators is relevant when social tolerance and interaction outcomes are less predictable. These different functions underscore the importance of distinguishing between these forms of multi-component communication.

scholarly journals Negotiating Selves: Reflections on ‘Unstructured’ Interviewing

1998 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 70-83 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Collins
Keyword(s):  
Social Interactions ◽  
Job Insecurity ◽  
Multiple Selves ◽  
Social Events

In this paper I reflect on a series of informal or ‘unstructured’ interviews with people experiencing chronic job insecurity. I show that far from being merely a source of data these interviews are dynamic social interactions wherein multiple dialogues are conducted between multiple selves. I argue that because interviews are epistemologically ambiguous, morally ambivalent and emotionally charged they cannot be seen simply as repositories of ‘objective facts’ but should also be understood as mutually constructed social events with an existential quality sui generis.

scholarly journals The specifics of manipulative influence in contemporary social interactions and communications

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (26) ◽  
pp. 125-133
Author(s):  
Maxim A. Yuzhanin
Keyword(s):  
Social Interactions ◽  
Social Practice ◽  
Mutual Influence ◽  
Psychological Impact ◽  
Modern Society ◽  
Self Control ◽  
Basic Principles ◽  
Social Events ◽  
Behaviour Models ◽  
Conceptual Foundations

In the presented article socio-psychological mechanisms and basic principles of communicative intersubjective mutual influence in a context of contemporary social reality are regarded, and also possible ways of overcoming the arising manipulations are designated. The main goal of the work can be considered to identify the conceptual foundations for the implementation of intersubjective manipulative influence, study the basic principles and methods of applied socio-psychological impact on the interpersonal and personal-group levels of communications and interactions, and define possible methods of effectively countering unwanted and harmful manipulations. As a result of the undertaken analysis, it was found that the methodology of intersubjective influence in modern society consists of 7 key principles based on the paradigm of standardized and stereotypical behavioural responses of members of society, which include the principles (and the corresponding methods of applied manipulative influence) of contrasting perception, mutual exchange, consistent commitment, social affirmation, determinate emotional disposition, and authority reference. The author’s interpretation and generalization of relevant areas and examples of domestic and foreign everyday social practice allowed forming a holistic vision of the issues under consideration. As a result, the presented article not only contains analytical conclusions about the nature and mechanisms of modern social interactions and communications, but also offers specific practical recommendations to avoid unwanted and dangerous intersubjective manipulative influences through the development of internal self-control in a person and the formation of a rationalized and differentiated critical perception surrounding people, the proposals and claims put forward by them, and following resulting social events. Thanks to this approach, modern citizens, voters, and consumers have the opportunity to stop being “passive puppets” in the skilful alien hands and turn into full-fledged actors, making independent decisions and forming their own behaviour models.

scholarly journals Multicomponent and multisensory communicative acts in orang-utans may serve different functions

2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marlen Fröhlich ◽  
Natasha Bartolotta ◽  
Caroline Fryns ◽  
Colin Wagner ◽  
Laurene Momon ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Interactions ◽  
Nonhuman Primates ◽  
Early Infancy ◽  
Human Face ◽  
Communicative Acts ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Captive Populations ◽  
Sensory Modalities ◽  
Close Range ◽  
Communicative Act

AbstractFrom early infancy, human face-to-face communication is multimodal, comprising a plethora of interlinked communicative and sensory modalities. Although there is also growing evidence for this in nonhuman primates, previous research rarely disentangled production from perception of signals. Consequently, the functions of integrating articulators (i.e. production organs involved in multicomponent acts) and sensory channels (i.e. modalities involved in multisensory acts) remain poorly understood. Here, we studied close-range social interactions within and beyond mother-infant pairs of Bornean and Sumatran orang-utans living in wild and captive settings, to examine use of and responses to multicomponent and multisensory communication. From the perspective of production, results showed that multicomponent acts were used more than the respective unicomponent acts when the presumed goal did not match the dominant outcome for a specific communicative act, and were more common among non-mother-infant dyads and Sumatran orang-utans. From the perception perspective, we found that multisensory acts were more effective than the respective unisensory acts, and were used more in wild compared to captive populations. We argue that multisensory acts primarily facilitate effectiveness, whereas multicomponent acts become relevant when interaction outcomes are less predictable. These different functions underscore the importance of distinguishing between production and perception in studies of communication.

Social behavior of alpine marmots (Marmota marmota): seasonal, group, and individual variability

1993 ◽  
Vol 71 (10) ◽  
pp. 1945-1953 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catherine Perrin ◽  
Jacques Coulon ◽  
Michel Le Berre
Keyword(s):  
Social Interactions ◽  
Individual Variability ◽  
Active Season ◽  
Play Fighting ◽  
Marmota Marmota ◽  
Social Nature ◽  
Social Events ◽  
The Social ◽  
Group Members ◽  
Family Groups

The composition and social interactions of three family groups of Marmota marmota were observed during a study in the Vanoise National Park (French Alps) from mid-June to late September. Interactions between members of the same group were mainly cohesive, which confirms the social nature of this species. Social interactions between marmots from different family groups were rare and agonistic. The rate of social interactions decreased as the season progressed, probably in relation to a shift in allocation of energy to preparation for hibernation. Some cohesive interactions increased just before immergence, when marmots restricted their activity to the main burrow system. Rates of social interactions differed between groups and between individuals. Fewer agonistic acts, more play-fighting, and persistence of play-fighting late in the active season among immatures suggest the influence of an ontogenetic component. The most agonistic of the studied groups included an adult male that had recently immigrated. He focused most of his agonistic acts on three 2-year-old males, of which two dispersed during the season. Social events characteristic of each group, individual variability, and level of familiarity between group members influence the quality of social interactions and the dispersal of immatures. Social relationships between familiar individuals are amicable and can facilitate the retention of immatures in their natal group as well as their recruitment by emigrant adults.

scholarly journals Clear judgments based on unclear evidence: Person evaluation is strongly influenced by untrustworthy gossip

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia Baum ◽  
Milena Rabovsky ◽  
Sebastian Benjamin Rose ◽  
Rasha Abdel Rahman
Keyword(s):  
Social Interactions ◽  
Event Related Potentials ◽  
Social Emotional ◽  
Emotional Information ◽  
Positive Information ◽  
Related Information ◽  
Brain Responses ◽  
Related Potentials ◽  
Moral Behaviour ◽  
Affective Information

Affective information about other people’s social behavior may prejudice social interactions and bias person judgments. The trustworthiness of person-related information, however, can vary considerably, as in the case of gossip, rumours, lies, or so-called “fake news”. Here, we investigated how spontaneous person-likability and explicit person judgments are influenced by trustworthiness, employing event-related potentials as indexes of emotional brain responses. Social-emotional information about the (im)moral behaviour of previously unknown persons was verbally presented as trustworthy fact, (e.g. “He bullied his apprentice”) or marked as untrustworthy gossip (by adding e.g. allegedly), using verbal qualifiers that are frequently used in conversations, news and social media to indicate the questionable trustworthiness of the information and as a precaution against wrong accusations. In Experiment 1, spontaneous likability, deliberate person judgments and electrophysiological measures of emotional person evaluation were strongly influenced by negative information, yet remarkably unaffected by the trustworthiness of the information. Experiment 2 replicated these findings and extended them to positive information. Our findings demonstrate a tendency for strong emotional evaluations and person judgments even when they are knowingly based on unclear evidence.

scholarly journals Social Networks through the Prism of Cognition

Complexity ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Radosław Michalski ◽  
Boleslaw K. Szymanski ◽  
Przemysław Kazienko ◽  
Christian Lebiere ◽  
Omar Lizardo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Networks ◽  
Social Interactions ◽  
Human Memory ◽  
Cognitive Factors ◽  
Human Relations ◽  
Related Event ◽  
Information Share ◽  
Human Interactions ◽  
Social Events

Human relations are driven by social events—people interact, exchange information, share knowledge and emotions, and gather news from mass media. These events leave traces in human memory, the strength of which depends on cognitive factors such as emotions or attention span. Each trace continuously weakens over time unless another related event activity strengthens it. Here, we introduce a novel cognition-driven social network (CogSNet) model that accounts for cognitive aspects of social perception. The model explicitly represents each social interaction as a trace in human memory with its corresponding dynamics. The strength of the trace is the only measure of the influence that the interactions had on a person. For validation, we apply our model to NetSense data on social interactions among university students. The results show that CogSNet significantly improves the quality of modeling of human interactions in social networks.

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