Emotional Intelligence in Agenesis of the Corpus Callosum

Abstract

People with agenesis of the corpus callosum (AgCC) with normal general intelligence have deficits in complex cognitive processing, as well as in social cognition. It is uncertain the extent to which impoverished processing of emotions may contribute to social processing deficiencies. We used the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test to clarify the nature of emotional intelligence in 16 adults with AgCC. As hypothesized, persons with AgCC exhibited greater disparities from norms on tests involving more socially complex aspects of emotions. The AgCC group did not differ from norms on the Experiential subscale, but they were significantly below norms on the Strategic subscale. These findings suggest that the corpus callosum is not essential for experiencing and thinking about basic emotions in a "normal" way, but is necessary for more complex processes involving emotions in the context of social interactions.

Widespread white matter microstructural abnormalities in bipolar disorder: evidence from mega- and meta-analyses across 3033 individuals

“…In contrast, the role of the CC in pathophysiological models of BD is less straightforward. Disconnection in patients with BD with psychotic history has been suggested [12] but there is no clear evidence for the implication of the CC in emotion processing or mood switching [31]. Reduced FA within the CC was also reported in a meta-analysis of DTI studies in schizophrenia [25] and major depressive disorder [29], suggesting an overlapping involvement in both psychosis and affective disorders.…”

The Neuropsychological Syndrome of Agenesis of the Corpus Callosum

“…Adults with AgCC have difficulties encoding verbal and visual information in memory and spontaneously retrieving newly learned information (Erickson, Paul, & Brown, 2014;Paul, Erickson, Hartman, & Brown, 2016), adequately understanding nonliteral and complex language Brown, Symington, Van Lancker-Sidtis, Dietrich, & Paul, 2005;Paul, Van Lancker-Sidtis, Schieffer, Dietrich, & Brown, 2003;Rehmel, Brown, & Paul, 2016), exerting cognitive inhibition and flexibility (Marco et al, 2012), formulating strategies (Brown et al, 2012), and effectively applying imagination and creativity (Paul, Schieffer, & Brown, 2004;Young et al, in press). In addition, these core cognitive deficits negatively impact social and emotional cognition, resulting in difficulty reasoning abstractly about emotions in social context (Anderson, Paul, & Brown, 2017;Paul et al, 2006); expressing emotions in words (Pazienza, Brown, & Paul, 2011); interpreting sarcasm and understanding subtle aspects of social interactions (Symington, Paul, Symington, Ono, & Brown, 2010); recognizing emotion in faces (Bridgman et al, 2014); imagining and inferring the mental, emotional, and social functioning of others (Kang, Paul, Castelli, & Brown, 2009;Turk, Brown, Symington, & Paul, 2010); and awareness of functional deficits (Kaplan, Brown, Adolphs, & Paul, 2012;Mangum, 2018;Miller, Su, Paul, & Brown, 2018). Although they appear to be secondary products of diminished interhemispheric interactions, slowed processing time, and deficient complex problem-solving, these associated cognitive and social deficits may result in functionally significant impairments in adaptive skills needed in daily life (Mangum, 2018;Miller et al, 2018) and reciprocal social communication (Paul, Corsello, Kennedy, & Adolphs, 2014).…”

A Neuropsychological Profile for Agenesis of the Corpus Callosum? Cognitive, Academic, Executive, Social, and Behavioral Functioning in School-Age Children

“…Studies examining social functioning in individuals with AgCC report a range of impairments, such as reduced understanding of jokes and humor (Brown, Paul, Symington, & Dietrich, 2005), proverb and non-literal items (Paul, Van Lancker-Sidtis, Schieffer, Dietrich, & Brown, 2003), complex social scenes (Brown & Paul, 2000;Paul, Schieffer, & Brown, 2004;Turk, Brown, Symington, & Paul, 2010), integration of social information from multiple sources (e.g., paralinguistic cues, nonliteral language; Symington, Paul, Symington, Ono, & Brown, 2010), story-generation skills (Paul et al, 2004), and difficulties experiencing and thinking about complex but not basic emotions in the context of social interactions (L. B. Anderson, Paul, & Brown, 2017). Links between AgCC and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) symptoms have also been examined, but results have been mixed.…”