Neural correlates of the processing of another’s mistakes: A possible underpinning for social and observational learning

Abstract

Recent work suggests that a generalized error-monitoring circuit, which shows heightened activation when one commits an error in goal-directed behavior, may exhibit synonymous activity when one watches another person commit a similar goal-directed error. In the present study, fMRI was utilized to compare and contrast those regions that show sensitivity to the performance, and to the observation, of committed errors. Participants performed a speeded go/nogo task, and also observed a video of another person performing the same task. Dorsal anterior cingulate, orbitofrontal cortex, and supplementary motor regions were commonly activated to both performed and observed errors, providing evidence for common neural circuitry underlying the processing of one's own, and another's mistakes. In addition, several regions, including inferior parietal cortex and anterorostral and ventral cinguli, did not show activation during performed errors, but were instead uniquely activated by the observation of another's mistakes. The unique nature of these 'observer-related' activations suggests that these regions, while of potential import towards recognition of another's errors, are not core to circuitry underlying error-monitoring. Rather, we suggest that these regions may represent components of a distributed network important for the representation and interpretation of complex social actions.

When your errors make me lose or win: Event-related potentials to observed errors of cooperators and competitors

“…In our study, the early oERN activity that was elicited by observed errors of cooperators arose with a rapid latency around 135 ms, but was delayed relative to the ERN elicited by one"s own errors and associated with differential neural activity in 23 the precuneus, rather than with typical sources in ACC (as seen for the ERN of players). This finding converges with a recent fMRI study on error observation (Shane et al, 2008) in which the precuneus was also more activated for observed errors compared to observed correct responses, alongside with dorsal ACC, supplementary motor area, and paracingulate areas. The precuneus is generally thought to be involved in mental imagery and memory processes with self-referential or first-person perspective components, including body image representation and agency perception (Cavanna & Trimble, 2006).…”

“…These results suggest similar monitoring mechanisms for self-and other-generated errors, which might be based at least partly on the mirror neuron system and thus also subserve observational learning (van Schie et al, 2004). Correspondingly, studies using fMRI also described similar activations in medial prefrontal areas for self-generated and observed errors (de Bruijn et al, 2009;Shane et al, 2008). A critical limitation in most of these previous studies is that, in the observation condition, participants were instructed to count the errors of the observed agent, which might increase the relevance of these events and lead to target related responses partly contaminating these critical error trials.…”

“…Mirror neurons are activated during own but also observed motor actions, and are therefore thought to play an important role for understanding other people"s behaviors and intentions, as well as for observational learning and imitation (Gallese, Fadiga, Fogassi, & Rizzolatti, 1996;Rizzolatti et al, 2001). Motor simulation may also underlie the monitoring of other-generated errors, since it has been suggested that similar neural processes are recruited for the detection of others" errors and one"s own (Miltner, Brauer, Hecht, Trippe, & Coles, 2004;Shane, Stevens, Harenski, & Kiehl, 2008;van Schie, Mars, Coles, & Bekkering, 2004).…”

Perceived ownership impacts reward evaluation within medial-frontal cortex

“…Extending from this, Bellebaum, Polezzi, and Daum (2010) demonstrated that the observation of feedback provided to another participant elicited a similar neural response in a participant observing a task in which money could be won or lost. As such, these studies, and others examining observational learning (Kozba, Thoma, Daum, & Bellebaum, 2011;Shane, Stevens, Harenski, & Kiehl, 2008), suggest that the medial-frontal reward system may underlie observational learning and, thus, is activated when people observe outcomes experienced by others. Furthermore, more recent work by Koban, Pourtois, Bediou, and Vuilleumier (2012) has further extended the observational learning literature by demonstrating that social context can also enhance or reduce the functional efficacy of the medial-frontal reward system.…”

Discriminant brain connectivity patterns of performance monitoring at average and single-trial levels

“…Converging evidence from electroencephalography (EEG) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies suggests that common neural mechanisms are involved in monitoring self-generated errors -when subjects make wrong decisions in response to cues-as well as when they observe erroneous external events or feedbacks (van Schie et al, 2004;Cavanagh, Zambrano-Vazquez, and Allen, 2012;Ullsperger et al, 2014). The medial frontal cortex (MFC), and more specifically the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) has been suggested as the putative locus of these mechanisms (Milner et al, 2004;de Bruijn et al, 2009;Shane et al, 2008). Activity in this area has been reported to be sensitive to expectation mismatch, error of motor commission, and erroneous feedback, reflecting both endogenous and exogenous performance-relevant information (Cavanagh, Zambrano-Vazquez, and Allen, 2012).…”