Subscribe
The latest psychology and neuroscience discoveries.
My Account
  • Mental Health
  • Social Psychology
  • Cognitive Science
  • Psychopharmacology
No Result
View All Result
PsyPost
PsyPost
No Result
View All Result
Home Exclusive Mental Health

Neuroimaging study shows why antisocial youths are less able to take the perspective of others

by Max Planck Gesellshaft
March 11, 2014
in Mental Health

[Follow PsyPost on LinkedIn to stay up-to-date on the latest developments in psychology and neuroscience]

Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Adolescents with antisocial personality disorder inflict serious physical and psychological harm on both themselves and others. However, little is yet known about the underlying neural processes. Researchers at the University of Leiden and the Max Planck Institute for Human Development have pinpointed a possible explanation: Their brain regions responsible for social information processing and impulse control are less developed.

The study focused on incarcerated delinquent adolescents from the Netherlands aged between 15 and 21 years who had been diagnosed with an antisocial personality disorder. The researchers had the adolescents play the mini-ultimatum game. In this cooperative game, which simulates fairness considerations, the player is offered a sum of money by another player. The player is also told whether the opponent could have made a fairer offer or had no alternative.

Brain activity during the game was measured using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). By comparing the findings with those of a control group of nondelinquent adolescents, the researchers were able to determine what was going on in participants’ brains in the context of fairness considerations.

“No” to unfair offers

The delinquent adolescents showed less activation than the control group in the temporoparietal junction and in the inferior frontal gyrus. These areas of the brain are responsible for functions including the ability to put oneself in another person’s position and impulse control. In both groups, the researchers observed similar levels of activation in the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex and in the anterior insula – areas of the brain associated with affective processes.

The findings indicate that although both groups showed the same levels of emotional reactivity to unfair offers, the delinquent adolescents rejected these offers more often. In contrast to the control group, they did not take account of their opponent’s intention – or of whether their opponent had no alternative.

What do other people think?

Adolescents with antisocial personality disorder thus seem to have difficulties in taking into account all the relevant information in social interactions, such as other people’s intentions. The researchers hypothesize that this in turn leads to more antisocial behavior.

“Adolescence is a time of multiple physical, neurological, and social changes. This study with adolescents offers us a better understanding of what happens during this sensitive phase and how things can go astray, resulting in the development of antisocial behaviors“, says Wouter van den Bos, lead author of the study and researcher in the Center for Adaptive Rationality at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development in Berlin.

The researchers hope that their findings will help to inform the development of psychotherapeutic treatments.

ShareTweetSendScanShareSharePinSend
Previous Post

What’s the upside of feeling too sad for chocolate?

Next Post

Sometimes doing a little good is viewed as worse than doing no good at all

STAY CONNECTED

TRENDING

Exposure to wood smoke leads to complex and long-lasting neuroinflammatory and neurometabolomic alterations

Four distinct trajectories of psychopathic traits identified among youth in the legal system

Altered brain function linked to obesity and overeating

Depressed individuals have reduced connectivity in brain regions responsible for cognitive functioning

Brain health and lifestyle: Up to 40% of dementia cases can be attributed to 12 modifiable risk factors

Psilocybin might be effective for treatment-resistant depression even with ongoing SSRI use, study suggests

RECENT

People ascribe intentions and emotions to both human- and AI-made art, but still report stronger emotions for artworks made by humans

Psilocybin might be effective for treatment-resistant depression even with ongoing SSRI use, study suggests

Sexual arousal might not reduce pain in women, new study suggests

New research sheds light on racial attitudes and their impact on perceptions of crime

Violent video games linked to verbal aggression and hostility but not physical aggression

Altered brain function linked to obesity and overeating

Fear of social change and political illiberalism mediate populism’s link to support for violence

Held responsible, yet mere tools: Study reveals paradoxical views on AI assistants

Currently Playing

Four distinct trajectories of psychopathic traits identified among youth in the legal system

New study provides insight into the psychological core of dark personality traits

Four distinct trajectories of psychopathic traits identified among youth in the legal system

Psychopathy
Social working memory abnormalities may be a neurocognitive mechanism underlying poorer social connection in PTSD

Exposure to wood smoke leads to complex and long-lasting neuroinflammatory and neurometabolomic alterations

Mental Health
People who were better supervised by parents as early adolescents tend to have higher earnings as adults

People who were better supervised by parents as early adolescents tend to have higher earnings as adults

Business
People who consume more ultra-processed foods are more likely to experience psychological distress later in life

People who consume more ultra-processed foods are more likely to experience psychological distress later in life

Mental Health
New psychology research reveals the “bullshit blind spot”

New psychology research indicates that higher general cognitive ability is linked to reduced emotional responding

Cognitive Science
Massive psychology study offers an unprecedented look into how personality and intelligence intertwine

Massive psychology study offers an unprecedented look into how personality and intelligence intertwine

Cognitive Science
  • Cognitive Science
  • COVID-19
  • Mental Health
  • Social Psychology
  • Drug Research
  • Conspiracy Theories
  • Meditation
  • Psychology of Religion
  • Aviation Psychology and Human Factors
  • Relationships and Sexual Health
  • Evolutionary Psychology
  • Neuroimaging
  • Psychedelic Drugs
  • Dark Triad
  • Political Psychology

About

PsyPost is a psychology and neuroscience news website dedicated to reporting the latest research on human behavior, cognition, and society. (READ MORE...)

  • Contact us
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy policy
  • Terms and Conditions
Subscribe
  • My Account
  • Cognitive Science Research
  • Mental Health Research
  • Social Psychology Research
  • Drug Research
  • Relationship Research
  • About PsyPost
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist