The complexity of understanding others as the evolutionary origin of empathy and emotional contagion.

ABSTRACT: Contagious yawning, emotional contagion and empathy are characterized by the activation of similar neurophysiological states or responses in an observed individual and an observer. For example, it is hard to keep one's mouth closed when imagining someone yawning, or not feeling distressed while observing other individuals perceiving pain. The evolutionary origin of these widespread phenomena is unclear, since a direct benefit is not always apparent. We explore a game theoretical model for the evolution of mind-reading strategies, used to predict and respond to others' behavior. In particular we explore the evolutionary scenarios favoring simulative strategies, which recruit overlapping neural circuits when performing as well as when observing a specific behavior. We show that these mechani

SUBMITTER: Mafessoni F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6453980 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature