A mechanism that forces people to repeat the actions of others has been found 13:46

Scientists from the Catholic University of Maula (Chile) and the Sapienza University of Rome (Italy) discovered that the ventral premotor and primary motor cortex of the brain are responsible for imitative human behavior. Research results It was published In Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

Imitation behavior, where a person automatically (involuntarily) or voluntarily copies the actions of others, is characteristic of many types of complex social interactions. Scientists set out to learn what happens in people’s brains when they repeat after others.

To do this, they conducted a study involving 80 healthy adult volunteers. They were divided into four groups to undergo cortico-cortical paired associative brain stimulation. Each participant completed two tasks: one for automatic action and one for voluntary action. The researchers manipulated the connections between forebrain regions such as the ventral premotor cortex, supplementary motor area, and primary motor cortex, and examined how manipulating these affected imitation behavior.

Different components of the motor cortex have been found to perform different social functions. The scientists explained that strengthening the connection between the ventral premotor and primary motor cortex of the brain encourages people to imitate, while weakening it has the opposite effect.

It has been hypothesized that the supplementary motor cortex is responsible for cognitive control of the motor system. Strengthening the connection between it and the primary motor cortex helps to avoid imitation when it is not actually wanted.

According to scientists, the results are extremely important in terms of manipulating brain plasticity and controlling cognitive functions. Such skills may be useful in the treatment of neurological disorders and social dysfunctions.

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