Neuroanatomical correlates of social intelligence measured by the Guilford test

Abstract

Social interactions are a crucial aspect of human behaviour. Numerous neurophysiological studies have focused on socio-cognitive processes associated with the so-called theory of mind – the ability to attribute mental states to oneself and others. Theory of mind is closely related to social intelligence defined as a set of abilities that facilitate effective social interactions. Social intelligence encompasses multiple theory of mind components and can be measured by the Four Factor Test of Social Intelligence (the Guilford-Sullivan test). However, it is unclear whether the differences in social intelligence are reflected in structural brain differences. During the experiment, 48 healthy right-handed individuals completed the Guilford-Sullivan test. T1-weighted structural MRI images were obtained for all participants. Voxel-based morphometry analysis was performed to reveal grey matter volume differences between the two groups (24 subjects in each) – with high social intelligence scores and with low social intelligence scores, respectively. Participants with high social intelligence scores had larger grey matter volumes of the bilateral caudate, left insula, left inferior parietal lobule, inferior temporal gyrus, and middle occipital gyrus. Only the cluster in the caudate nuclei survived a cluster-level FWE correction for multiple comparisons. The obtained results suggest caudate nucleus involvement in the neural system of socio-cognitive processes, reflected by its structural characteristics.