Overlapping and specific neural correlates for empathizing, affective mentalizing, and cognitive mentalizing: A coordinate‐based meta‐analytic study

Abstract

While the discussion on the foundations of social understanding mainly revolves around the notions of empathy, affective mentalizing, and cognitive mentalizing, their degree of overlap versus specificity is still unclear. We took a meta‐analytic approach to unveil the neural bases of cognitive mentalizing, affective mentalizing, and empathy, both in healthy individuals and pathological conditions characterized by social deficits such as schizophrenia and autism. We observed partially overlapping networks for cognitive and affective mentalizing in the medial prefrontal, posterior cingulate, and lateral temporal cortex, while empathy mainly engaged fronto‐insular, somatosensory, and anterior cingulate cortex. Adjacent process‐specific regions in the posterior lateral temporal, ventrolateral, and dorsomedial prefrontal cortex might underpin a transition from abstract representations of cognitive mental states detached from sensory facets to emotionally‐charged representations of affective mental states. Altered mentalizing‐related activity involved distinct sectors of the posterior lateral temporal cortex in schizophrenia and autism, while only the latter group displayed abnormal empathy related activity in the amygdala. These data might inform the design of rehabilitative treatments for social cognitive deficits.

Biological Bases of Empathy and Social Cognition in Patients with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: A Focus on Treatment with Psychostimulants

“…From a neuroanatomical point of view, strong evidence supports a model of two separate, yet interacting, systems for empathy, as previously mentioned in Section 1 . AE would rely on a large brain network that includes the anterior cingulate cortex, anterior insula, inferior parietal lobule, and inferior frontal gyrus, with its mirror neuron system involved in motor imitation and emotional contagion [ 14 , 94 ]. On the other hand, CE/ToM is subserved by prefrontal and temporal networks: the cognitive ToM network engages the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex, dorsal anterior cingulate cortex, and dorsal striatum; the affective ToM network engages the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, orbitofrontal cortices, ventral anterior cingulate cortex, amygdala, and ventral striatum [ 94 ].…”

“…AE would rely on a large brain network that includes the anterior cingulate cortex, anterior insula, inferior parietal lobule, and inferior frontal gyrus, with its mirror neuron system involved in motor imitation and emotional contagion [ 14 , 94 ]. On the other hand, CE/ToM is subserved by prefrontal and temporal networks: the cognitive ToM network engages the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex, dorsal anterior cingulate cortex, and dorsal striatum; the affective ToM network engages the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, orbitofrontal cortices, ventral anterior cingulate cortex, amygdala, and ventral striatum [ 94 ]. A functionally interactive dorsal and ventral attention/selection system at the temporoparietal junction and anterior cingulate cortex modulates the ability to distinguish between self and other mental states [ 24 ].…”

Intrinsic Shapes of Empathy: Functional Brain Network Topology Encodes Intersubjective Experience and Awareness Traits

“…Resting-state intrinsic functional connectivity profiles of low-level sensorimotor circuits were previously associated with individual differences in empathic concern [16]. Moreover, a substantial overlap can be noted with an empathy network consisting of the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex, the supplementary motor area, and the bilateral insula, as yielded by some meta-analyses [51,119].…”

Intrinsic shapes of empathy: functional brain network topology encodes intersubjective experience and awareness traits

“…Resting-state intrinsic functional connectivity profiles of low-level sensorimotor circuits have been previously associated with individual differences in empathic concern (Christov-Moore et al 2020). Moreover, a substantial overlap can be noted with an empathy network consisting of the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex, the supplementary motor area, and the bilateral insula as yielded by some meta-analyses (Fan et al 2011;Arioli et al 2021).…”