The Role of the Human Prefrontal Cortex in Social Cognition and Moral Judgment

Abstract

Results from functional magnetic resonance imaging and lesion studies indicate that the prefrontal cortex (PFC) is essential for successful navigation through a complex social world inundated with intricate norms and moral values. This review examines regions of the PFC that are critical for implicit and explicit social cognitive and moral judgment processing. Considerable overlap between regions active when individuals engage in social cognition or assess moral appropriateness of behaviors is evident, underscoring the similarity between social cognitive and moral judgment processes in general. Findings are interpreted within the framework of structured event complex theory, providing a broad organizing perspective for how activity in PFC neural networks facilitates social cognition and moral judgment. We emphasize the dynamic flexibility in neural circuits involved in both implicit and explicit processing and discuss the likelihood that neural regions thought to uniquely underlie both processes heavily interact in response to different contextual primes.

Modulation of value representation by social context in the primate orbitofrontal cortex

“…In monkeys, damage to the OFC causes social-interaction deficits, such as a decrease in communicative facial expressions, reduced responses to threatening or affiliative gestures, and impaired development of maternal bonding (10). In humans, damage to the OFC is associated with personality changes and socially inappropriate behavior (11)(12)(13), and with impairments in the expression of social emotions, such as attachment, fear, and aggression (14,15). Notably, it has been suggested that the OFC is involved in valuation mechanisms in social context and contributes to decision making based on social reputation and trust (16), and in the generation of emotions, such as anticipated regret (17,18).…”

Psychopathic personality and utilitarian moral judgment in college students

“…This theory has been supported by brain imaging data which have identified that during moral decision-making tasks the "executive brain center" -prefrontal cortex -is associated with rational processing (Forbes & Grafman, 2010; whereas emotional regions including anterior temporal lobes and anterior cingulate gyrus are involved in emotional processing (Robertson et al, 2007). In addition, patients with fronto-temporal lobe dementia or ventromedial prefrontal cortex damage who have noted emotional deficits, have also shown more utilitarian responses (Ciaramelli, Muccioli, Ladavas, & di Pellegrino, 2007;Koenigs et al, 2007;Moretto, Ladavas, Mattioli, & di Pellegrino, 2010).…”

What is a representative brain? Neuroscience meets population science

“…Although population research has established robust effects of poverty and inequality on these outcomes (37)(38)(39)(40)(41)(42), neural mechanisms of these effects have not been a primary focus in population approaches. However, within neuroscience and health psychology, research has begun to show that early life experiences such as parenting and SES have effects on brain areas such as the amygdala and prefrontal cortex (43)(44)(45)(46)(47), areas that have also been linked to a variety of relevant outcomes such as crime and violence (48,49), depression (50), social cognition (51,52), drug use (53,54), and cognitive control (55). For example, a recent study demonstrated that early life stress predicted stress responses in the hypothalamicpituitary-adrenal axis, which in turn predicted connectivity between the amygdala and prefrontal cortex and later risk for depression (56).…”