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dc.creatorSaby, Joni N
dc.creatorMeltzoff, Andrew N
dc.creatorMarshall, Peter J
dc.date.accessioned2021-01-31T20:42:46Z
dc.date.available2021-01-31T20:42:46Z
dc.date.issued2013
dc.identifier.issn1932-6203
dc.identifier.issn1932-6203
dc.identifier.doihttp://dx.doi.org/10.34944/dspace/5405
dc.identifier.otherPMC3813772 (pmc)
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12613/5423
dc.description.abstractHuman infants rapidly learn new skills and customs via imitation, but the neural linkages between action perception and production are not well understood. Neuroscience studies in adults suggest that a key component of imitation-identifying the corresponding body part used in the acts of self and other-has an organized neural signature. In adults, perceiving someone using a specific body part (e.g., hand vs. foot) is associated with activation of the corresponding area of the sensory and/or motor strip in the observer's brain-a phenomenon called neural somatotopy. Here we examine whether preverbal infants also exhibit somatotopic neural responses during the observation of others' actions. 14-month-old infants were randomly assigned to watch an adult reach towards and touch an object using either her hand or her foot. The scalp electroencephalogram (EEG) was recorded and event-related changes in the sensorimotor mu rhythm were analyzed. Mu rhythm desynchronization was greater over hand areas of sensorimotor cortex during observation of hand actions and was greater over the foot area for observation of foot actions. This provides the first evidence that infants' observation of someone else using a particular body part activates the corresponding areas of sensorimotor cortex. We hypothesize that this somatotopic organization in the developing brain supports imitation and cultural learning. The findings connect developmental cognitive neuroscience, adult neuroscience, action representation, and behavioral imitation.
dc.format.extente77905-e77905
dc.language.isoen
dc.relation.haspartPLoS ONE
dc.relation.isreferencedbyPublic Library of Science (PLoS)
dc.rightsCC BY
dc.subjectAdult
dc.subjectBrain Mapping
dc.subjectBrain Waves
dc.subjectElectroencephalography
dc.subjectEvoked Potentials, Somatosensory
dc.subjectFemale
dc.subjectHumans
dc.subjectImitative Behavior
dc.subjectInfant
dc.subjectInfant Behavior
dc.subjectLearning
dc.subjectMale
dc.subjectPsychomotor Performance
dc.subjectReaction Time
dc.titleInfants’ Somatotopic Neural Responses to Seeing Human Actions: I’ve Got You under My Skin
dc.typeArticle
dc.type.genreJournal Article
dc.type.genreResearch Support, N.I.H., Extramural
dc.type.genreResearch Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.
dc.relation.doi10.1371/journal.pone.0077905
dc.ada.noteFor Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accommodation, including help with reading this content, please contact scholarshare@temple.edu
dc.date.updated2021-01-31T20:42:43Z
refterms.dateFOA2021-01-31T20:42:46Z


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