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Published 2006 | public
Book Section - Chapter

Role of the amygdala in processing visual social stimuli

Abstract

We review the evidence implicating the amygdala as a critical component of a neural network of social cognition, drawing especially on research involving the processing of faces and other visual social stimuli. We argue that, although it is clear that social behavioral representations are not stored in the amygdala, the most parsimonious interpretation of the data is that the amygdala plays a role in guiding social behaviors on the basis of socioenvironmental context. Thus, it appears to be required for normal social cognition. We propose that the amygdala plays this role by attentionally modulating several areas of visual and somatosensory cortex that have been implicated in social cognition, and in helping to direct overt visuospatial attention in face gaze. We also hypothesize that the amygdala exerts attentional modulation of simulation in somatosensory cortices such as supramarginal gyrus and insula. Finally, we argue that the term emotion be broadened to include increased attention to bodily responses and their representation in cortex.

Additional Information

© 2006 Elsevier. Available online 30 September 2006. The authors thank Fred Gosselin and Dirk Neumann for helpful discussions. This work was supported by grants from the National Institute of Mental Health, the Cure Autism New Foundation, and the Pfeiffer Research Foundation.

Additional details

Created:
August 22, 2023
Modified:
January 13, 2024