Neurobiological Aspects of Social Conformity Study

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Questions and Answers

Which area showed significant activity in relation to social conformity?

Anterior cingulate cortex

Right intraparietal sulcus (correct)

Frontal lobe

Left intraparietal sulcus

What does the region of interest (ROI) analysis specifically investigate in the right intraparietal sulcus?

Visual processing

General brain activity

Social interaction patterns

The effects driving participant responses (correct)

Which criterion was used to determine the best-fitting model in the analysis?

Akaike’s Information Criterion (correct)

Schwarz Information Criterion

Bayesian Information Criterion

Likelihood Ratio Test

What interaction was found involving the source of information in the study?

Between source of information and response correctness Signup and view all the answers

According to the results, how did conforming to incorrect information from the Group compare to conforming from Computers?

Group conformance was associated with greater activity Signup and view all the answers

What anatomical feature is central to the study of mental rotation and external information?

Right intraparietal sulcus Signup and view all the answers

What type of effect did the interaction between source of information and correctness indicate?

Conformity effect through a change in perception Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following best describes the main findings related to social conformity in the study?

There is a significant effect of group versus computer information Signup and view all the answers

What was the main effect exhibited within the most posterior aspects of the baseline mental rotation network?

Conforming to the Group Signup and view all the answers

Which brain region was subjected to a region-of-interest analysis due to its anatomical confluence of different effects?

Right intraparietal sulcus Signup and view all the answers

How was mental rotation defined in the study?

From stimulus pair presentation to participant's judgment Signup and view all the answers

What was the observed effect of external information on the baseline mental rotation network?

Decreased activation in a subset of the network Signup and view all the answers

What type of brain imaging results were noted during mental rotation?

Changes in activity levels Signup and view all the answers

Which brain regions were associated with increases in BOLD activity during mental rotation?

Occipital cortex, parietal cortex, and parts of the frontal cortex Signup and view all the answers

Which brain regions showed greater activity when participants conformed to the Group's incorrect judgment compared to the Computers'?

Right amygdala and right caudate Signup and view all the answers

What characteristic of activations was noted in the presence of external information compared to baseline mental rotation?

Activations were positive but of decreased magnitude Signup and view all the answers

What was the focus of the trials with participants receiving no external information?

To establish a baseline mental rotation network Signup and view all the answers

What does increased activity in the visual cortex indicate in this study?

Strong competition between percepts Signup and view all the answers

Which factor appeared to alter the normal functioning of mental rotation tasks according to the findings?

Peer influence Signup and view all the answers

In the context of this study, what was the effect of external incorrect information on participants' judgments?

It created a virtual percept that conflicted with their own Signup and view all the answers

What significance level was reached by the peak activations in the right amygdala and right caudate?

p < 0.001 uncorrected Signup and view all the answers

How did participants' mental rotation processing change when going against the Group?

It indicated stronger external influences on their internal processes Signup and view all the answers

What does the increase in activity within the intraparietal sulcus suggest about the competing percepts?

The Group's percept was stronger Signup and view all the answers

What aspect of mental rotation is highlighted through these findings regarding social conformity?

It involves both social influences and cognitive processing Signup and view all the answers

What does the decreased activation in regions anterior to the central sulcus suggest about participants during the neuroimaging study?

Participants were still mentally rotating the objects. Signup and view all the answers

What was a noted limitation in the neuroimaging study's design?

The experimental setup might have induced a demand effect. Signup and view all the answers

In the context of conformity, what role does the group play in the psychological framework discussed?

The group provides normative influence for individuals. Signup and view all the answers

What aspect of the amygdala is Amaral et al. (2003) exploring in their study?

Its essential function in social cognition Signup and view all the answers

What phenomenon did Asch SE (1951) investigate regarding group dynamics?

The influence of group pressure on personal judgment Signup and view all the answers

What effect does the 'off-loading' mentioned in the content have on cognitive processing?

It alleviates processing load at the output stage. Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following is a proposed future experimental focus suggested in the content?

The role of automaticity versus volition. Signup and view all the answers

In the context of functional activation, what does the study by Alivisatos and Petrides (1997) look at?

The activation of brain regions during mental rotation tasks Signup and view all the answers

What do the studies involving neuroimaging seek to understand about the amygdala, as indicated by Phelps et al. (2001)?

Its activation in response to cognitive representations of fear Signup and view all the answers

What psychological phenomenon could influence participants to conform despite having their own opinions?

Normative influence by the group. Signup and view all the answers

Which of these is a primary focus of the research conducted by Ress and Heeger (2003)?

Neuronal correlates of perception in early visual cortex Signup and view all the answers

What is a stated consequence of the low number of conformity trials in the neuroimaging study?

It might lead to type II statistical errors. Signup and view all the answers

What concept is central to the discussion by Arrow (1963) regarding social choice?

The mechanisms of individual preferences in group settings Signup and view all the answers

What aspect of conformity is less understood compared to behavioral research?

Mechanisms of nonconformity. Signup and view all the answers

What area does the metaphor of the basal ganglia relate to in Redgrave et al. (1999)?

The selection problem in vertebrate behavior Signup and view all the answers

What does the study by Rees and Frith (1998) propose regarding perceptions and actions?

They involve complex neural decision-making processes Signup and view all the answers

Which brain structure, alongside the amygdala, is differentially activated by social independence?

Right caudate nucleus Signup and view all the answers

What was a possible reason participants conformed to external information?

They experienced confusion where none existed before. Signup and view all the answers

What did the study find regarding mental rotation when external information was present?

Decreased activation in frontal regions Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following best defines social conformity in this context?

The difference between conforming to a group and a computer. Signup and view all the answers

What attribute made information from humans more salient in the study?

The conflicting nature of the information. Signup and view all the answers

What limitation was acknowledged in the conduct of the study?

The original experiment by Asch had to be modified. Signup and view all the answers

What effect did the presence of external information have on participant behavior according to the study?

It may have relieved some cognitive load during tasks. Signup and view all the answers

What was the nature of the task in Asch’s original experiment used in this study?

Signup and view all the answers

What function is primarily associated with the right caudate nucleus in the context of the study?

Stimulus saliency processing Signup and view all the answers

Which brain region showed decreased activation during mental rotation when external information was present?

Frontal regions Signup and view all the answers

In what way did the presence of external information potentially benefit participants during mental rotation tasks?

It relieved some cognitive load. Signup and view all the answers

How was social conformity defined in this research study?

The difference between conforming to a group and computers Signup and view all the answers

What potential effect did external information have on participants that could lead to confusion?

It introduced conflicting information. Signup and view all the answers

What was a noted limitation of the neuroimaging study compared to Asch's original experiment?

The task was not perceptually unambiguous. Signup and view all the answers

Which characteristic of the right caudate nucleus is highlighted in the context of independent behavior?

Increased activation when behaving independently Signup and view all the answers

What mental process was indicated to have decreased activation when participants were influenced by external information?

Mental rotation capabilities Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Background: Conformity occurs when individual judgment aligns with a group's judgment. This can happen either through a change in executive decision-making or a shift in the individual's perception of the situation.
Methods: Researchers used fMRI during a mental rotation task to investigate neural activity associated with both individualistic and conforming behaviors. Participants were exposed to peer pressure by seeing fabricated input from others or from computer algorithms. This allowed isolation of the effects of social influence without introducing misleading data.
Results: Conformity was correlated with changes in the occipital-parietal network, particularly when the misinformation came from other people. Independent thought corresponded to increased activity in the amygdala and caudate, a pattern consistent with social norm theory. Findings suggest perceptual and emotional processes play a role in social conformity.
Key Words: fMRI, perception, mental rotation, parietal lobe, social conformity.
Participants: 33 normal, right-handed volunteers (14 female, 19 male), mean age of 26.
Experimental Task: Participants judged whether three-dimensional objects were identical or mirror images after varying rotations. Tasks included conditions with peer feedback, or computer feedback, allowing comparison of conformity and independence.
Imaging: EEG using a 3 Tesla MRI scanner.
Debriefing: Participants completed a questionnaire to assess self-perception about the experiment's accuracy and reasons for conforming or not conforming.
Image Analysis: Image analysis software (SPM2) used for identifying areas of brain activity associated with different conditions.
Brain Responses: Decreased activity during mental rotation in frontal regions in response to external information. Increased activity observed in areas like the right supramarginal gyrus when participants encountered external information, especially when the external information was from the group.
Perception Versus Decision Making: Social conformity may change perception by influencing the regions of the brain that normally accomplish the task.
Findings: Group response caused a measurable change in the right intraparietal sulcus. Participants conformed more to the incorrect group response than the incorrect computer response.
Limitations: The study utilized a modified version of the Asch paradigm, using a mental rotation task for inducing conformity. This modification reduced the number of conformity trials per participant. Visual nature of the task could limit generalizability to other tasks. The study's setup might have influenced participants to conform more than in a real-world scenario.

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Description

This quiz explores the neurobiological correlates of social conformity and independence as investigated through fMRI during mental rotation tasks. It delves into how peer pressure influences individual perception and decision-making, and the neural changes associated with conforming and independent behaviors.