Mirror Neurons Jessica Nyberg, B.S.

For Your Viewing Pleasure http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_8WV1zAh9zU

What is a Mirror Neuron? A specialized cell in the brain

Motor Associations Subset of Motor Neurons “Fire” when a motor action is performed Motor Templates for every action Practice makes perfect (well reinforced motor templates) Different groups fire for different actions = coding of actions

Imitative Associations These same neurons that fire while performing an action, fire while WATCHING the action as well Why are motor neurons firing if there’s no motor movement? Answer: MIRROR NEURONS Mirror Neurons internally imitate what you see Mirror Neurons build motor templates by watching others perform actions

Baby Mirrors Mirror neurons are active in as young as 41 minute-old babies Imitation of simple facial expressions Motor Template building begins with infant & caregiver Expressions, gestures, and later speech sounds

Baby Mirrors in Action

Mirror Neurons are Well Connected Connecting Senses Fire when doing, watching, or hearing an action Connecting Emotions Same neurons that fire when we are in pain fire when we watch someone in pain Which is why we can “feel” their pain when we see this…

It hurts just to look!

Mirror Neurons are Well Connected Connecting Emotions Continued Mirror Neuron activity is correlated to testing scores of empathy Internal imitation (thank you mirror neurons) of what someone is going through triggers the same emotional response

Why is the hand reaching for the cup?

Coding Intentions of Others Different groups of mirror neurons fire for each picture Mirror neurons take CONTEXT CLUES into account Internal motor imitation + context clues= reading the intentions or motives of others Picture #1: “drinking” neurons fired Picture #2: “cleaning” neurons fired

Mirror Neurons & Social Associations Imitation plays a major role in social interactions Body language Facial expressions Syntactic use (what we say & how we say it) There’s a reason why we do this Research shows an association between imitating & “liking” someone

Mirror Neurons & Social Associations We learn & use imitative behaviors to control conversations Making eye contact= your turn to talk Looking at watch= I need to leave Being able to internally imitate others  we “feel” what they are feeling  understand intentions & motives through contextual cues= we respond compassionately and appropriately

Mirror Neuron Dysfunction in Autism Spectrum Disorders Through our understanding of typical mirror neuron activity, we believe they play a role in: Imitation abilities Emotional recognition Social cognition What would broken mirrors look like? Autism

Mirror Neuron Dysfunction in Autism Spectrum Disorders fMRI scans looking at neural activity during imitation & observation of facial expressions of children with high-functioning autism compared to typically developing peers

Mirror Neuron Dysfunction in Autism Spectrum Disorders EEG studies looking at mu wave suppression Typical individuals have mu wave suppression while they perform an action and while they watch an action performed by someone else Individuals with ASD have mu wave suppression while performing an action but NOT while watching someone else perform an action

Mirror Neuron Dysfunction in Autism Spectrum Disorders Delayed activation & overall lower activity levels of MNs in patients with autism Clear correlation between MN activity & severity level of ASD Lack of eye contact plays a role with children not making associations between their movement & the movement of others imitating them MN templates cannot be shaped or reinforced

Mirror Neuron Dysfunction and Autism Spectrum Disorders Treatment Experiments: Imitation Therapy Children being imitated by an adult demonstrated much more “social behavior” and reciprocal play vs. children who were only playing with an adult

References Dapretto, M., Davies, M.S., Pfeifer, J.H., Scott, A.A., Sigman, M., Bookheimer, S.Y., and Iacoboni, M. (2006). Understanding emotions in others: mirror neuron dysfuntion in children with autism spectrum disorders. Nature Neuroscience, 9, 28-30. Iacoboni, M. (2008). Mirroring people: The new science of how we connect with others. New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux. Iacoboni, M., and Dapretto, M. (2006) The mirror neuron system and the consequences of its dysfunction. Nature Publishing Group, 7, 942-951. Oberman, L., Ramachandran, V. (2007). The Simulating Social Mind: The role of the mirror neuron system and simulation in the social and communicative deficits of autism spectrum disorders. Psychological Bulletin, 133, 310-327. Ramachandran, V., Oberman, L. (2007). Broken Mirrors: A theory of autism. Scientific American- Special Edition Child Development, 17, 20-29.