The purpose of this study was to validate the possible use of NIRS as a functional brain imaging technique for studying social interactions in a natural setting; therefore, we investigated frontal and temporal lobe activation during face-to-face conversation

in healthy subjects in the sitting position. The frontal and superior temporal regions were activated during face-to-face conversation, with higher activity in the speaking segments than in the mute segments during conversation particularly in frontopolar NIRS channels. The magnitude of frontopolar check details activity negatively correlated with the cooperativeness score of the subjects assessed using the temperament and character inventory. These results demonstrated the successful monitoring of brain function during realistic social interactions using NIRS and interindividual differences in frontopolar activity during conversation in relation to the cooperativeness of an individual. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.”
“Previous event-related potential (ERP) studies employing monetary gambling tasks have demonstrated that the brain responds differentially not only to one’s own gain and loss but also to the others’ gambling

outcomes. Empathy and motivational significance are implicated in the processes of outcome evaluation. This SU5402 study is to explore to what extent the brain activity is modulated by the interpersonal relationship between the individual and the other agent, who can be a friend or a stranger. Brain potentials were recorded while the participant observed Stem Cells antagonist reward feedback to his/her own, his/her friend’s, or a stranger’s performance in a gambling task. The magnitude and latency of the effect on an early ERP component, the FRN, did not differ between the friend-

and the stranger-observation conditions, whereas a late component, the P300, was modulated not only by reward valence but also by the interpersonal relationship between the observer and the other agent. These findings suggest that brain responses in outcome evaluation may be divided into an earlier semi-automatic process and a later cognitive appraisal process and that the interpersonal relationship comes into play mostly in the late attention-sensitive stage. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.”
“The Williams syndrome (WS) cognitive profile is characterized by relative strengths in face processing, an attentional bias towards social stimuli, and an increased affinity and emotional reactivity to music.