The regulatory function of self-conscious emotion: insights from patients with orbitofrontal damage.
Although once considered disruptive, self-conscious emotions are now theorized to be fundamentally involved in the regulation of social behavior. The present study examined the social regulation function of self-conscious emotions by comparing healthy participants with a neuropsychological population--patients with orbitofrontal lesions--characterized by selective regulatory deficits. Orbitofrontal patients and healthy controls participated in a series of tasks designed to assess their social regulation and self-conscious emotions. Another task assessed the ability to infer others' emotional states, an appraisal process involved in self-conscious emotion. Consistent with the theory that self-conscious emotions are important for regulating social behavior, the findings show that deficient behavioral regulation is associated with inappropriate self-conscious emotions that reinforce maladaptive behavior. Additionally, deficient behavioral regulation is associated with impairments in interpreting the self-conscious emotions of others.
Beer
Jennifer S
JS
Department of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-1650, USA. jbeer@socrates.berkeley.edu
Heerey
Erin A
EA
Keltner
Dacher
D
Scabini
Donatella
D
Knight
Robert T
RT
D000339:Affect; D000679:Amygdala / Q000503:physiopathology; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology; D005149:Facial Expression; D005625:Frontal Lobe / Q000293:injuries*; D006179:Gyrus Cinguli / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009915:Orbit / Q000293:injuries*; D017397:Prefrontal Cortex / Q000293:injuries*; D012649:Self Concept; D012650:Self Disclosure; D012919:Social Behavior; D013003:Somatosensory Cortex / Q000503:physiopathology