Cortical midline structures and the self.
For a long time philosophers and psychologists have been intrigued by the question of the self. More recently, this has become a topic of discussion in neuroscience. In this article, we suggest that the processing of self-referential stimuli in cortical midline structures (CMS) is a fundamental component in generating a model of the self. Drawing from neuroimaging studies, we distinguish between representation, monitoring, evaluation and integration of self-referential stimuli. All of these subfunctions are related to distinct regions within the CMS. This relationship between self-referential processing and CMS might provide novel insight into the neural correlates underlying the constitution of the self.
Northoff
Georg
G
Laboratory for Magnetic Brain Stimulation, Division of Behavioral Neurology, Department of Neurology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA. gnorthof@bidmc.harvard.edu
Bermpohl
Felix
F
D001364:Awareness / Q000502:physiology; D001931:Brain Mapping; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000502:physiology*; D003210:Concept Formation / Q000502:physiology; D004532:Ego; D006179:Gyrus Cinguli / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008568:Memory / Q000502:physiology; D009434:Neural Pathways / Q000502:physiology; D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography; D017397:Prefrontal Cortex / Q000502:physiology