title: A unifying view of the basis of social cognition.
abstract: In this article we provide a unifying neural hypothesis on how individuals understand the actions and emotions of others. Our main claim is that the fundamental mechanism at the basis of the experiential understanding of others' actions is the activation of the mirror neuron system. A similar mechanism, but involving the activation of viscero-motor centers, underlies the experiential understanding of the emotions of others.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroscience, Section of Physiology, University of Parma, Italy.
authors.forename: Vittorio
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Gallese
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Keysers
authors.forename: Giacomo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Rizzolatti
mesh_terms: D000339:Affect; D000679:Amygdala / Q000502:physiology; D000818:Animals; D001522:Behavior, Animal; D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000502:physiology; D003071:Cognition; D000882:Haplorhini; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D009474:Neurons / Q000502:physiology; D011597:Psychomotor Performance; D012919:Social Behavior; D012938:Social Perception