title: The posterior superior temporal sulcus is sensitive to the outcome of human and non-human goal-directed actions.
abstract: Prior studies have demonstrated that the posterior superior temporal sulcus (pSTS) is involved in analyzing the intentions underlying actions and is sensitive to the context within which actions occur. However, it is debated whether the pSTS is actually sensitive to goals underlying actions, or whether previous studies can be interpreted to suggest that the pSTS is instead involved in the allocation of visual attention towards unexpected events. In addition, little is known about whether the pSTS is specialized for reasoning about the actions of social agents or whether the pSTS is sensitive to the actions of both animate and inanimate entities. Here, using functional magnetic resonance imaging, we investigated activation in response to passive viewing of successful and unsuccessful animate and inanimate goal-directed actions. Activation in the right pSTS was stronger in response to failed actions compared to successful actions, suggesting that the pSTS plays a role in encoding the goals underlying actions. Activation in the pSTS did not differentiate between animate and inanimate actions, suggesting that the pSTS is sensitive to the goal-directed actions of both animate and inanimate entities.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Yale University, PO Box 208205, New Haven, CT 06520, USA.
authors.forename: Sarah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Shultz
authors.forename: Su Mei
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Kevin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Pelphrey
authors.forename: Gregory
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: McCarthy
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology*; D001931:Brain Mapping; D005260:Female; D006040:Goals; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D009039:Motion Perception / Q000502:physiology; D010100:Oxygen / Q000097:blood; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual / Q000502:physiology*; D010775:Photic Stimulation / Q000379:methods; D013702:Temporal Lobe / Q000098:blood supply / Q000502:physiology*; D013997:Time Factors; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D010100:Oxygen