title: Self-reported empathy and neural activity during action imitation and observation in schizophrenia.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Although social cognitive impairments are key determinants of functional outcome in schizophrenia their neural bases are poorly understood. This study investigated neural activity during imitation and observation of finger movements and facial expressions in schizophrenia, and their correlates with self-reported empathy.
  
  
  METHODS
  23 schizophrenia outpatients and 23 healthy controls were studied with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while they imitated, executed, or simply observed finger movements and facial emotional expressions. Between-group activation differences, as well as relationships between activation and self-reported empathy, were evaluated.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Both patients and controls similarly activated neural systems previously associated with these tasks. We found no significant between-group differences in task-related activations. There were, however, between-group differences in the correlation between self-reported empathy and right inferior frontal (pars opercularis) activity during observation of facial emotional expressions. As in previous studies, controls demonstrated a positive association between brain activity and empathy scores. In contrast, the pattern in the patient group reflected a negative association between brain activity and empathy.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although patients with schizophrenia demonstrated largely normal patterns of neural activation across the finger movement and facial expression tasks, they reported decreased self perceived empathy and failed to show the typical relationship between neural activity and self-reported empathy seen in controls. These findings suggest that patients show a disjunction between automatic neural responses to low level social cues and higher level, integrative social cognitive processes involved in self-perceived empathy.
authors.affiliation: VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, USA ; University of California, Los Angeles, USA.
authors.forename: William P
authors.initials: WP
authors.lastname: Horan
authors.affiliation: University of California, Los Angeles, USA.
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Iacoboni
authors.affiliation: University of California, Los Angeles, USA.
authors.forename: Katy A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Cross
authors.affiliation: University of California, Los Angeles, USA.
authors.forename: Alex
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Korb
authors.affiliation: VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, USA ; University of California, Los Angeles, USA.
authors.forename: Junghee
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, USA ; University of California, Los Angeles, USA.
authors.forename: Poorang
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Nori
authors.affiliation: VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, USA ; University of California, Los Angeles, USA.
authors.forename: Javier
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Quintana
authors.affiliation: VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, USA ; University of California, Los Angeles, USA.
authors.forename: Jonathan K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Wynn
authors.affiliation: VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, USA ; University of California, Los Angeles, USA.
authors.forename: Michael F
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Green
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001921:Brain / Q000503:physiopathology*; D001931:Brain Mapping; D004644:Emotions / Q000502:physiology; D004645:Empathy / Q000502:physiology*; D005149:Facial Expression; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D007100:Imitative Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009415:Nerve Net / Q000503:physiopathology*; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000503:physiopathology*; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology; D057566:Self Report
keywords: Empathy; Imitation; Mirror neuron system; Observation; Schizophrenia; Simulation