Response to hypothetical social scenarios in individuals with traumatic brain injury who present inappropriate social behavior: a preliminary report.
BACKGROUND
Very little research thus far has examined the decision making that underlies inappropriate social behavior (ISB) post-TBI (traumatic brain injury).


OBJECTIVE
To verify the usefulness of a new instrument, the Social Responding Task, for investigating whether, in social decision making, individuals with TBI, who present inappropriate social behavior (ISB), have difficulty anticipating their own feelings of embarrassment and others' angry reactions following an ISB.


METHODS
Seven subjects with TBI presenting with inappropriate social behavior (TBI-ISB), 10 presenting with appropriate social behavior (TBI-ASB), and 15 healthy controls were given 12 hypothetical scenarios three times, each time ending with a different behavioral response. Subjects were asked to gauge the likelihood of their displaying the behavior in that situation (part A) and of it being followed by an angry reaction from the other or by feelings of embarrassment in themselves (part B).


RESULTS
TBI-ISB subjects scored higher than TBI-ASB and healthy controls on a scale of likelihood of displaying an ISB. RESULTS regarding expectations of angry reactions from others and feelings of embarrassment after an ISB were similar among groups. Negative correlations between endorsement of an inappropriate behavior and anticipation of negative emotional consequences were significant for both TBI-ASB and control subjects, but not for TBI-ISB subjects.


CONCLUSIONS
RESULTS suggest that the TBI-ISB participants were likely to endorse an ISB despite being able to anticipate a negative emotional response in themselves or others, suggesting that there were other explanations for their poor behavior. A self-reported likely response to hypothetical social scenarios can be a useful approach for studying the neurocognitive processes behind the poor choices of individuals with TBI-ISB, but the task needs further validation studies. A comprehensive discussion follows on the underlying mechanisms affecting social behaviors after a TBI.
Department of Psychology, University of Montreal, Montreal, H3C 3J7, Canada.|Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Rehabilitation of Greater Montreal (CRIR) H2H 2N8, Canada.|Department of Psychology, University of Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, H2V 2S9, Canada.|Centre de recherche en neuropsychologie et cognition (CERNEC), Montreal, H3C 3J7, Canada.
Jean
J
Gagnon
Department of Psychology, University of Montreal, Montreal, H3C 3J7, Canada.|Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Rehabilitation of Greater Montreal (CRIR) H2H 2N8, Canada.
Anne
A
Henry
Department of Psychology, University of Montreal, Montreal, H3C 3J7, Canada.|Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Rehabilitation of Greater Montreal (CRIR) H2H 2N8, Canada.
François-Pierre
FP
Decoste
Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Rehabilitation of Greater Montreal (CRIR) H2H 2N8, Canada.
Michel
M
Ouellette
Department of Psychology, University of Montreal, Montreal, H3C 3J7, Canada.
Pierre
P
McDuff
Department of Psychology, University of Montreal, Montreal, H3C 3J7, Canada.|Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Rehabilitation of Greater Montreal (CRIR) H2H 2N8, Canada.
Sacha
S
Daelman
decision making; inappropriate social behavior; social interaction; traumatic brain injury