title: Intentional action processing results from automatic bottom-up attention: An EEG-investigation into the Social Relevance Hypothesis using hypnosis.
abstract: Social stimuli grab our attention. However, it has rarely been investigated how variations in attention affect the processing of social stimuli, although the answer could help us uncover details of social cognition processes such as action understanding. In the present study, we examined how changes to bottom-up attention affects neural EEG-responses associated with intentional action processing. We induced an increase in bottom-up attention by using hypnosis. We recorded the electroencephalographic μ-wave suppression of hypnotized participants when presented with intentional actions in first and third person perspective in a video-clip paradigm. Previous studies have shown that the μ-rhythm is selectively suppressed both when executing and observing goal-directed motor actions; hence it can be used as a neural signal for intentional action processing. Our results show that neutral hypnotic trance increases μ-suppression in highly suggestible participants when they observe intentional actions. This suggests that social action processing is enhanced when bottom-up attentional processes are predominant. Our findings support the Social Relevance Hypothesis, according to which social action processing is a bottom-up driven attentional process, and can thus be altered as a function of bottom-up processing devoted to a social stimulus.
authors.affiliation: School of Philosophy, USC Dana and David Dornsife College for Letters, Arts and Sciences, University of Southern California, United States; Institute of Philosophy II, Faculty of Philosophy and Education, Ruhr-University Bochum, Germany; Center for Mind, Brain and Cognitive Evolution, Ruhr-University Bochum, Germany. Electronic address: eneufeld@usc.edu.
authors.forename: Eleonore
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Neufeld
authors.affiliation: The Mathison Centre for Mental Health Research and Education, Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Canada; Research Department of Cognitive Neuropsychiatry, LWL University Hospital Bochum, Ruhr-University Bochum, Germany.
authors.forename: Elliot C
authors.initials: EC
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.affiliation: Research Department of Cognitive Neuropsychiatry, LWL University Hospital Bochum, Ruhr-University Bochum, Germany.
authors.forename: Sie-In
authors.initials: SI
authors.lastname: Lee-Grimm
authors.affiliation: Institute of Philosophy II, Faculty of Philosophy and Education, Ruhr-University Bochum, Germany; Center for Mind, Brain and Cognitive Evolution, Ruhr-University Bochum, Germany.
authors.forename: Albert
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Newen
authors.affiliation: Center for Mind, Brain and Cognitive Evolution, Ruhr-University Bochum, Germany; Research Department of Cognitive Neuropsychiatry, LWL University Hospital Bochum, Ruhr-University Bochum, Germany.
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Brüne
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology*; D058256:Brain Waves / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006990:Hypnosis / Q000379:methods*; D033182:Intention; D008297:Male; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000502:physiology*; D012938:Social Perception; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Bottom-up attention; Hypnosis; Intentional action; Mu rhythm; Social Relevance Hypothesis; Social attention; Social cognition