title: Time course and localization of brain activity in humor comprehension: An ERP/sLORETA study.
abstract: Although a number of studies have investigated the incongruity-detection and resolution process in humor comprehension, it is difficult to functionally and anatomically dissociate these processes. We used event-related potentials (ERP) and standardized low resolution brain electromagnetic tomography analysis (sLORETA) to examine the time course and localization of brain activity during incongruity detection and resolution. We used the same materials as in our previous fMRI study. Eighteen participants read funny and unfunny scenarios and judged whether the target sentence was funny or not. Results indicated that ERPs elicited by a funny punch line showed a P2 component followed by a P600 component over the centro-parietal electrode sites. Our sLORETA analysis of the P2 ERPs revealed a stronger activation for the funny vs. unfunny condition in the superior frontal gyrus (SFG) and medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). For the P600 ERPs, the funny punch line elicited greater activation in the temporal-parietal regions. These results indicate that incongruity-detection processes activate the SFG and mPFC in the P2 time window, while incongruity-resolution processes generate activation at the temporal-parietal regions in the P600 time window. These results provide the evidence that verbal humor comprehension is processed in steps which start with the incongruity detection in the early P2 time window and followed by a P600 component reflecting incongruity resolution.
authors.affiliation: Keio Advanced Research Center, Keio University, Tokyo 108-8345, Japan. Electronic address: midorishibata@keio.jp.
authors.forename: Midori
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shibata
authors.affiliation: Keio Advanced Research Center, Keio University, Tokyo 108-8345, Japan; Department of Psychology, Keio University, Tokyo 108-8345, Japan.
authors.forename: Yuri
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Terasawa
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Hiroshima Shudo University, Hiroshima 731-3195, Japan.
authors.forename: Takahiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Osumi
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Keio University, Tokyo 108-8345, Japan; Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS), Tokyo 102-8472, Japan.
authors.forename: Keita
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Masui
authors.affiliation: Keio Advanced Research Center, Keio University, Tokyo 108-8345, Japan.
authors.forename: Yuichi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ito
authors.affiliation: Graduate School of Human Relations, Keio University, Tokyo 108-8345, Japan.
authors.forename: Arisa
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sato
authors.affiliation: Keio Advanced Research Center, Keio University, Tokyo 108-8345, Japan; Department of Psychology, Keio University, Tokyo 108-8345, Japan.
authors.forename: Satoshi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Umeda
mesh_terms: D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology*; D032882:Comprehension / Q000502:physiology*; D004569:Electroencephalography; D005071:Evoked Potentials; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007600:Judgment / Q000502:physiology; D008297:Male; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual / Q000502:physiology; D011932:Reading; D012815:Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted; D013997:Time Factors; D014925:Wit and Humor as Topic; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: ERP; Humor; P2; P600; sLORETA