title: Same Story, Different Story.
abstract: Differences in people's beliefs can substantially impact their interpretation of a series of events. In this functional MRI study, we manipulated subjects' beliefs, leading two groups of subjects to interpret the same narrative in different ways. We found that responses in higher-order brain areas-including the default-mode network, language areas, and subsets of the mirror neuron system-tended to be similar among people who shared the same interpretation, but different from those of people with an opposing interpretation. Furthermore, the difference in neural responses between the two groups at each moment was correlated with the magnitude of the difference in the interpretation of the narrative. This study demonstrates that brain responses to the same event tend to cluster together among people who share the same views.
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Psychology, Princeton University.|2 Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University.
authors.forename: Yaara
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yeshurun
authors.affiliation: 3 Department of Computer Science, Princeton University.
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Swanson
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Psychology, Princeton University.|2 Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University.
authors.forename: Erez
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Simony
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Psychology, Princeton University.|2 Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University.
authors.forename: Janice
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: 4 Creative Writing Program, Lewis Center for the Arts, Princeton University.
authors.forename: Christina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lazaridi
authors.affiliation: 5 Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Johns Hopkins University.
authors.forename: Christopher J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Honey
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Psychology, Princeton University.|2 Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University.
authors.forename: Uri
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Hasson
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001921:Brain / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000502:physiology*; D001931:Brain Mapping / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D012938:Social Perception; D056345:Theory of Mind / Q000502:physiology*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: context; interpretation; narrative; neuroimaging; theory of mind