Ongoing neural development of affective theory of mind in adolescence

Nora C Vetter; Sarah Weigelt; Katrin Döhnel; Michael N Smolka; Matthias Kliegel

doi:10.1093/scan/nst081

Ongoing neural development of affective theory of mind in adolescence

Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci. 2014 Jul;9(7):1022-9. doi: 10.1093/scan/nst081. Epub 2013 May 28.

Authors

Nora C Vetter¹, Sarah Weigelt², Katrin Döhnel³, Michael N Smolka³, Matthias Kliegel³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, and Neuroimaging Center, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Brain and Cognitive Science and McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Cambridge, MA, USA, Department of Psychology, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Bochum, Germany, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany, and Department of Psychology, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland nora.vetter@tu-dresden.de.
² Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, and Neuroimaging Center, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Brain and Cognitive Science and McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Cambridge, MA, USA, Department of Psychology, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Bochum, Germany, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany, and Department of Psychology, University of Geneva, Geneva, SwitzerlandDepartment of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, and Neuroimaging Center, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Brain and Cognitive Science and McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Cambridge, MA, USA, Department of Psychology, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Bochum, Germany, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany, and Department of Psychology, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland.
³ Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, and Neuroimaging Center, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Brain and Cognitive Science and McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Cambridge, MA, USA, Department of Psychology, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Bochum, Germany, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany, and Department of Psychology, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland.

Abstract

Affective Theory of Mind (ToM), an important aspect of ToM, involves the understanding of affective mental states. This ability is critical in the developmental phase of adolescence, which is often related with socio-emotional problems. Using a developmentally sensitive behavioral task in combination with functional magnetic resonance imaging, the present study investigated the neural development of affective ToM throughout adolescence. Eighteen adolescent (ages 12-14 years) and 18 young adult women (aged 19-25 years) were scanned while evaluating complex affective mental states depicted by actors in video clips. The ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) showed significantly stronger activation in adolescents in comparison to adults in the affective ToM condition. Current results indicate that the vmPFC might be involved in the development of affective ToM processing in adolescence.

Keywords: Theory of Mind; adolescence; development; emotion; fMRI.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adolescent
Adolescent Development / physiology*
Adult
Brain / growth & development*
Brain / physiology*
Child
Emotions / physiology*
Female
Humans
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Neuropsychological Tests
Prefrontal Cortex / growth & development
Prefrontal Cortex / physiology
Social Perception
Theory of Mind / physiology*
Video Recording
Visual Perception / physiology
Young Adult