Cognitiveneuroscience of reward prediction and empathy in developmental disorders

2019 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 17K10073
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Pediatrics
• Research Institution: University of Yamanashi
• Principal Investigator: AIHARA Masao 山梨大学, 大学院総合研究部, 教授 (30242639)
• Project Period (FY): 2017-04-01 – 2020-03-31
• Keywords: 共感 / 神経生理学 / 発達障害

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The lack of empathy makes the individual unable to function socially. The prefrontal cortex, which is critical for the organization of affective/cognitive processes, is among the last cortical regions to reach full functional maturity. Therefore, early frontal lesions can result in deficits not immediately apparent but predisposing to later developmental problems such as problems with moral judgment. To fully appreciate the implications of developmental problems in children, hypothesis-driven studies are needed to explore functions such as epmathy. We recently have studied emotional tasks for use as an activation procedure representing pleasure and unpleasure feelings, which are respectively linked to left and right frontal systems. On the basis of these results, we can examine the affective, empathic component electrophysiologically in both healty contlos and developmental disorders. These findings are presented by symposium in the congress and english papers.

Free Research Field

認知神経科学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

発達障害は前頭葉の機能障害であることが神経心理学的に提唱されてきている。前頭葉は認知・情動処理系の相互作用から将来の意思決定や自己と他者をつなぐ共感に関わる脳領域であることが認知神経科学的に次第に明らかとなってきた。
本研究の目的は、自己の意思決定や他者への共感に関わる神経心理学的課題遂行時の認知・情動処理系を解析し、さらに対象者と観察者を神経生理学的に同時に測定することで、両処理系の相互作用に関わる脳内情報処理過程と臨界期を定型発達児において定量化することにあった。発達障害を学際的な研究対象とすることで、診断と治療に対する評価基準と教育方針を認知神経科学的に確立することを目標としている。