Mimicry and automatic imitation are not correlated

It is widely known that individuals have a tendency to imitate each other. However, different psychological disciplines assess imitation in different manners. While social psychologists assess mimicry by means of action observation, cognitive psychologists assess automatic imitation with reaction time based measures on a trial-by-trial basis. Although these methods differ in crucial methodological aspects, both phenomena are assumed to rely on similar underlying mechanisms. This raises the fundamental question whether mimicry and automatic imitation are actually correlated. In the present research we assessed both phenomena and did not find a meaningful correlation. Moreover, personality traits such as empathy, autism traits, and traits related to self- versus other-focus did not correlate with mimicry or automatic imitation either. Theoretical implications are discussed

How do individuals high in psychopathic traits represent others’ beliefs and actions?

Individuals high in psychopathic traits are known for manipulating others, while having at the same time a lack of empathy. An open question is whether the lack of empathy leads them to represent other persons’ beliefs and actions less strongly or whether their manipulative character leads them to represent other persons’ beliefs and actions more strongly. Confirming past research, three experiments show a negative correlation between psychopathic traits and self-reported empathy. In addition, the results from an implicit Theory of Mind task (Experiment 1) demonstrate that the higher individuals score on psychopathic traits, the more they represent other persons’ beliefs. Additionally, results from an imitation task (Experiment 1) as well as from a Joint Simon task (Experiment 2) demonstrate that high psychopathic traits are predictive for a stronger representation of other persons’ actions. However, a higher-powered study (Experiment 3) could not replicate the finding that psychopathic traits correlate with implicit Theory of Mind and Joint Simon effects. Theoretical implications and limitations of the experiments are discussed

Psychopathic traits & representation of others’ beliefs and actions

Individuals high in psychopathic traits are known for manipulating others, while having at the same time a lack of empathy. An open question is whether the lack of empathy leads them to represent other persons’ beliefs and actions less strongly or whether their manipulative character leads them to represent other persons’ beliefs and actions more strongly. Confirming past research, three experiments show a negative correlation between psychopathic traits and self-reported empathy. In addition, the results from an implicit Theory of Mind task (Experiment 1) demonstrate that the higher individuals score on psychopathic traits, the more they represent other persons’ beliefs. Additionally, results from an imitation task (Experiment 1) as well as from a Joint Simon task (Experiment 2) demonstrate that high psychopathic traits are predictive for a stronger representation of other persons’ actions. However, a higher-powered study (Experiment 3) could not replicate the finding that psychopathic traits correlate with implicit Theory of Mind and Joint Simon effects

Mimicry and automatic imitation

In the present research we tested whether different imitation tasks (i.e., mimicry and automatic imitation) are correlated and did not find a meaningful correlation. Moreover, personality traits such as empathy, autism traits, and traits related to self- versus other-focus did not correlate with mimicry or automatic imitation either

Beyond Myelin Oligodendrocyte Glycoprotein and Aquaporin-4 Antibodies: Alternative Causes of Optic Neuritis

Optic neuritis (ON) is the most common cause of vision loss in young adults. It manifests as acute or subacute vision loss, often accompanied by retrobulbar discomfort or pain during eye movements. Typical ON is associated with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and is generally mild and steroid-responsive. Atypical forms are characterized by unusual features, such as prominent optic disc edema, poor treatment response, and bilateral involvement, and they are often associated with autoantibodies against aquaporin-4 (AQP4) or Myelin Oligodendrocyte Glycoprotein (MOG). However, in some cases, AQP4 and MOG antibodies will return as negative, plunging the clinician into a diagnostic conundrum. AQP4- and MOG-seronegative ON warrants a broad differential diagnosis, including autoantibody-associated, granulomatous, and systemic disorders. These rare forms need to be identified promptly, as their management and prognosis are greatly different. The aim of this review is to describe the possible rarer etiologies of non-MS-related and AQP4- and MOG-IgG-seronegative inflammatory ON and discuss their diagnoses and treatments

Automatic Imitation: A Meta-Analysis

Automatic imitation is the finding that movement execution is facilitated by compatible and impeded by incompatible observed movements. In the past 15 years, automatic imitation has been studied to understand the relation between perception and action in social interaction. Although research on this topic started in cognitive science, interest quickly spread to related disciplines such as social psychology, clinical psychology. and neuroscience. However, important theoretical questions have remained unanswered. Therefore, in the present meta-analysis, we evaluated seven key questions on automatic imitation. The results, based on 161 studies containing 226 experiments, revealed an overall effect size of g(z) = 0.95, 95% CI [0.88, 1.02]. Moderator analyses identified automatic imitation as a flexible, largely automatic process that is driven by movement and effector compatibility, but is also influenced by spatial compatibility. Automatic imitation was found to be stronger for forced choice tasks than for simple response tasks, for human agents than for nonhuman agents, and for goalless actions than for goal-directed actions. However, it was not modulated by more subtle factors such as animacy beliefs, motion profiles, or visual perspective. Finally, there was no evidence for a relation between automatic imitation and either empathy or autism. Among other things. these findings point toward actor-imitator similarity as a crucial modulator of automatic imitation and challenge the view that imitative tendencies are an indicator of social functioning. The current meta-analysis has important theoretical implications and sheds light on longstanding controversies in the literature on automatic imitation and related domains

Mean reaction times of the automatic imitation task separated by condition.

<p>Error bars represent standard errors of the mean.</p

Amount of performed actions in the mimicry task.

<p>Error bars represent standard errors of the mean.</p

Mean error rates within the automatic imitation task separated by condition.

<p>Error bars represent standard errors of the mean.</p