Infant Social Withdrawal Behavior: A Key for Adaptation in the Face of Relational Adversity.

As a result of evolution, human babies are born with outstanding abilities for human communication and cooperation. The other side of the coin is their great sensitivity to any clear and durable violation in their relationship with caregivers. Infant sustained social withdrawal behavior (ISSWB) was first described in infants who had been separated from their caregivers, as in Spitz's description of "hospitalism" and "anaclitic depression." Later, ISSWB was pointed to as a major clinical psychological feature in failure-to-thrive infants. Fraiberg also described freezing behavior as one of the earliest modes of infant defense in the face of adverse situations threatening the infant's ability to synchronize with caregivers. We hypothesize that ISSWB behaviors are associated with poor vagal brake functioning and that an impaired social engagement system is induced by an impoverished and/or dangerous environment. Recent research using animal models highlight the neurobiology and the genetics of the social Approach/Withdrawal Behavior in infants. The present paper is therefore a plea for social withdrawal behavior to be attributed a more important role as a major psychological defensive mechanism in infancy, and for research into early development and early intervention to make more practical and theoretical use of this concept, thus decreasing the challenge of translation in social neurosciences. This work presents several situations involving developmental hazards in which assessment of ISSWB by means of the Alarm Distress Baby Scale (ADBB) has proven useful, i.e., malnutrition, effects of major maternal depression and or traumatization, assessing social withdrawal in infants with an chronic organic illness (congenital heart disease, Prader-Willi syndrome, cleft lip and/or palate Prader-Willy syndrome, Fetal alcohol syndrome) or assessing ISSWB in out of home placed infants during parental visitation. Relationships between ISSWB and other biophysiological behavioral systems are discussed, particularly links with attachment processes and Porges's polyvagal theory.

[The domain "social processes" in the system of research domain criteria: current state and perspectives]. / Die Domäne "soziale Prozesse" im System der Research Domain Criteria: aktueller Stand und Perspektive.

Social processes and their dysfunction, e.g. in autism spectrum disorders and psychotic disorders, have always been at the core of psychiatry. The last decades have led to impressive advances in our understanding of the underlying neurobiological mechanisms and also in the way we study and analyze social processes. Since their establishment, the research domain criteria have provided a powerful framework of how to operationalize and subdivide complex social processes in a way that it closely aligns to underlying neurobiological substrates while still enabling clinical approaches. In this article we summarize and discuss the most important findings for each of the four fundamental constructs of the social processes domain (a) binding and attachment, (b) social communication, (c) perception and understanding of self and (d) perception and understanding of others. We highlight the clinical relevance of the insights generated by the field of social neurosciences and discuss the resulting increasing importance of transdiagnostic concepts in applied research. Finally, we showcase three innovative research methods that build on the accelerating technological advances of the last decade and which will increasingly enable the study of complex social interactions in more realistic and ecologically valid settings.

Protect Others to Protect Myself: A Weakness of Western Countries in the Face of Current and Future Pandemics? Psychological and Neuroscientific Perspectives.

The COVID-19 pandemic has generated a large number of publications in the medical and biological fields concerning the virus and its treatments, as well as in psychology, social sciences, and data sciences with regard to the spread of the virus. Surprisingly, far fewer neuroscientific articles have been published in this field of research and one might well ask whether the cognitive neurosciences have anything to say at all about this vital topic. In this article, we highlight a research perspective relating to differences in the individual perception of the pandemic in Western compared to Eastern countries. Although this problem is complex, multifaceted and subsumes many other social variables, we suggest that the cognitive neurosciences do have important and fundamental insights to contribute concerning the collective response observed within these populations. More precisely, we propose the hypothesis that differences in the propensity to adopt a holistic perception of contamination processes at the group level, involving brain structures that are also associated with perspective-taking and empathy such as, in particular, the medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC) and the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), could help explain the differences in the perception of the pandemic observed between Western and Eastern countries.

Atypical Modulations of N170 Component during Emotional Processing and Their Links to Social Behaviors in Ex-combatants.

Emotional processing (EP) is crucial for the elaboration and implementation of adaptive social strategies. EP is also necessary for the expression of social cognition and behavior (SCB) patterns. It is well-known that war contexts induce socio-emotional atypical functioning, in particular for those who participate in combats. Thus, ex-combatants represent an ideal non-clinical population to explore EP modulation and to evaluate its relation with SCB. The aim of this study was to explore EP and its relation with SCB dimensions such as empathy, theory of mind and social skills in a sample of 50 subjects, of which 30 were ex-combatants from illegally armed groups in Colombia, and 20 controls without combat experience. We adapted an Emotional Recognition Task for faces and words and synchronized it with electroencephalographic recording. Ex-combatants presented with higher assertion skills and showed more pronounced brain responses to faces than Controls. They did not show the bias toward anger observed in control participants whereby the latter group was more likely to misclassify neutral faces as angry. However, ex-combatants showed an atypical word valence processing. That is, words with different emotions yielded no differences in N170 modulations. SCB variables were successfully predicted by neurocognitive variables. Our results suggest that in ex-combatants the links between EP and SCB functions are reorganized. This may reflect neurocognitive modulations associated to chronic exposure to war experiences.

Reflections on empathy in medical education: What can we learn from social neurosciences?

The role of empathy in human social interaction has been examined in several research fields, including medical education (ME) and social neuroscience (SN). SN yields insights into empathy based on neurobiological processes, and such information may also be relevant to ME. In this reflection article, the authors first critically review current definitions and concepts of empathy in ME and link them to recent SN findings. In the light of recent evidence from SN, research in ME regarding the positive and negative effects of empathy for physicians and patients is discussed, as well as the question whether (future) physicians differ from the general population with regard to empathic skills. Commonly used SN paradigms and ME approaches to assess empathy are contrasted, a joint approach is advocated, and implications for further interdisciplinary studies are outlined. Finally, the authors delineate the contribution of SN to the question of whether empathy is teachable, and argue that SN findings represent a potential for new ME training approaches. In conclusion, the authors discuss how the incorporation of perspectives on empathy from different research areas would benefit ME, and suggest the translation and integration of such findings into ME research approaches.

Dimensiones de la empatía en excombatientes del conflicto armado Colombiano utilizando una escala estandarizada / Dimensions of empathy in ex-combatants of the Colombian armed conflict using a standardized scale

Introducción: La empatía es uno de los constructos de la llamadas neurociencias sociales. Se define como una disposición de dimensiones múltiples que permite colocarse en el estado emocional del otro. Colombia presenta un conflicto interno irregular prolongado, que ha venido deteriorándose en crueldad. Objetivos: Evaluar las dimensiones de la empatía de 285 excombatientes del conflicto armado colombiano, usando el Índice de Reactividad Interpersonal (IRI) en español. Métodos y sujetos: Se seleccionó una muestra de 285 excombatientes, 241 (84,6 %) hombres: 85,3 % paramilitares y 14,7 % guerrilleros. Se les aplicó el IRI de 28 ítems. Se realizaron 3 análisis de factores exploratorios (AFE) y análisis factoriales confirmatorios (AFC), utilizando ecuaciones estructurales. Resultados: Un primer AFE obtuvo 9 factores (KMO = 0,74 y 54,7 % de varianza, consistencia interna [CI]: 0,22-0,63). Un segundo AFE con 20 ítems con cargas superiores a 0,4 mostró una estructura de 6 factores (KMO = 0,70, 50,3 % de varianza; CI: 0,37-0,63). Un tercer AFE forzó las 4 dimensiones originales (KMO = 0,74, varianza 33,77 % y CI: 0,44-0,77). El AFC mostró índices de bondad de ajuste adecuados para los 3 modelos. El de 4 factores obtuvo los más bajos, y el de 6 factores, los más altos. El modelo de 4 factores obtuvo la mejor CI. Conclusión: El IRI en español en excombatientes del conflicto Colombiano tiene estructuras posibles de 4, 6 y 9 factores. El mejor ajuste es la de 6 factores. La de 4 factores tuvo mejor CI.

Introduction: Empathy is one of the main concepts of in social neurosciences. It is defined as a trait with multiple dimensions allowing individuals to place themselves in the emotional states of others. Colombia has an irregular, internal and long-lasting armed conflict which has been increasing its cruelty levels. Objectives: to assess the empathy dimensions of 285 ex-combatants from the internal Colombian conflict, using the Interpersonal Reactivity Index(IRI) in Spanish. Methodology and Subjects: a sample of 285 male ex-combatants, 241 (84, 6%) males: 85,3% paramilitaries, and 14,7% guerillas. The 28 Item IRI questionnaires were administered. 3 exploratory factor analyses (EFA) were performed. Confirmatory factor analyses (CFA) were developed using structural equation procedures. Results: The first EFA obtained 9 factors (KMO=0,74, variance 54,7% and internal consistency (IC): 0,22 - 0,63). The second EFA produced 20 items with burdens above 0,4 and showed a 6-factor structure (KMO=0,70, variance 50,3%, IC: 0,37 - 0,63). The third EFA forced the 4 original IRI dimensions (KMO=0,74, variance 33,77, IC: 0,44 - 0,77. CFAs showed goodness of adjustment indexes adequate for the three models. The 4-factor model obtained the lowest value, while the 6-factor model obtained the highest. The 4- factor model showed the best IC. Conclusion: The Spanish IRI administered to ex-combatants of the Colombian conflict has possible structures of 4, 6 and 9 factors. The best adjustment was for the 6-fctor. The 4-factor model exhibited the best IC.

[Dimensions of Empathy in Ex-Combatants of the Colombian Armed Conflict Using a Standardized Scale]. / Dimensiones de la empatía en excombatientes del conflicto armado colombiano utilizando una escala estandarizada.

INTRODUCTION: Empathy is one of the main concepts of in social neurosciences. It is defined as a trait with multiple dimensions allowing individuals to place themselves in the emotional states of others. Colombia has an irregular, internal and long-lasting armed conflict which has been increasing its cruelty levels. OBJECTIVES: to assess the empathy dimensions of 285 ex-combatants from the internal Colombian conflict, using the Interpersonal Reactivity Index(IRI) in Spanish. METHODOLOGY AND SUBJECTS: a sample of 285 male ex-combatants, 241 (84, 6%) males: 85,3% paramilitaries, and 14,7% guerillas. The 28 Item IRI questionnaires were administered. 3 exploratory factor analyses (EFA) were performed. Confirmatory factor analyses (CFA) were developed using structural equation procedures. RESULTS: The first EFA obtained 9 factors (KMO=0,74, variance 54,7% and internal consistency (IC): 0,22 - 0,63). The second EFA produced 20 items with burdens above 0,4 and showed a 6-factor structure (KMO=0,70, variance 50,3%, IC: 0,37 - 0,63). The third EFA forced the 4 original IRI dimensions (KMO=0,74, variance 33,77, IC: 0,44 - 0,77. CFAs showed goodness of adjustment indexes adequate for the three models. The 4-factor model obtained the lowest value, while the 6-factor model obtained the highest. The 4- factor model showed the best IC. CONCLUSION: The Spanish IRI administered to ex-combatants of the Colombian conflict has possible structures of 4, 6 and 9 factors. The best adjustment was for the 6-fctor. The 4-factor model exhibited the best IC.