The Neural Basis Of Intention Understanding: An Erp Study

Theory-of-mind (ToM) which plays an important role in human social interactions is an ability to understand how other's behaviors are motivated by their internal mental states,intention understanding is an important part of Theory-of-mind.Intention is an mind state and is a representation of mind,it play a role as agency between desire and action. We can consider it as attitude before action.Intention understanding is a reasoning procedure,we usually consider it as the use of mental zing or Theory-of-mind (ToM). Through employing the normal undergraduate as participants, using ERP technology to discuss the nervous mechanism of intention understanding. By pointing out the defects of previous studies in this area, this dissertation exerted the advantage of high temporal resolution of ERP, recorded the EEG data from 64 scalp electrodes by ERP system (Neuroscan Inc.). Present dissertation analyzed the behavioral performance (accuracy and reaction times), components off-line.The present dissertation consists of two ERP studies. The task of the first one is to distinguish intentions, participants were requIired to distinguish whether the intention of the actor is logical.We recorded and analysed the changs of EEG while the task were accomplished by participants to reveal the time characteristic of logical intention and illogical intention understanding.We found in the 600ms-1000ms two tasks induced a significantly amplitude difference, waveform performance of the tasks is that the amplitude of illogical intention is positive higer than the amplitude of logical intention.And the amplitude of N2 in two tasks are significantly different.The task of the second study is to judge causality sort, participants were requIired to distinguish which sort is the causality presented belongs to in order to research the differencese in how to process the three causalities.We found in the 400ms-1000ms the three causalities induced a significantly amplitude difference, and the amplitude is significantly different between left and right hemisphere.From the two above studies we found that different sorts of intention had actived different brain areas,and they had different mechanisms.