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Neuroscience: Social networks in the brain

Nature Human Behaviour volume 1, Article number: 0104 (2017) Cite this article

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Functional magnetic resonance imaging and social network analysis show that on viewing familiar individuals in a small social network, the brain activates regions critical for inferring mental states and intentions, as well as regions associated with spatial navigation and psychological distance.

The past decade has seen increasing recognition that a driving force behind human brain evolution may have been the complex demands of living in social groups1. As a fundamentally social species, humans form complex social networks that foster competition or cooperation where we must track not only our own direct relationships but indirectly monitor and understand others’ relationships as well. Traditionally, different fields have approached the study of human social groups in different ways. Sociologists quantify the structure of real-world social networks. Social psychologists ask how we judge individuals or groups and how status differences influence behaviour. And neuroscientists identify brain systems for recognizing social cues or thinking about mental states. To have a complete, multi-level understanding of our social nature2, however, these approaches must be integrated to explain how group-level phenomena — like network status — are supported by specific neural systems.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. James P. Curley and Kevin N. Ochsner are in the Department of Psychology, Columbia University, 1190 Amsterdam Avenue, New York, New York 10025, USA.,

    James P. Curley & Kevin N. Ochsner

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  1. James P. Curley
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  2. Kevin N. Ochsner
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Correspondence to Kevin N. Ochsner.

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Curley, J., Ochsner, K. Neuroscience: Social networks in the brain. Nat Hum Behav 1, 0104 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-017-0104

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