镜像神经元、具身模拟与心智阅读

Mirror Neuron,Embodied Simulation and Mind-Reading

镜像神经元是意大利帕尔玛大学的神经科学家Rizzolatti所领导的团队发现的一种新的运动神经元。这种神经元不仅在恒河猴执行一个指向目标的动作时被激活,而且在恒河猴观察同类其他个体或者实验者执行同样或类似的动作时也被激活。TMS和FMRI的研究证实在人类大脑皮层中存在着具有类似功能的镜像神经机制。镜像神经机制的存在为具身模拟提供了神经生理学的基础。镜像神经元在操作和观察两个阶段都可以被激活的事实表明,模拟过程实际上就是运动系统在观察阶段的重新激活。这种激活是知觉和运动状态在离线条件下的再使用。同时,镜像神经元在操作和观察两个阶段都被激活也解释了为什么我们能对他人的心理进行阅读和理解。通过具身的模拟,我们把他人的行为同自己的行为进行匹配,从而达到了解他人行为意义的目的。

Mirror neurons are a new class of visuomotor neurons in the premotor cortex of monkeys.These neurons fire both when an animal executes a goal-directed act and when the animal perceives the same kind of act being performed by a conspecific or by a human experimenter.Researches by TMS and FMRI provide evidence that there is mirror neuron system in human premotor cortex that has similar function like that of monkey＇s.Mirror neuron system in human brain is the neural-physiological foundation of embodied simulation.The fact that mirror neurons fire in both execution and observation shows that simulation processes are actually a kind of reuse of motor systems.The reason why we can understand others＇ behavior（or why we can read others＇ mind） is that we may simulate others＇ experiences by mirror neuron systems.By embodied simulation,we match others＇ behavior with our own and thus mind-reading becomes possible.