共情中的具身模拟现象与神经机制

Embodied Simulation and Neural Mechanisms of Empathy

共情是人类长期进化形成的感受和理解他人情感的能力。大量研究认为模拟是共情发生的重要机制。观察他人的情绪会自动激活观察者加工自身相应情绪的脑区,并伴随生理唤醒、面部表情的自动模拟以及匹配他人躯体动作等具身现象。本文用模拟的视角来整合具身认知和社会认知神经科学的研究成果,系统总结了共情过程中具身的和内部的模拟现象,并通过以镜像神经元为基础的共享表征理论阐释了人们如何通过模拟来理解他人情绪的神经过程。最后,作者针对当前共情研究中的局限性提出未来所要解决的问题和面临的挑战。

Empathy, formulated in millions of years of evolution, is the capacity to share and understand the emotional state of another person. Simtdation is thought to be a major mechanism in empathy in previous studies. Empathy automati- cally activated neural circuits involved in processing similar emotion, along with embodied phenomenon such as shared physiology, facial mimicry and mapping bodily movement. The present article tried to integrate of the theories of embodied cognition and social cognitive neuroscience on empathy, and sum up embodied and inner simulation phenomenon of empa- thy. We proposed how to understand someone else＇ s emotion through simulating the same emotion of ourselves based on shared representation and mirror neuron system. Finally, we pointed a way to future study based on the current challenges and problems.