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Updated: Aug 15, 2026

Examining Recall Memory in Infancy and Early Childhood Using the Elicited Imitation Paradigm
Published on: April 28, 2016
Neural mechanisms of imitation
1Ahmanson-Lovelace Brain Mapping Center, 660 Charles E. Young Drive South, Los Angeles, California 90095, USA. Iacoboni@loni.ucla.edu
Abstract:
Recent advances in our knowledge of the neural mechanisms of imitation suggest that there is a core circuitry of imitation comprising the superior temporal sulcus and the 'mirror neuron system', which consists of the posterior inferior frontal gyrus and adjacent ventral premotor cortex, as well as the rostral inferior parietal lobule. This core circuitry communicates with other neural systems according to the type of imitation performed. Imitative learning is supported by interaction of the core circuitry of imitation with the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and perhaps motor preparation areas--namely, the mesial frontal, dorsal premotor and superior parietal areas. By contrast, imitation as a form of social mirroring is supported by interaction of the core circuitry of imitation with the limbic system.
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