Mirror Neurons in the Macaque Monkey: A Critical Review

In a number of experimental studies carried out in Italy in the early 1990s, it was observed that a set of neurons from the macaque monkey premotor cortex is activated both when a specific action is performed and when the same action is simply observed. These neurons were given the evocative name of "mirror neurons". In this article, the conclusions from these studies and subsequent elaborations are reviewed in order to examine their soundness in theoretical terms.