Alternative Brain Connectivity Underscores Age-Related Differences in the Processing of Interactive Biological Motion

Area of Science:

• Social Neuroscience
• Developmental Neuroscience
• Cognitive Neuroscience

Background:

• Understanding social interactions is crucial for human development.
• Previous research focused on adult social cognition, leaving developmental aspects understudied.
• Key brain regions involved in social interaction processing are not fully understood across age groups.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the developmental trajectory of social interaction processing.
• To identify how different sources of social information (body motion, mental states) support brain responses to interactive biological motion.
• To compare neural processing strategies in children and adults.

Main Methods:

• Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to measure brain activity.
• Participants included children (6-12 years) and adults.
• Stimuli involved point-light displays of two interacting human figures.

Main Results:

• Children showed functional connectivity supporting superior temporal sulcus responses with mentalizing network nodes.
• Adults demonstrated stronger reliance on regions processing body information and dynamic social interactions.
• Distinct patterns of brain connectivity were observed between children and adults in response to interactive biological motion.

Conclusions:

• Adults utilize efficient action-intention understanding via body and biological motion processing.
• Children rely more on inferring hidden mental states for understanding social interactions.
• These findings highlight distinct neuro-cognitive strategies supporting social interaction understanding across development.