(Details) Social Neuroscience

The following review of Decety and Leong (2025) is done through the lens of Dual Interest Theory (DIT) in Metaeconomics.  For an overview of DIT in Metaeconomics, see Lynne (2020), Lynne and Czap (2023), and the FAQ page on the Metaeconomics.info website.   DIT uses the dual interest notions of ego&empathy as represented in said circuitry in the brain, as in an empathy-based self-interest integrated, joint, and nonseparable with the empathy-based shared with the other-interest. It is about ego&empathy, self&other-interest, me&we, individual&social, individual&common good, and writ large, striking balance in the jointly operant profane&sacred, and, the joint effort of market&government.

DIT sees the elements on either side of the “&” as working jointly within the brain, as in the more ego-oriented part of the brain jointly operant with the more empathy-oriented part of the brain.  Said integration is done in an integrated manner with the self-command, decision-oriented part of the brain which strikes the balance.  The balancing is depicted abstractly in Figure 1, where each person is working to strike a balance between the self-interest of path 0G and the jointly arising shared with the other-interest of path 0M, working to find the better path 0Z.

Notice the two sets of isocurves are overlapping, as in representing the nonallocable nature of the ego&empathy circuits. What comes out of said nonseparable circuitry cannot be put into separable accounts.  Human decision making --- consistent with claims in social psychology and social neuroscience --- is about striking a balance in the jointly operant individual&social on some homeostatic path 0Z, brought about by the overlapping decision circuitry in the brain.

Figure 1 represents the individual decision space, as when one enters into buying and selling inputs and goods within a Market Forum. Notice how the social preference represented on path 0M jointly arises with the individual preference represented on path 0G, resulting in the best choice on some path 0Z.

DIT also has implications for political economy, as in seeing the jointness in Market&Community:Government processes, the latter operating at many levels in an inclusive (the “:” meaning inclusive) democracy based system.  Overall, individual choice in the domain of economy&society is about interaction of the Market-Forum&Other-Forum(s), the latter represented in many overlapping layers --- overlapping shared with the other-interest layers in human experience. Figure 2 represents the Other Forum of Community:Government wherein individuals interact to find common ground which  in turn influences the  individual good chosen in Figure 1. The Other Forum gives context to, and influences, the Market Forum --- and, it goes both directions.

The individual engages in many different Other Forums, as represented in the social and political in the form of family through extended family to community --- the latter to include all manner of civil, social and political clubs and organizations --- followed by the community of shared with the other represented at the state, and national levels.  And, again:  All said Other Forums give context to the more individualized interaction in the buying and selling within a Market Forum.

Using the DIT lens given clarity by Figures 1 and 2, we now move into the Review of Decety and Leong (2025).  Given the deep roots of DIT in social psychology, especially in using similar empirical tests, the DIT lens works well.

WHAT IS SOCIAL NEUROSCIENCE?

Roots in social psychology:  “It relies on integrating knowledge from diverse disciplines and methods, on topics that are classically examined in social psychology, and this across multiple levels of analyses … grounded in the premise that there are lawful relationships among biological, psychological, and social processes. It is thus essential to examine several levels to integrate their combined and dynamical properties. (p.  1).”  Through the DIT lens, social psychology and social neuroscience are both about explaining the jointness in individual&social choice on path 0Z in both Figures 1 and 2. DIT represents the biological, psychological and social processes across multiple levels of analysis.  As noted, DIT also has roots in social psychology, with the earliest empirical testing of DIT drawing heavily on the empirical techniques used in social psychology (Lynne and Rola 1988; Lynne, Shonkwiler and Rola 1988; Lynne 1995; Lynne et al 1995). Both DIT and social psychology are about the balance in me&we, self&other, so it is a good fit.

DIT represents an integration across multiple disciplines and levels of analysis, while giving an alternative kind of economic framework that serves well in addressing all manner of economic&social choice.  It is about a DIT in Metaeconomics, working to transcend SIT (Single Interest Theory, seeing ego-based self-interest only) in mainstream Microeconomics.  It is also about offering a form of the new Humanomics, with DIT at the core.

A Brief History Of The Discipline

The term “social neuroscience” was “… formally introduced in a 1992 American Psychologist… for  academics working at the intersection of social psychology and neuroscience… capitalizes on biological concepts and methods … focused on the neural basis of human social and affective processes (p. 2).” 

An Interdisciplinary Enterprise

The interdisciplinary character of Social Neurosciences is highlighted:  “Examples range from nationally representative surveys that include biomarkers and genetic data, behavioral studies, functional neuroimaging with electroencephalography or functional magnetic resonance imaging, pharmacological manipulations, neuroendocrinological and autonomic nervous system functions, hormones, sociograms, and lesion studies with neurological patients (p. 2).” 

The point is to the “added value of integrating multiple levels of analysis (p. 2).”  Yes, indeed: DIT is built on the same approach.

Multiple Levels Of Analyses

Note how “… explanatory power of integrative multilevel analysis is evident when attempting to model complex phenomena that develop over disparate levels of neural organization… (said) Vertical integration does not require that we all say the same thing, whether we are biologists, psychologists, sociologists, or economists, but that we say things that are compatible and mutually consistent. Even when holistic explanations are more appropriate and more coherent than reductionist explanations, they must not violate principles established at lower levels of explanation… (p. 2).”  DIT is all in.

Especially noted how said integrative, multiple levels of analysis have led to documenting the prominent role of empathy, which is the key idea in DIT  --- that empathy-based ethics must work to temper ego-based incentive:   “… our understanding of empathy advanced when this phenomenological notion was broken down into distinctive dimensions such as affective, cognitive, and motivational… affective dimension is consistent with emotional contagion that exists in a great many species, inducing social transmission of information, coordination,  bonding, and shared experiences… cognitive dimension of empathy, also called theory-of-mind or perspective-taking, refers to the capacity to represent and reason about one’s own and other people’s intentions, emotions, and beliefs. Both affect sharing and theory of mind can induce a motivation to care for the other’s welfare… “  Yes.  In the realm of empathy, the cognitive, affective, and moral judgement all resolved in the decision circuitry lead to a better choice on some path 0Z, as DIT makes clear.  Such resolution reflects “… evolved abilities … (in a response) … to social signals necessary for surviving, reproducing, understanding self and others, and maintaining well-being.” Path 0Z is the path of well-being, striking good balance in the individual&common good, the profane&sacred.

Empathy is a real, biological phenomenon in the brain, represented in circuitry and regions bringing it into play, “… implemented by a network of distributed, recursively connected, interacting neural circuits, including the brainstem, amygdala, hypothalamus, striatum, insula, anterior cingulate cortex, medial prefrontal cortex, temporoparietal junction, and orbitofrontal cortex, as well as autonomic nervous system and the neuroendocrine system.”  And, yes, a real motivation arises out of same, “.. to care for and help others … associated with a feeling of satisfaction.”  The latter is displayed on path 0M, and, works with some sacrifice in self-interest payoffs on path 0G to bring the person to a better place on path 0Z, 

Said choice on path 0Z reflects “… altruistic decisions to help or to give resources consistently activate the reward and value-computation networks…”  Sacrificing a bit in both domains of the profane self and the sacred other is represented on path 0Z.

The Scope Of Social Neuroscience

The joint, nonseparable interaction between genetic&cultural evolution is acknowledged. So, some choices are subconscious in the realm of the nonconscious, to save both time and energy, which is an evolutionary trait. The following list is provided, looking at major features characterizing the human (animal) species:

•      Reduced sexual dimorphism

•      Neoteny imposed by bipedalism, which calls for a protective social organization and favors late cerebral development

•      Community reproduction (alloparental assistance)

•      Language

•      Shared intentionality

•      Importance of social information and communicating it, which allows regulating interactions with others

•      Morality as a sense of obligation that humans feel toward one another

•      Capacity for collective action

•      Social emotions, such as envy, guilt, remorse, shame, and pride

•      Receptivity to socialization and learning from others

•      High levels of cooperation with non-kin that are enforced by social norms and control mechanisms such as punishment and reward, reputation, or ostracism

•      Diffusion of sociality through social networks

•      Gene-culture co-evolution

Yet, humans are not as unique from other animal species as some used to believe.  Empathy is a case in point:  It has been found in a wide array of other animal species like various kinds of apes and monkeys, dolphins, elephants and dogs, to list a few.  Empathy is an evolved, biological&cultural feature affecting human choice.

SYNCHRONY

Empathy plays a key role in what is known as synchrony, with it noted that “ synchronization in people has been observed across a wide variety of actions and social settings – from the synchronized clapping at the end of a concert… to the synchronized gait patterns of people walking side by side … affective states and physiological signals are also synchronized across individuals experiencing the same event…to synchronize might be a stable individual difference that generalizes across contexts”   DIT makes clear said synchronizing in a Market Forum comes from empathy-with the trader on the way to finding a price P that works for both buyer and seller.  Empathy may be the underlying source of what some refer to as the invisible hand of the Market Forum.

Synchrony Between Brains

It is noted how “ studies have identified a core set of brain regions that are more synchronized when subjects have similar interpretations of a narrative, including the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex, ventromedial prefrontal cortex, posterior cingulate/precuneus, temporoparietal junction, anterior temporal lobe … (said) regions overlap with the ‘default mode network’, which has been implicated in maintaining internally constructed representations …  as well as the network of regions thought to constitute ‘the social brain’ (p. ).”  Empathy comes out of the latter.

Factors That Promote Interbrain Synchrony

The point is to “… three core factors that promote interbrain synchrony: (1) shared perspective, (2) joint attention and (3) communication.”  The perspective taking comes from cognitive empathy.

Shared Perspective

Joining into shared perspective with another, as in cognitive empathy, whether manipulated or just naturally occurring, results in similar reactions to the same stimuli. Shared perspective generally leads to interpreting a story the same way.

Joint Attention

Direct eye-to-eye contact makes both more focused on the issue at hand.  Said joint attention can be nudged, orchestrated by others.

Communication

The talk-talk-talk among better communicators can induce synchrony.  Any talk helps; the better communicators can stir more synchrony.

Future Of Interbrain Synchrony Research

Points to how “most evidence relating interbrain synchrony to behavioral outcomes has been correlational. An important direction for future research is to causally test the role of interbrain synchrony in facilitating social interactions. The incorporation of methods such as transcranial magnetic stimulation … and real-time neurofeedback …  are particularly promising… (p. ).”

SOCIAL CONNECTIONS

As also suggested by DIT,  with the overlapping path 0M with path 0G interests, “Affiliation and supportive social relationships are vital for an individual’s physical and psychological welfare across their life span. Human beings are intrinsically motivated to form and maintain lasting, positive, and significant relationships (p. ).”  It is simply in our nature to jointly pursue good balance in the ego(individual)&empathy(common) good that comes from individual pursuits tempered by social connection.

Evolutionary Roots

Pointed out how successful evolution depends on social connections:  “… results of many studies with primates are clear: having more and better ‘friends’ is significantly related to reproductive success .. quality social bonds matter more than social rank and status in surviving and thriving … (said connections found)  not only in baboons, chimpanzees and other primates, but also in elephants, hyenas, whales and dolphins … growing evidence that natural selection favors the formation of stable positive social bonds associated with friendship relationships (p. ?).”

Biological Mechanisms Of The Links Between Sociality And Health

Studies show that ”…the presence and proximity of others helps to maintain costly somatic and metabolic resources … Social networks in general provide reliable positive experiences and a stable and comforting set of social relationships … social connections also play a protective role in the face of physical, economic, and emotional challenges or injuries (p. ?).”

Impact Of Positive Relationships

Relationships are represented in DIT on path 0M.  It is pointed out that “both common sense and empirical studies (show) that satisfying interpersonal relationships have a robust positive association with happiness and health … positive interpersonal process is a social dynamic in which one person's thoughts, feelings, and behavior alter those of another, and is fueled by positive emotions … (which) also promote social interaction by synchronizing brain activity across individuals, especially in the dorsal attention network, together facilitating interpersonal understanding (p. 12).” Also, “a large body of evidence demonstrates that social support is related to the autonomic nervous, neuroendocrine, and immune systems in ways that confer protection against disease (p. 12).”

The Lack Of Social Connection

And, not having access to path 0M kinds of relationships is damaging, as in “… prolonged absence of social connection, as measured by perceived loneliness, has deleterious effects that are expressed at all levels of biological organization, from gene expression to psychological well-being (p. 13).”   A lack of path 0M interactions leads to all manner of problems for the individual, as in the Me needs a We to Be:  “ loneliness and social isolation increase anxiety, and the activity of the hypothalamic-pituitary axis (the neuroendocrine system that controls stress responses and regulates many biological processes including digestion, the immune system, mood and emotion, sexuality, and energy storage and expenditure), and cause sleep fragmentation…  suffering from loneliness experience negative feelings, and notice unpleasant concepts more quickly and intensely than others, which tends to increase their anxiety and promote the onset of depression (p. 14).” 

Fortunately, a person can change the situation, as in it it is:  “… possible to change … by thinking of others and being generous with one's time, smile or money. The important thing, and probably the most difficult one, is to be the agent that spontaneously and voluntarily initiates such actions (p. 15).”  DIT finishes that story with “… but without a Me there is no We.”  It is about Me&We on path 0Z.

SOCIAL NETWORKS

As DIT also makes clear, each person is “embedded within intricate webs of social relationships and interactions … (said) … relationships and interactions have a powerful influence over nearly every aspect of daily life, including health, well-being, and professional success (p. 15).”  In contrast to SIT which ignores the relationship with the other (except in the flawed “patch” to SIT with the utility of the other person inserted in the self-interest only max U function), DIT sees the networks as essential.

A Network Science Approach To Studying Social Networks

Notes how “Networks of social relationships can be represented as a ‘network graph’ where each individual is a ‘node’ that is connected to other individuals by ‘edges’. Network graphs can be mapped out by having individuals nominate other individuals based on a metric of interest (e.g., friendship, popularity, attractiveness; … by collecting objective measures of connection strength (e.g., number of co-authored articles between scientists)…  construct the network graph, a network can be ‘directed’ or ‘undirected’ (p. 16).”  Network graphs, in DIT terms, are mappings of the shared with the other interest across many path 0M trajectories.

The Neural Representation Of Social Networks

Going the brain level, the person in the experiment “viewed photographs of their fellow group members while undergoing fMRI. Activity in regions associated with affective valuation, such as the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (VMPFC), ventral striatum and amygdala, as well as regions associated with theory-of-mind such as the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex, precuneus, and temporoparietal junction correlated with the popularity of the viewed target (p. 17).”  It is all about the empathy circuitry, as in “information is encoded most prominently in regions associated with affective valuation and regions associated with theory-of-mind (p. 17).”  Both affective and cognitive empathy are in play.

Learning The Structure Of Social Relationships

It is pointed out that several “studies suggest that the brain may rely on the same neural systems involved in navigating physical space to navigate social space (p. 18).”  It is noted how  “researchers also found similar grid-like coding of social space in medial prefrontal cortex, superior temporal sulcus, anterior temporal lobe, and temporoparietal junction… (said) additional regions have been widely associated with social cognition, and the grid-like representation may reflect modulation from the entorhinal cortex when navigating social knowledge … the brain relies on similar neural processes to navigate physical and social spaces (p. 19).”

SOCIAL HIERARCHIES

It is pointed out that the brain is wired to acknowledge social hierarchy, as in “Neural circuits engaged in the perception of social status piggyback on systems that evolved for selective attention, person perception, computing rank order comparison, and valuation. Change or rank in social status affects the immune system, gene expression, the neuroendocrine system as well as activity in specific brain circuits (p. 19).”

Notes how “… human status hierarchies are not only based on dominance and agonistic behavior, but also on consensual deference to legitimate leaders and competent experts … structure of human hierarchies is thus highly flexible, multidimensional, and dependent on multiple contexts, history, and other related factors (p. ?).” 

And, evolutionarily speaking, said “… hierarchies dynamically emerge because they are an effective way to maximize group cohesion, minimize aggression, define social roles, promote appropriate interactions, facilitate social learning and allocate scarce resources. As a cultural species, learning from each other plays an adaptive role, and explains why we automatically and unconsciously attend from other conspecifics based on cues of prestige, success, and skills (p. ??).” And, it affects the balance in ego-based selfishness&empathy-based selflessness, as in participants in an experiment “… who had been temporarily imbued with a higher social standing (by carrying the luxury purse in this experiment) were significantly more likely to behave selfishly (p. ??).”

Proximal Mechanisms Of Social Rank Perception

Endocrine system related hormones affect and are affected by social rankings.  For example, “After a game, male players who won show elevated levels of testosterone compared to those who lost  … true even when the competition involves no muscle action, as in chess competition, with a rise in testosterone before the game that either stays elevated or decreased depending on the outcome (p. ??).”  And, testosterone can affect females, too, as in “Administration of testosterone versus placebo in female participants increases utilitarian response to moral dilemmas and has a profound effect on neural activity. It reduces activity in the temporoparietal region and decreases functional coupling between the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and amygdala … seems clear that testosterone plays an important role in maintaining and achieving a high social status (p. ??).”

Different brain circuitry is involved: “…key aspect of navigating social hierarchies is knowing where to orient attention, with dominant individuals receiving disproportionate attention compared to subordinates … requires computations of social ranking comparison in the intraparietal sulcus (IPS), which plays a crucial role in numerical magnitude judgment. The IPS also acts with the frontal eye fields to exert top down influences on visual areas during the spatial orienting of attention. Functional MRI studies have consistently demonstrated that neurodynamic activity in the IPS is modulated by the implicit perception of social status signals inferred from objects, symbols (e.g., military medals), faces, or dominant bodily postures … in keeping with numerical comparison … a greater degree of activity is detected in that region when the hierarchical difference between two stimuli was closer than when the difference was greater…(p. ??).”

And, other circuitry is also involved:  “Social information is represented in other functional systems as well. The medial prefrontal cortex, temporoparietal region (involved in reasoning about intentions, desires and beliefs), and the systems that code value and saliency (amygdala, striatum, and orbitofrontal cortex) are preferentially engaged when one perceives and interacts with people of high social status (p. ??).”  Also, one sees “selective activation in the orbitofrontal cortex is detected… involvement of this value-sensitive region, which belongs to the extended face-processing network, seems to discriminate high- from low-status individuals (p. ??).”

Impact Of Socioeconomic Status On Health

Overall, as DIT makes clear, extreme inequality in income, wealth, and the social hierarchy it buys, the less healthy a country will be in both domains of profane-economy&sacred-society.  In, contrast, as Decety and Leong point out “the lower the degree of inequality, the healthier the society. A 2014 report from the World Bank concluded that in the developed world, it is not the richest countries that have the best levels of health and life expectancy, but the most egalitarian ones (as measured by the gap between the rich and the poor) (p. ??).”  So, while the “organization of groups into hierarchies serves adaptive functions that benefit all members, and natural selection has shaped our perceptual, cognitive, hormonal, and neurophysiological systems to detect and flexibly adapt to social status signals. … rank in hierarchies can also dramatically influence the quality of life and health (p. ??).”

MOTIVATED COGNITION

Confirmation bias is real, as in justifying the voting for an unethical and/or incompetent politician, rationalizing the choice. 

What Is Motivated Cognition?

In social psychology and social neuroscience, it is “referring to a consistent bias in cognitive processing that steers people towards desired conclusions… includes phenomena such as wishful seeing, self-enhancement effects, unrealistic optimism, and motivated reasoning (p. ??).”

Wishful Seeing

In effect, it is “biased towards seeing the world in a way that fits with their goals, desires, and needs … biasing people to see the world not as it is, but how they wish it to be (p. ??).”  It is common in supporting political candidates. It is concluded “… that use of computational model and neuroimaging provides converging evidence that wishful seeing reflects both a bias in judgment and a bias in perception (p. ??).”

Motivated Self And Social Perception

It has also been found that “Across a wide range of desirable abilities, attributes and personality traits, people tend to think of themselves as better than their average peer (p. ??).”  People sometimes do things like convert “negative information about themselves … when acting in a selfish manner, one might justify their actions in a way that preserves their perception of themselves as kind and generous. Alternatively, positive self-perceptions can also arise from greater accessibility of positive information about the self (p. ??).”

And, it is brain circuitry related,  like in:  “Activity in the orbitofrontal cortex and dorsal anterior cingulate cortex, brain areas associated with cognitive control…  were negatively correlated with positive self-evaluations, suggesting positive self-perceptions are more likely when the brain is less engaged in controlled processing (p. ??).”  Also, positive evaluations of romantic partners were similarly negatively correlated with  activity in the orbitofrontal cortex and the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex … results suggest that above-average judgments of self and close others arise from automatic processes (p. ??).”  It has also been found “the cognitive and neural mechanisms that give rise to overly positive self-perceptions likely differ depending on the social context (p. ??).”

Unrealistic Optimism

It has been  found that “… people have unrealistically optimistic beliefs about the future … (and, they) … ought to update those beliefs when confronted with information indicating that their beliefs are overly positive. Yet, optimistic beliefs often persist in the face of contradictory information… (p. ??).”

GROUP DYNAMICS

People need to feel part of a group.  As a result, the tendency to draw boundaries between “us” and “them” is real. Intergroup empathy or not is in play.

Amygdala Responses To In-Group And Out-Group Faces

Amygdala response had been noticed in studies looking into racism.  But, later studies found that amygdala response was more associated with in-group vs out-group considerations. It was found that “… amygdala activity was higher when participants viewed in-group faces than out-group faces. As there was no reason for participants to be prejudiced against in-group members, the authors argued that the heightened amygdala response was unlikely to reflect threat processing, but rather the motivational relevance of in-group faces… (p. ??).”

Group Membership Modulates Neural Responses In The Fusiform Face Area

Research has gone beyond just the amygdala to look into “…neural responses in the fusiform face area (FFA) to in-group and out-group faces … activity in the FFA tends to (be) higher when viewing same-race faces than other-race faces … (but) FFA was sensitive to the distinction between in-group and out-group faces rather than race per se … results suggest that the heightened FFA activity reflects enhanced processing of in-group faces rather than diminished processing of out-group faces (p. ??).”  Overall, the research suggests “…the FFA is narrowly tuned to distinguish between in-group members, but more broadly tuned to category membership for out-group members (p. ??).”

Intergroup Biases In Empathy

Generally, the research suggests “Reduced empathy for the out-group can thus lead to a decreased propensity to act prosocially towards out-group members… group membership affects empathic responses …  (people watched in video) individuals experiencing painful (i.e. pricked by a needle) and non-painful (i.e. touched by a cotton Q-tip) stimulation. Viewing an ingroup member experience painful stimulation was associated with greater activity in the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC), an effect that was not observed when viewing an outgroup member experience the same painful stimulation (p. ??).”

It was found that the “… dACC, AI, and somatosensory cortex are activated when one experiences pain, as well as when one observes someone else experience pain … overlap in brain regions associated with experienced and observed pain has led to the proposal that observing someone else experience pain is aversive, and can motivate behaviors to alleviate the pain of others… reduced empathic responses to the pain of outgroup members can have consequences for intergroup helping (p. ??).”

Also, it was found that a person “helped the ingroup member more than the outgroup member, and the degree of helping was associated with stronger activations in the AI … results suggest that negative affect associated with viewing an ingroup member experience pain can motivate costly helping, and the reduction in this empathic response for outgroup members reduces intergroup helping … found that the activity in  the nucleus accumbens, a region associated with reward and positive affect, was associated with not helping the outgroup member, suggesting that a schadenfreude-like signal is also involved in reducing the tendency of intergroup helping (p. ??).” Overall, the studies “… consistently illustrate reduced empathy for outgroup suffering, and present a bleak picture of intergroup relations… (yet, it can be nudged, as found in an fMRIStudy, as in) experiences with outgroup members can reduce the empathy gap towards the outgroup (p. ??).”

SOCIAL INFLUENCE

Clearly “decisions are often influenced by the opinions, actions and decisions of others… (so, seeing) a large and growing interest in understanding the neurocognitive correlates of social influence (p. ??).”

Neural Correlates Of Conformity

Used an fMRI approach “examining the neural correlates of conformity … presented participants with a series of faces and had them rate the attractiveness of each face … examined neural responses when participants first were informed of the average rating to identify brain activity that predicted subsequent conformity. Relative to trials where the average rating was consistent with the participant’s rating, trials where the average rating diverged from the participant’s rating was associated with an increase in activity in the posterior medial prefrontal cortex (pMPFC), an area of the brain associated with cognitive control. In addition, there was a decrease in activity in the ventral striatum, an area associated with reward processing. Both the activation in the pMPFC and deactivation in the ventral striatum were associated with the extent to which participants later adjusted their ratings to more closely align with the average rating of the group (p. ??).” 

Issue here is conformity: “… the ventral striatum is thought to encode a reward prediction error signal that encodes whether an outcome is better or worse than expected. Thus, the deactivation in the striatum in response to a discrepancy between self and group rating is consistent with the interpretation that deviating from the group norm is aversive (i.e. a negative outcome). This negative reinforcement signal is then conveyed to the pMPFC, which in turn adjusts participants’ ratings towards the group norm (p. ??).”  So, in-group norms do influence choice.  Path 0M trajectories held by the in-group influence the ultimate path 0Z choice more than a path 0M laid down by an out-group.

Dissociating Genuine Attitude Change From Public Compliance

DIT speaks to soft-& influence and hard-& compliance. Research suggests “…that social influence changed participants’ attitudes, and that their conformity was not merely public compliance to group norms. Certainly, the results do not imply that conformity always reflects true attitude change, but they highlight how fMRI can be used as a tool to detect it when it does (p. ??).”

Social Preference Moderates Conformity Effects

Consistent with DIT framing, “people tend to shift their preferences closer to the preferences of liked others and away from the preferences of disliked others (p. ??).”  So, the idea of shared with the other preferences is real, and, one will find more overlap with the liked (we might suppose the “us”) and less with the unliked (the “them”). Continuing:  “In line with the predictions of balance theory, participants shifted their preferences to align with the preferences of the liked group and away from the preferences of the disliked group (p. ??).”

The point is to activity in the pMPFC, with the “pMPFC … more active when the liked group also disliked the T-shirt the participant liked, as well as when the disliked group liked the T-shirt the participant liked …  magnitude of pMPFC activation was associated with the degree of subsequent attitude change … involvement of the pMPFC in both conforming to liked others and distancing from disliked others suggest that the two processes draw on similar neural mechanisms.

Notably, the pMPFC has also been shown to correlate with cognitive dissonance when making difficult decisions for oneself…  pMPFC may encode a general cognitive inconsistency signal and various forms of cognitive inconsistencies posited by different social psychological theories might share common neurobiological roots (p. ??).”  People out of synch across the shared with the other-interest work to bring it back into balance, and, then, going to balance on path 0Z.

Learning From Advice

Research suggests  not only that seeking “..expert advice allows people to capitalize on the expertise and knowledge of others who know more than they do… (but also)  people can avoid costly mistakes and make better decisions … propensity to seek out, take, and give advice is thought to be crucial to the growth and evolution of human culture (p. ??).” 

So, sorting truly accurate advice from misinformation or disinformation, the latter to include outrageous claims, also becomes essential. It is a serious issue, as bad advice tends to keep people with it, as in “ given advice that is on average inaccurate, ventral striatum response to positive outcomes when following the advice was associated with the tendency to perseverate when following the bad advice, even though participants would have performed better if they had ignored the advice… provide a possible explanation for why investors often follow the investment advice of stock pundits who are no better than chance at predicting the market, and consumers adopt questionable health remedies recommended by medical talk shows (p. ??).” And, overall, “while people are capable of discerning good from bad advice, they require a disproportionate amount of evidence to overcome their natural tendency to discount bad advice (p. ??).”

COOPERATION AND SOCIAL PREFERENCES

Cooperation is essential for evolution.  Yet, while self-interest is primal, both “prosocial and egoistic motivations shape decision-making (p. ??).”  DIT makes clear it is done jointly, as in ego-based-individualistic&empathy-based-prosocial operants. Cooperation --- the social preference for it, as shared with the other --- is represented on path 0M.

It is claimed:  “ Evolutionary theory provides a theoretical framework to explain why cooperative behaviors emerge in nature and assumes that these abilities contributed to the reproductive success of our ancestors. The general idea is that humans are not only selfish but also many are intrinsically motivated by principles of fairness and reciprocity (p. ??).”  DIT clarifies that the Huma is jointly selfish&selfless, the latter driven by how that Human also wants to be treated, as in the notions of fairness and reciprocity.

The claims go on with two explanations for the function of sociability:  “… the ultimate explanation and the proximal explanation … ultimate explanation suggests that sociability improves the chances of survival and reproduction through the strengthening of social cohesion and cooperation … proximal explanation maintains that sociability is partly underpinned by intuitive mechanisms, or non-conscious motivations, which are relayed and reinforced by complex cognitive mechanisms and require an efficient brain (p. ??).”

Cooperation through sociality is represented  in DIT on path 0M.  Said cooperation comes at cost in the payoff within the profane self-interest domain. 

Yet, cooperation is also not maximized, as some sacrifice in the domain of sacred cooperation is essential for an adequate payoff in the self-interest domain.  Path 0Z registers sacrifice in both domains.

Sapiens As An Ultrasocial Species

Normal development of the human species points to the fact that “..before their second birthday, toddlers develop equity based expectations of fairness in which individuals are expected to receive the treatment they deserve in specific situations, like an equitable share of windfall resources (p. ??).” Well, clearly some never mature beyond a 2-year old state of mind, lacking in the capacity for anything other than a kind of dark empathy used to hurt the other.  Normal development leads to empathy-with other than the dark kind.

Other-Oriented Concerns

It is pointed out that:  “Most economic models are based on the self-interest hypothesis, which assumes that individuals are exclusively motivated by their material self-interest. Evidence from behavioral studies suggests otherwise, showing that people are strongly motivated by other-regarding preferences, care about social norms, and punish those who exploit the cooperative behavior of others. Therefore, overall concerns for fairness and reciprocity cannot be ignored in economic decisions (p. ??).” Well, it is far more than just fairness and reciprocity, but, yes, Single Interest Theory (SIT) in mainstream

Microeconomics sees only self-interest. Also, it is not other-regarding preferences, but rather internalized with the other-preferences, as represented on path 0M.

It is noted, the research points to:  “…the ability to think about mental states (one’s own and others’), emotional awareness, reward circuits, valuation, and integration of social norms. It has been proposed that humans are unique in their abilities to represent shared intentions and goals and to self-regulate in order to comply with and enforce cooperative norms (p. ??).” Yes, in DIT framing, said norms are internalized within  the own-self, as represented on path 0M, and, ultimately on the chosen path 0Z.  Some research points to :three intertwined neural networks: 1) a medial one that values outcomes for self and others; 2) a lateral prefrontal network that guides cooperative goal pursuit by modulating value representations in the context of local norms; and 3) an anterior prefrontal network that serves the uniquely human abilities to reflect on one’s behavior, commit to shared social contracts, and arbitrate between cooperative norms across diverse social contexts (p. ??).” DIT prefers thinking of the three intertwined areas as representing the ego-based self-interest, the empathy-based shared with the other-interest, and the decision circuitry that brings self-command into play.

Cooperation Is Inherently Rewarding

DIT sees the reward from cooperation as coming from paying attention the sacred domain of cooperation reflected on path 0M in selecting the better path 0Z. It is about tamping down the payoff in the domain of the profane on path 0G, bringing it into line with what the other can go along with on path 0Z. Cooperation reflecting a shared ethic with the other is key.

Cooperation has payoff on path 0M: “… studies have documented increased neurodynamic signal in the striatum and ventromedial prefrontal cortex when participants engaged in mutually cooperative activities and interpreted this pattern as reflecting activation of the reward circuit (p. ??).”  It is reflected in  “increased signal in areas involved in reward processing, including the nucleus accumbens, caudate nucleus, and ventromedial prefrontal cortex … propose that activation of this neural network reinforces reciprocal altruism by motivating participants to resist the temptation to selfishly accept but not reciprocate favors (p. ??).” Yes: People choose to operate on path 0Z with a bit of sacrifice in both the profane&sacred domains.

Altruistic Punishment

Such punishment brings others into also sacrificing a bit for the greater good of path 0M.  Altruistic punishment is to cause everyone to move away from path 0G toward the better path 0Z.

Self-Interested Motivation Is Still Alive

People do not set aside the ego-based self-interest path 0G.  It is just no longer the trajectory taken, as the shared with the other interest of path 0M tamps down the arrogance of it.  Self-interest is alive along with the jointly shared with the other-interest, both internalized within each own-self.

So, yes, self-interest motivation is still alive, which also gives some remaining role for SIT.  And, empirical testing in very narrow realms of economic choice, like which toothpaste to buy, will likely keep it alive.   The reality is, however, that broader based theory like DIT that better reflects the neural networks in play within the brain will ultimately transcend such narrow theories as represented in SIT.  DIT is a the new frontier.

NEW FRONTIERS

The call is for new theories that go “beyond finding neural support for existing social psychological theories, and towards building theories that seek to explain both neural and social psychological phenomena concurrently (p. ??).” DIT is such a theory.

Can Cognitive Processes Be Predicted From Functional Imaging Data?

It is pointed out that “..a specific brain region can be activated by a wide range of tasks and cognitive processes … the amygdala not only responds to fear but more generally to emotional saliency (positive and negative events) relevant for the goals and motivations of the perceiver … (so) one has to be careful when drawing inferences about mental processes from neural activations (p. ??).” But, it cannot be ignored, either, as “ the reverse inference cannot be wholly disregarded as a fallacy per se ..  predictive power of reverse inference can even be ‘decisive’—dependent on the cognitive process of interest, the specific brain region activated, and the task-setting used (p. ??).”

Notes breakthroughs, advancing technologies like the “development of large-scale automated meta-analytic tools such as neurosynth (https://neurosynth.org/) also allows social neuroscientists to draw stronger reverse inferences … platform for large automated synthesis of fMRI data applies text-mining methods to a large number of cognitive neuroscience papers to quantify the relationship between a ‘term’ (e.g., ‘pain’) with a brain area. Thus, researchers can obtain probabilistic measures of the likelihood activation in a brain area is associated with a term … (p. ??).”

Opportunities Afforded By New Methods And New Partners

Causal Methods

The recommendation is to move toward “… causal methods that allow drawing stronger inferences about the relationship between psychological processes and brain function…  methods include transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), which allows for the transient perturbation or inhibition of brain function…  (another method) made possible by new technological advances is the use of real-time neurofeedback… (p. ??).”

Computational Modeling

For example, use computational models “… to estimate the learning rate for each participant in each condition, and found that participants on average learned faster when earning reward for themselves than when earning reward for others, but this difference was moderated by trait empathy – highly emphatic individuals learned faster for others than for themselves. Furthermore, the sgACC of highly empathic individuals was more responsive to learning signals in the prosocial condition. These results highlight how computational models can be used to better characterize individual differences in neural responses and how they contribute to divergent behavioral outcomes … Computational modeling thus allows social neuroscientist to characterize how a social psychological process is implemented in the brain, as opposed to merely identifying where the process occurs  (p. ??).”

Pitfalls include:  “First, the increasing use of computational models might bias social neuroscientists towards tasks that are more amenable to modeling… Second, there are an infinite number of possible models, many of which can make similar predictions despite having different underlying architecture and algorithms. How can social neuroscientist determine that they have found the “true” model that describes the human mind? (p. ??).”

Social Neuroscience In The Wild

It is a “new frontier in social neuroscience, where researchers develop the conceptual and analytical tools to take advantage of … methods to examine social behavior in naturalistic real-world settings… anticipate the line between the academy and society to continue to blur in the field of social neuroscience, which we believe will bring new insight and energy as we continue to explore the neural basis of social phenomena (p. ??).”

Fostering Interdisciplinary Research

Points out that often “… the most interesting  questions lie at the intersection of disciplines such when integrating cognitive neuroscience, mathematical modeling, social psychology, and sociology to examine the reciprocal interactions and emerging functional properties of social networks (p. ??).” DIT points to economics as part of that integrative mix.

METAECONOMICS POSTSCRIPT

DIT was helped in the early stages by drawing empirical techniques developed in Social Psychology.  So, the overlap of DIT with the newer and complementary Social Neuroscience is natural.  Also, that newer Social Neuroscience is providing even more empirical support for DIT.  It is becoming ever clearer that empathy-based considerations are a key part of human evolution, and it will likely continue into the future.

The new Social Neuroscience is especially showing the fallacy, the cargo-cult  and in effect make-believe “science” of mainstream Single Interest Theory (SIT) in Microeconomics is lacking in adequate empirical content. And, while ego-based self-interest as described in SIT --- as in self-motivation--- is still a main driver as Social Neuroscience also supports, it is not adequate to the task of giving a balanced view of human nature and human choice.  Said finding is a major contribution of the new Social Neuroscience, and it gives even more credence to DIT.

REFERENCES

Decety, Jean and Leong, Yuan Chang. "Social Neuroscience." In The Handbook of Social Psychology, edited by D.T. Gilbert, Fiske, S.T., Finkel, E.J., and Mendes, W.B.: Situational Press, 2025.

Lynne, G.D., J.S. Shonkwiler, and L.R. Rola.  “Attitudes and Farmer Conservation Behavior.”  Amer. J. Agr. Econ. 70,1 (Feb. 1988): 12-19.

Lynne, G.D. and L.R. Rola.  “Improving Attitude-Behavior Prediction Models With Economic Variables.”  J. Social Psychology.  128,1(Feb. 1988): 19-28.

Lynne, Gary D. “Modifying the Neo-Classical Approach to Technology Adoption With Behavioral Science Models.” J. Agr. Applied Econ. 27,1 (July, 1995): 67-80.

Lynne, Gary D., C. Franklin Casey, Alan Hodges, and Mohammed Rahmani.  “Conservation Technology Adoption Decisions and the Theory of Planned Behavior.”  J. Economic Psychology 16 (1995): 581-598.

Lynne, G.D.   Metaeconomics:  Tempering Excessive Greed.   Palgrave Advances in Behavioral Economics, John Tomer, ed.  New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2020  ( https://tinyurl.com/yxagxtuf  .

Lynne, G. D. and Czap, N. V.  “Towards Dual Interest Theory in Metaeconomics.”  Journal of Interdisciplinary Economics (July 2023):1-19.  (Open access at Journal of Interdisciplinary Economics - Volume 36, Number 1