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What functional magnetic resonance imaging can tell us about theory of mind

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dc.contributor Nancy Kanwisher.
dc.contributor Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Brain and Cognitive Sciences.
dc.contributor Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Brain and Cognitive Sciences.
dc.creator Saxe, Rebecca R. (Rebecca Rose), 1979-
dc.date 2006-03-24T18:14:03Z
dc.date 2006-03-24T18:14:03Z
dc.date 2003
dc.identifier http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/30039
dc.identifier 55089423
dc.description Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, September 2003.
dc.description Includes bibliographical references.
dc.description To have a theory of mind is to be able to explain and predict human behaviours and experiences in terms of mental states: beliefs, desires, goals, thoughts, and feelings. In chapters 1 and 2, I use functional magentic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate the neural substrate of the theory of mind, in healthy human adults. I conclude (1) that specialised brain regions, including a region of the temporo-parietal junction (the TPJ-M), are selectively engaged when people reason about the contents of other people's beliefs, and (2) that the brain regions associated with belief attribution appear to be distinct from other regions engaged in the representation of goal-directed action, including a region of posterior superior temporal sulcus (the pSTS-VA). In chapters 3 and 4, I consider the implications of these and other neuroimaging results for the mental structure of theory of mind, based on proposals derived from developmental psychology and philosophy.
dc.description by Rebecca R. Saxe.
dc.description Ph.D.
dc.format 131 p.
dc.format 6727035 bytes
dc.format 6726843 bytes
dc.format application/pdf
dc.format application/pdf
dc.format application/pdf
dc.language eng
dc.publisher Massachusetts Institute of Technology
dc.rights M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission.
dc.rights http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582
dc.subject Brain and Cognitive Sciences.
dc.title What functional magnetic resonance imaging can tell us about theory of mind
dc.title What fMRI can tell us about theory of mind
dc.type Thesis


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