Medial prefrontal cortex
Self/other representation and trait inference.
Social anatomy is network anatomy: midline mentalising hubs, lateral perception streams and subcortical threat/reward nodes.
White-matter links among STS, TPJ and prefrontal cortex carry the timing that makes conversation and joint action possible.
Structures
Temporoparietal junction
Belief reasoning and perspective taking.
Superior temporal sulcus
Gaze, biological motion and communicative intent cues.
Amygdala
Salience and threat tagging of social stimuli.
Orbitofrontal cortex
Social value, regret and reputation-sensitive choice.
Fusiform face areas
Identity and configural face processing.
Pathways
Mentalising network
mPFC–TPJ–precuneus corridor for belief inference.
STS–amygdala links
Route dynamic social cues into affective evaluation.
Uncinate fasciculus
Connects temporal social nodes with orbitofrontal value.
Mirror / action-observation streams
Parietofrontal routes for observed action mapping.
Landmarks
Sally–Anne task
Classic false-belief vignette in developmental work.
Reading the Mind in the Eyes
Adult mental-state attribution from eye region cues.
Point-light walkers
Biological motion without form — STS signature.
Trust / ultimatum games
Economic probes of fairness and reputation.
Open atlas neighbours: amygdala, STS, medial PFC, TPJ.
Sources & research
- Social cognition in humansConcise map of human social-cognitive processes.DOI
- The social brain: neural basis of social knowledgeSystems overview of the social brain.DOI
- Does the autistic child have a "theory of mind"?Landmark false-belief study in autism research.DOI
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