Hierarchy and dynamics of self-referential processing: The non-personal Me1 and the personal Me2 elicited via single words

Peter Walla,Cornelia Herbert

doi:10.1080/23311908.2015.1019236

Abstract

AbstractRecent electroencephalography (EEG) studies accumulated evidence that support a dynamic view of the self (multiple aspect theory). In this study, we test the specific hypothesis of the multiple aspect theory of the self by using EEG data from the HisMine paradigm. In the HisMine paradigm German pronouns are visually presented in a stream of additional stimuli, while changes in brain activity are determined by means of EEG. At an early cortical processing stage, the presentation of the possessive pronouns mein (my), sein (his) and dein (your) elicited significantly different brain activities when compared to the non-personal pronoun ein (a). At a later processing stage, cortical processing of the self-related possessive pronoun (mein) differed from the processing of all other possessive and the non-personal pronoun. In line with previous observations (and the multiple aspect theory of the self), the early effect (here referred to as Me1) was found at specifically left occipito-par...

Highlights

Since William James, the self has been a central topic in science and philosophy
A more recent meta-analysis of 107 neuroimaging studies confirmed that especially the ventral medial prefrontal cortex as part of the cortical midline structures (CMS) as well as the left ventrolateral prefrontal cortex and the left anterior insula are frequently activated during self-processing tasks that require participants to judge whether a stimulus is related to the self or somebody else (Denny, Kober, Wager, & Ochsner, 2012)
EEG The event-related potential (ERP) shown in Figure 1 clearly demonstrate that at electrode location PO9, the possessive pronouns “mein” (“my”), “dein” (“your”) and “sein” (“his”) elicited similar brain activity that differs from the non-personal pronoun “ein” (“a”)

Summary

Introduction

Since William James, the self has been a central topic in science and philosophy. With the advent of neuroimaging techniques, researchers started to investigate those brain structures involved in selfreferential processing to better understand how brain activity contributes to the phenomenon of the self. A more recent meta-analysis of 107 neuroimaging studies confirmed that especially the ventral medial prefrontal cortex as part of the CMS as well as the left ventrolateral prefrontal cortex and the left anterior insula are frequently activated during self-processing tasks that require participants to judge whether a stimulus is related to the self or somebody else (Denny, Kober, Wager, & Ochsner, 2012) While those imaging studies answered the question which brain structures are associated with selfreferential processing, a number of recent studies have explored the time course of self-referential processing by means of electroencephalography (EEG) or magnetencephalography. Whether processing of the possessive pronoun “mein” would enhance brain activity at around 400 ms post-stimulus separating self- from otherreferential processing at left frontal areas

Methods

Results

Discussion