Motor cortex activity during action observation predicts subsequent action imitation in human infants
Moritz Köster,
Miriam Langeloh,
Christian Kliesch,
Patricia Kanngiesser,
Stefanie Hoehl
Affiliations
Moritz Köster
Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Stephanstrasse 1A, 04103, Leipzig, Germany; Freie Universität Berlin, Faculty of Education and Psychology, Habelschwerdter Allee 45, 14195, Berlin, Germany; Department of Psychology, Graduate School of Letters, Kyoto University, Yoshida-honmachi, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8501, Japan; Corresponding author. Freie Universität Berlin, Faculty of Education and Psychology, Habelschwerdter Allee 45, 14195, Berlin, Germany.
Miriam Langeloh
Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Stephanstrasse 1A, 04103, Leipzig, Germany; Heidelberg University, Department of Psychology, Hauptstraße 47 – 51, 69117, Heidelberg, Germany
Christian Kliesch
Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Stephanstrasse 1A, 04103, Leipzig, Germany; Lancaster University, Department of Psychology, Fylde College, Lancaster LA1 4YF, United Kingdom
Patricia Kanngiesser
Freie Universität Berlin, Faculty of Education and Psychology, Habelschwerdter Allee 45, 14195, Berlin, Germany; Leipzig University, Faculty of Education, Jahnallee 59, 04109, Leipzig, Germany
Stefanie Hoehl
Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Stephanstrasse 1A, 04103, Leipzig, Germany; University of Vienna, Faculty of Psychology, Liebiggasse 5, 1010, Vienna, Austria
From early on, human infants acquire novel actions through observation and imitation. Yet, the neural mechanisms that underlie infants’ action learning are not well understood. Here, we combine the assessment of infants’ neural processes during the observation of novel actions on objects (i.e. transitive actions) and their subsequent imitation of those actions. Most importantly, we found that the 7–10 Hz motor cortex activity increased during action observation and predicted action imitation in 20-month-olds (n = 36). 10-month-olds (n = 42), who did not yet reliably imitate others’ actions, showed a highly similar neural activity pattern during action observation. The presence or absence of communicative signals did neither affect infants’ neural processing nor their subsequent imitation behavior. These findings provide first evidence for neural processes in the motor cortex that allow infants to acquire transitive actions from others ‒ and pinpoint a key learning mechanism in the developing brain of human infants.
