We regularly infer other people’s thoughts and feelings from observing theiractions, but how this ability contributes to successful social behavior andinteractions remains unknown. We show that neural activation patterns duringsocial inferences obtained in the laboratory predict the number of socialcontacts in the real world, as measured by the social network index, in threeneurotypical samples (total … More New paper explaining how your perspective taking skills help you to build larger social networks

The 41st annual Southern Ontario Neuroscience Association (SONA) meeting at UTSC in Scarborough was a huge success. A big thank you goes to the organizers and the volunteers (including one of our very own – Yijun Xu). It was so much fun attending the meeting, and it wouldn’t have been possible without all the hard-working … More Thanks to all the SONA 2023 volunteers

Two amazing early career researchers – Alyssa Giovannangeli and Sydney Rego – have successfully presented their honours thesis projects to fellow students and faculty members. Congratulations! We were so excited about having you in the lab for the previous year.  

Read the full article here: https://elifesciences.org/articles/65661 Self-control dilemmas typically involve tradeoffs between short-term, hedonic considerations and longer-term or more abstract standards and values. For example, dietary decisions often require weighing the immediate pleasure of a tasty treat against personal or societal goals favoring healthy eating. Understanding when, why, and how people choose normatively-preferred responses (e.g., … More New paper on how we think about “self-control” in the brain

Exciting new paper on the role of serotonin availability in our ability to learn about social ranks. Lower serotonin levels in a critical brain region (dorsal raphe nucleus) were better for learning about social hierarchies (social dominance). This link was specific for social learning contexts, as shown in a non-social control task. Learning about one’s … More Congrats to Remi Janet on his new paper on social dominance learning!

Congrats to Victoria Brassard-Monahan and Rola Yaman on the successful completion of their honours theses! Victoria and Rola have completed their independent research projects with flying colors. Thank you both for being a part of the lab for the previous year and contributing to our research!

Check out the article in The Conversation

Imagining helping others increases prosocial intentions and behavior toward those individuals. But is this true for everyone? We used an imagined helping paradigm and a battery of prosocial measures to determine whether the prosocial benefits of imagination depend upon an individual’s general tendency to help others. We found that the effects of imagination on prosociality … More New paper on how imagining helping others can make you more altruistic

The project selected for funding looks into the potential of digital technology to protect people from the bodily effects of social isolation – experienced, for example, during the pandemic lockdowns. They aim to understand the multifaceted neurobiological changes that occur during isolation and test how virtual interactions – like video chats – can reduce them. … More We are among the labs at Queen’s that received $3 million from the New Frontiers in Research Fund programs for projects pushing the frontiers of knowledge and pioneering solutions to overcome challenges brought on by the pandemic.

Many of us are deeply affected by the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine. Please consider donating to an initiative created by The Ukrainian Canadian Club of Kingston. The initiative includes the city of Kingston, Queen’s University, and St. Lawrence College. It will provide emergency support for students from Ukraine. Please see the attached flyer for further … More Emergency Support for Students from Ukraine