Neural mechanisms of resistance to peer influence in early adolescence

Grosbras, M.H., Jansen, M., Leonard, G., McIntosh, A.R., Osswald, K., Poulsen, C., Steinberg, L., Toro, R. and Paus, T. (2007) Neural mechanisms of resistance to peer influence in early adolescence. Journal of Neuroscience, 27(30), pp. 8040-8045. (doi: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.1360-07.2007)

Abstract

During the shift from a parent-dependent child to a fully autonomous adult, peers take on a significant role in shaping the adolescent’s behaviour. Peer-derived influences are not always positive, however. Here we explore neural correlates of inter-individual differences in the probability of resisting peer influence in early adolescence. Using functional magnetic-resonance imaging (fMRI), we found striking differences between 10-year old children with high and low resistance to peer influence in their brain activity during observation of angry hand-movements and angry facial expressions: compared with subjects with low resistance to peer influence, individuals with high resistance showed a highly coordinated brain activity in neural systems underlying perception of action and decision making. These findings suggest that the probability of resisting peer influence depends on neural interactions during observation of emotion-laden actions.

• Item Type: Articles
• Keywords: Adolescence, fMRI, Social Cognition, Peer-Pressure, Emotion
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Grosbras, Dr Marie-Helene
• Authors: Grosbras, M.H., Jansen, M., Leonard, G., McIntosh, A.R., Osswald, K., Poulsen, C., Steinberg, L., Toro, R., and Paus, T.
• Subjects: R Medicine > RC Internal medicine > RC0321 Neuroscience. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry; Q Science > QP Physiology
• College/School: College of Science and Engineering > School of Psychology; College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Psychology & Neuroscience
• Research Group: CCNI
• Journal Name: Journal of Neuroscience
• Publisher: Society for Neuroscience
• ISSN: 0270-6474
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2007 Society for Neuroscience
• First Published: First published in Journal of Neuroscience 27(30):8040-8045
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher