Social support modulates subjective and neural responses to sad mental imagery

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Authors

KRAUS Jakub ROMAN Robert JURKOVIČOVÁ Lenka MAREČEK Radek MIKL Michal BRÁZDIL Milan FRICK Andreas

Year of publication 2020
Type Article in Periodical
Magazine / Source Behavioural Brain Research
MU Faculty or unit

Faculty of Medicine

Citation
Web https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0166432819315396
Doi http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.bbr.2019.112433
Keywords Holding hands; Dorsal striatum; Attachment; fMRI; Social support
Description Mental imagery related to the recent death of a loved one is associated with intense sadness and distress. Social relations, such as with one’s significant other, can regulate negative emotions and provide comfort, but the neural correlates of social comfort are largely unknown. In this functional magnetic resonance imaging study, we examined brain responses to sad mental imagery and how these are modulated by holding hands with one’s romantic partner. We found that mental imagery of a recently deceased loved one was associated with increased reactivity in the dorsal striatum, medial prefrontal cortex, anterior and posterior cingulate cortex, thalamus and cerebellum. Holding hands with one’s partner as compared to being alone or holding hands with a stranger provided subjective comfort and reduced neural reactivity in the dorsal striatum without affecting the vividness of the imagery. Our findings indicate an important role for the dorsal striatum in sad mental imagery and social comfort and suggest that tactile social support by one’s romantic partner regulates subjective distress through other processes than mere distraction from the mental imagery.
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