PubMed Health⌕ Search

SEARCH · PubMed Health

Results for “Imitative Behavior”

Explore indexed PubMed citations for clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health research. Read source abstracts and follow each citation to its original PubMed record.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2003

Modulation of cortical activity during different imitative behaviors.

Imitation is a basic form of motor learning during development. We have a preference to imitate the actions of others as if looking in a mirror (specular imitation: i.e., when the actor moves the left hand, the imitator moves the right hand) rather than with the anatomically congruent hand (anatomic imitation: i.e., actor and imitator both moving the right hand). We hypothesized that this preference reflects changes in activity in previously described frontoparietal cortical areas involved in directly matching observed and executed actions (mirror neuron areas). We used functional magnetic resonance imaging to study brain activity in normal volunteers imitating left and right hand movements with their right hand. Bilateral inferior frontal and right posterior parietal cortex were more active during specular imitation compared with anatomic imitation and control motor tasks. Furthermore this same pattern of activity was also observed in the rostral part of the supplementary motor area (SMA-proper) of the right hemisphere. These findings suggest that the degree of involvement of frontoparietal mirror areas in imitation depends on the nature of the imitative behavior, ruling out a linguistic mediation of these areas in imitation. Moreover, activity in the SMA appears to be tightly coupled to frontoparietal mirror areas when subjects copy the actions of others.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

[A study of utilization and imitation behavior in cases with striatocapsular infarction].

Utilization behavior (UB) and imitation behavior (IB) were first described by Lhermitte (1983; 1986) for neurobehavioral disorders due to the frontal lobe damage. Recently, the similar symptoms were also observed in several reports of subcortical lesion cases without any lesion of the frontal lobe. We studied 16 consecutive patients with unilateral striatocapsular infarction (SCI), and found 7 patients (44%) presenting UB and/or IB. Characteristics of patients with UB and/or IB revealed the following factors: older age, higher frequency of right-sided lesion, absence of severe aphasia or apraxia, higher frequency of unilateral spatial neglect and/ or psychic change, and no evidence of significant large cerebral artery lesion on angiography. In most of SCI cases, whether IB and/or UB was present or not, the single-photon emission CT demonstrated decreased perfusion in the ipsilateral frontotemporal areas, and the result of neuropsychological assessment was compatible with frontal lobe dysfunction. UB and IB observed in our patients are not only considered to have resulted from secondary impairment of frontal lobe, but also regarded as one of the right hemispheric syndromes associated with such background factors as aging, neglect and general inattention.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Imitative behavior. A theoretical view.

This article reviews the results of experimental studies on imitative behavior reported by various investigators, and then discusses the possible brain mechanisms responsible for this behavior. It was found that human infants in their first hours of life were already capable of spontaneous imitation of simple motor acts demonstrated by an adult, without previous training or reward; these observations suggest that imitative behavior is an innate process that can be considered an unconditional reflex of imitation. It was also found that satiated animals resumed eating when they saw their companions eating. In the latter case, the imitative reflex triggered the previously acquired feeding behavior. Similar mechanisms could be responsible for the phenomenon of eating more in the presence of companions than in their absence, as well as that of preferring the food chosen by companions. When followed by a reward, the imitative act can be learned--that is, transformed into an instrumental conditional response; learning by imitation of simple motor acts was observed in animals, and that of complex motor acts was observed in children who had already achieved a certain developmental stage. In animals, learning complex motor tasks was facilitated by previous observation of a companion performing this task. In this case, the presence of the observer during the session could lead to habituation of the experimental situation and production of associations between this situation and stimuli or emotions related to the reward or punishment, and might result in more efficient learning later. The imitative behavior can be inhibited by stimuli producing responses antagonistic to the act of imitation.

Adult↗
PubMed1975

Affective relationship, locus of control, and imitative behavior.

The effects of the affective relationship between the model and the observer and locus of control on imitative behavior were investigated by exposing 28 boys to their most liked peer and least liked peer on a simple imitative task. Locus of control was determined by the Nowicki-Strickland (6) Locus of Control Scale for Children. More imitative responses were exhibited to the most liked peer than to the least liked peer, and a positive correlation between number of imitative responses and internal locus of control was found. Results were interpreted as indicating the need to control the affective relationship between the model and observer and as supporting Bandura (1) in the imitative behavior is primarily under self-reinforcement control.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1979

Imitative behavior by Down's syndrome persons.

Three scales of imitative behavior (nonverbal, vocal, and verbal) were administered to 28 Down's syndrome subjects and 56 subjects with other diagnoses. All of the subjects were severely retarded and had at least partial vision and hearing, and the two groups were closely comparable with respect to sex, CA, and IQ. The results provided no support for the hypothesis--backed by a century of clinical observation--that individuals with Down's syndrome "are outstanding in their mimicry" (Belmont, 1971, p. 38).

Adolescent↗
PubMed1971

A variable influencing the performance of generalized imitative behaviors.

This research attempted to demonstrate some of the conditions that would influence the performance of generalized imitative behaviors in young children. Two experiments were conducted. The results of Exp. I indicated that generalized imitative behaviors can be very durable; only one of three subjects was influenced by a variety of reinforcement-like procedures. Control over the behavior of all three subjects was obtained when a setting event involving the presence or absence of the experimenter was systematically varied. A second test of this variable was carried out in Exp. II. Results showed moderate to strong control over non-reinforced imitations in four preschool children.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1985

Violence on television and imitative behavior: impact on parenting practices.

In the past 30 years, four federal government commissions have reported on the relationship between television violence and aggressive behavior. The latest report concluded categorically that there is a causal relationship between television violence and aggressive behavior. Two infants were seen at an emergency room as a direct consequence of their socially isolated single mothers seeing a particular made-for-television movie. In one case, the infant died as a possible result of a parent imitating an act of child abuse; in the other case, early medical intervention precluded possible tragedy. These cases illustrate another way in which children may be victimized by violence on television; namely, by parents imitating inappropriate parental behavior. The origins of imitative behavior are discussed with specific reference to the impact on vulnerable parents. The concept of media-influenced parenting behavior is presented and implications for physicians are discussed.

Child Abuse↗
PubMed1968

Some experiments on the organization of a class of imitative behaviors.

A retarded child was taught to imitate diverse demonstrations made by an experimenter, until new demonstrations were imitated correctly upon first presentation without direct training. These imitations could be maintained without reinforcement, when they were distributed among other reinforced imitations. Factors responsible for the continued performance of these unreinforced imitations were examined. When subjected to massed extinction trials, unreinforced imitations eventually disappeared; they reappeared when again interspersed among reinforced imitations. In addition, the stimulus function of "similarity of response between subject and experimenter" was examined. The subject was taught a set of non-imitative responses, through discriminative stimuli controlled by the experimenter, and a comparable imitative set. Unreinforced non-imitations, like reinforced imitations, were maintained only when interspersed among reinforced imitations. When all reinforcement was discontinued, all responses extinguished similarly, indicating that reinforcement was necessary to maintain the response-class organization, but not confirming an essential role for "similarity" as such.

Journal Article↗