Featured Publications
Prefrontal–amygdala circuits in social decision-making
Gangopadhyay P, Chawla M, Dal Monte O, Chang SWC. Prefrontal–amygdala circuits in social decision-making. Nature Neuroscience 2020, 24: 5-18. PMID: 33169032, PMCID: PMC7899743, DOI: 10.1038/s41593-020-00738-9.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchMeSH KeywordsAmygdalaAnimalsDecision MakingHumansNerve NetNeural PathwaysPrefrontal CortexPrimatesSocial BehaviorSocial PerceptionConceptsSocial behaviorSystems neuroscience perspectivePrefrontal-amygdala pathwaysPrefrontal-amygdala circuitsPrefrontal cortical regionsSocial cognitionNeuroscience perspectiveNeural basisNeuropeptide oxytocinBrains of primatesNeural mechanismsCortical regionsNon-human primatesSpecific instantiationSocial constructMultiple levelsCognitionNeuronal activityMultiple animal speciesNeurobiologyAmygdalaBehaviorUnderpinningsPrimatesConstructsIs There a ‘Social’ Brain? Implementations and Algorithms
Lockwood PL, Apps MAJ, Chang SWC. Is There a ‘Social’ Brain? Implementations and Algorithms. Trends In Cognitive Sciences 2020, 24: 802-813. PMID: 32736965, PMCID: PMC7501252, DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2020.06.011.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsSocial behaviorNeural processesMotor facultiesInformation processingInfluential frameworkSocial specificitiesAlgorithmic levelGreater integrationPsychologyNeuroscienceBehaviorDifferent levelsImportant new insightsEmpirical approachMarrProcessingFundamental questionsBrainResearchMonkeysFrameworkHumansThe anterior cingulate cortex is necessary for forming prosocial preferences from vicarious reinforcement in monkeys
Basile BM, Schafroth JL, Karaskiewicz CL, Chang SWC, Murray EA. The anterior cingulate cortex is necessary for forming prosocial preferences from vicarious reinforcement in monkeys. PLOS Biology 2020, 18: e3000677. PMID: 32530910, PMCID: PMC7292358, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3000677.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchMeSH KeywordsAnimalsChoice BehaviorGyrus CinguliMacaca mulattaMalePupilReinforcement, PsychologySocial BehaviorConceptsAnterior cingulate cortexProsocial preferencesVicarious reinforcementCingulate cortexACC lesionsPrimate anterior cingulate cortexSocial preferencesDifferent visual cuesSocial cognitionReward outcomesReinforcement taskReward deliveryVisual cuesACC contributionSocial outcomesCuesSocial relationshipsExcitotoxic lesionsPeripheral targetsGood thingGreater tendencySelfCortexLesion groupSingle neuronsThe Anterior Cingulate Gyrus and Social Cognition: Tracking the Motivation of Others
Apps MA, Rushworth MF, Chang SW. The Anterior Cingulate Gyrus and Social Cognition: Tracking the Motivation of Others. Neuron 2016, 90: 692-707. PMID: 27196973, PMCID: PMC4885021, DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2016.04.018.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsAnterior cingulate cortexSocial cognitionSocio-cognitive abilitiesAnterior cingulate gyrusCognitive processesError processingSocial informationCingulate cortexSocial interactionSocial behaviorCingulate gyrusCognitionTestable predictionsGyrusMotivationACCGFurther evidenceComputational propertiesKey mechanismCortexBehaviorProcessingEvidenceIndividualsAbilityOxytocin under opioid antagonism leads to supralinear enhancement of social attention
Dal Monte O, Piva M, Anderson KM, Tringides M, Holmes AJ, Chang SWC. Oxytocin under opioid antagonism leads to supralinear enhancement of social attention. Proceedings Of The National Academy Of Sciences Of The United States Of America 2017, 114: 5247-5252. PMID: 28461466, PMCID: PMC5441805, DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1702725114.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsSocial attentionMutual eye contactSocial cognitionReward receiptParticular social importanceEfficacy of oxytocinEye contactSocial dysfunctionOpioid antagonismSocial contextGaze interactionHuman brainEntire sessionOxytocinΚ-opioid receptor geneFacial regionOT geneAttentionCognitionSocial importanceStrong effectMonkeysOpioid systemSessionsContext
2022
Prefrontal circuits guiding social preference: Implications in autism spectrum disorder
Fortier AV, Meisner OC, Nair AR, Chang SWC. Prefrontal circuits guiding social preference: Implications in autism spectrum disorder. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews 2022, 141: 104803. PMID: 35908593, PMCID: PMC10122914, DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104803.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchMeSH KeywordsAnimalsAutism Spectrum DisorderDisease Models, AnimalPrefrontal CortexSocial BehaviorSocial Behavior DisordersConceptsAutism spectrum disorderUnderlying neural mechanismsSpectrum disorderTreatment developmentSocial preferencesSocial preference behaviorSocial cognitionUnderlying neural circuitsAtypical developmentNeural mechanismsPrefrontal circuitsCircuit-level dysfunctionBehavioral disruptionNeural circuitsBehavioral deficitsAnimal model researchAnimal modelsCommon circuitsDiagnostic prevalenceConvergent circuitClinical presentationNeurological alterationsTreatment optionsEffects of dysregulationCognitionInterplay between the oxytocin and opioid systems in regulating social behaviour
Putnam PT, Chang SWC. Interplay between the oxytocin and opioid systems in regulating social behaviour. Philosophical Transactions Of The Royal Society B Biological Sciences 2022, 377: 20210050. PMID: 35858101, PMCID: PMC9272147, DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2021.0050.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchSocial neuroscience: Staying bonded over oxytocin and endocannabinoids
Nair AR, Chang SWC. Social neuroscience: Staying bonded over oxytocin and endocannabinoids. Current Biology 2022, 32: r228-r231. PMID: 35290773, DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2022.02.009.Peer-Reviewed Original Research
2021
Toward a holistic view of value and social processing in the amygdala: Insights from primate behavioral neurophysiology
Putnam PT, Chang SWC. Toward a holistic view of value and social processing in the amygdala: Insights from primate behavioral neurophysiology. Behavioural Brain Research 2021, 411: 113356. PMID: 33989727, PMCID: PMC8238892, DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2021.113356.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsSocial behaviorSocial stimuliValue-related processesNegative emotional processesAspects of cognitionReward-related processesDistinct brain regionsSocial processingEmotional processesAmygdala's roleNeural basisPositive affectHolistic hypothesisPrimate neurophysiologyNeurophysiological mechanismsBehavioral neurophysiologySocial interactionValue processingModern neuroscienceTemporal lobeBrain regionsAmygdalaStimuliNeurophysiologyProcessing
2019
Combinatorial Oxytocin Neuropharmacology in Social Cognition
Fan S, Weinberg-Wolf H, Piva M, Dal Monte O, Chang SWC. Combinatorial Oxytocin Neuropharmacology in Social Cognition. Trends In Cognitive Sciences 2019, 24: 8-12. PMID: 31735541, DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2019.10.004.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchDifferences in how macaques monitor others: Does serotonin play a central role?
Weinberg‐Wolf H, Chang SWC. Differences in how macaques monitor others: Does serotonin play a central role? Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews Cognitive Science 2019, 10: e1494. PMID: 30775852, PMCID: PMC6570566, DOI: 10.1002/wcs.1494.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchMeSH KeywordsAggressionAnimalsBiological EvolutionHumansMacacaSerotoninSocial BehaviorSpecies SpecificityConceptsDecision-making psychologyCognitive BiologySocial attentionSocial competenciesSocial informationSocial monitoringEvolutionary rootsPsychologySocial toleranceNeuroscienceAggressionDominance behaviorRole of serotoninField of primatologySerotonergic functionCognitionConspecificsPrimatesPrimatologyMacaquesCompetenciesDifferencesAttentionCentral roleResource opportunities
2018
An integrated framework for the role of oxytocin in multistage social decision‐making
Piva M, Chang SWC. An integrated framework for the role of oxytocin in multistage social decision‐making. American Journal Of Primatology 2018, 80: e22735. PMID: 29350419, PMCID: PMC6053333, DOI: 10.1002/ajp.22735.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchMeSH KeywordsAnimalsBehavior, AnimalCognitionDecision MakingHumansOxytocinPrimatesRodentiaSocial BehaviorConceptsEffects of oxytocinSocial behaviorWithdrawal hypothesisSocial salience hypothesisCertain social situationsRole of oxytocinInfluence of oxytocinNeural evidenceProsocial actionsSocial stimuliProsocial choicesApproach behaviorSalience hypothesisSocial salienceSocial decisionsAntisocial behaviorSocial situationsOxytocin administrationWithdrawal behaviorSensory inputBehavioral outputSensory perceptionOverarching theoryDisparate theoriesProminent hypothesis
2016
Live interaction distinctively shapes social gaze dynamics in rhesus macaques
Dal Monte O, Piva M, Morris JA, Chang SW. Live interaction distinctively shapes social gaze dynamics in rhesus macaques. Journal Of Neurophysiology 2016, 116: 1626-1643. PMID: 27486105, PMCID: PMC5144716, DOI: 10.1152/jn.00442.2016.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsMutual eye contactGaze dynamicsEye contactSocial cognitionProportion of fixationsInteractive social contextsPairs of monkeysFocal attentionSustained attentionLive interactionEye regionSeparable componentsFamiliar pairsMeaningful eventsSocial contextReal partnersDominant monkeysSame monkeysCognitionStatic imagesReal-time interactionAttentionMonkeys
2012
Neuronal reference frames for social decisions in primate frontal cortex
Chang SW, Gariépy JF, Platt ML. Neuronal reference frames for social decisions in primate frontal cortex. Nature Neuroscience 2012, 16: 243-250. PMID: 23263442, PMCID: PMC3557617, DOI: 10.1038/nn.3287.Peer-Reviewed Original Research