TY - JOUR T1 - Superior Facial Expression, But Not Identity Recognition, in Mirror-Touch Synesthesia JF - The Journal of Neuroscience JO - J. Neurosci. SP - 1820 LP - 1824 DO - 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.5759-09.2011 VL - 31 IS - 5 AU - Michael J. Banissy AU - LĂșcia Garrido AU - Flor Kusnir AU - Bradley Duchaine AU - Vincent Walsh AU - Jamie Ward Y1 - 2011/02/02 UR - http://www.jneurosci.org/content/31/5/1820.abstract N2 - Simulation models of expression recognition contend that to understand another's facial expressions, individuals map the perceived expression onto the same sensorimotor representations that are active during the experience of the perceived emotion. To investigate this view, the present study examines facial expression and identity recognition abilities in a rare group of participants who show facilitated sensorimotor simulation (mirror-touch synesthetes). Mirror-touch synesthetes experience touch on their own body when observing touch to another person. These experiences have been linked to heightened sensorimotor simulation in the shared-touch network (brain regions active during the passive observation and experience of touch). Mirror-touch synesthetes outperformed nonsynesthetic participants on measures of facial expression recognition, but not on control measures of face memory or facial identity perception. These findings imply a role for sensorimotor simulation processes in the recognition of facial affect, but not facial identity. ER -