THE ACTIVITY OF THE MIRROR SYSTEM OF THE BRAIN DURING THE PERCEPTION OF SPEECH AND ITS RELATIONSHIP WITH THE LEVEL OF INTELLIGENCE AND EMPATHY

Previously, researchers hypothesized that the emergence of a system of mirror neurons (MNS) in the process of evolution could be a key mechanism that ensured the appearance of speech in humans. The aim of this work was to establish a relationship between the activity of the MNS in the perception of speech messages, indicators of intelligence and empathy. 25 healthy men and women (18–35 years old) were test subjects. We found that when observing hand movements with a computer mouse on a monitor screen and performing such movements independently, the power of EEG mu- and tau rhythms in the central and temporal cortical regions decreased in subjects. Based on this, we consider it probable that a certain contribution to the dynamics of neocortex activity in this situation is made by the activation of neurons in the MNS. Upon presentation of speech utterances to the research participants, the EEG amplitude changed, including in the range of the alpha rhythm. The most pronounced EEG changes developed 0.3–0.5 s after the end of the keywords. The processing of information during the perception of the phrase “I raise my hands and raise my head” in most of the subjects was reflected in the desynchronization of the indicated rhythm. The perception of the absurd phrase «I run around my hands and run around my head» was often accompanied by an increase in EEG oscillations in the range of the alpha rhythm. The perception of such a phrase, including the awareness of its contradiction to common sense, apparently caused stress in memory processes with an attempt to actively inhibit irrelevant information. These processes probably led to an increase in the amplitude of mu and tau rhythms in the central and temporal regions of the neocortex. The subjects with the highest IQs showed the greatest activation of the mu-rhythm when perceiving the correct phrase. When an absurd phrase was perceived, the greatest desynchronization in the central regions of the neocortex developed in subjects with high indices of various dimensions of empathy. Probably people with a high level of empathy, i.e. with a good development of emotional intelligence, they more easily and quickly realized the absurdity of the specified phrase. We consider the obtained results as evidence of the participation of MNS in the perception and awareness of speech messages describing a person’s physical actions.