A review essay on social neuroscience: Can research on the social brain and economics inform each other?

Carlos Alós-Ferrer

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

Abstract

Social neuroscience studies the "social brain," conceived as the set of brain structures and functions supporting the perception and evaluation of the social environment. This article provides an overview of the field, using the book Social Neuroscience: Brain, Mind, and Society (Russell K. Schutt, Larry J. Seidman, and Matcheri S. Keshavan, editors) as a starting point. Topics include the evolution of the social brain, the concept of "theory of mind," the relevant brain networks, and documented failures of the social brain. I argue that social neuroscience and economics can greatly benefit from each other because the social brain underlies interpersonal decision making, as studied in economics.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)234-264
Number of pages31
JournalJournal of Economic Literature
Volume56
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Mar 2018

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Economics and Econometrics

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'A review essay on social neuroscience: Can research on the social brain and economics inform each other?'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this