BACKGROUND: Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) has revolutionized our understanding of brain activity by non-invasively detecting changes in blood oxygen levels. This review explores how fMRI is used to study mind-reading processes in adults.
METHODOLOGY: A systematic search was conducted across Web of Science, PubMed, and Google Scholar. Studies were selected based on strict inclusion and exclusion criteria: peer-reviewed; published between 2000 and 2024 (in English); focused on adults; investigated mind-reading (mental state decoding, brain-computer interfaces) or related processes; and employed various mind-reading techniques (pattern classification, multivariate analysis, decoding algorithms).
RESULTS: This review highlights the critical role of fMRI in uncovering the neural mechanisms of mind-reading. Key brain regions involved include the superior temporal sulcus (STS), medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), and temporoparietal junction (TPJ), all crucial for mentalizing (understanding others' mental states).
CONCLUSIONS: This review emphasizes the importance of fMRI in advancing our knowledge of how the brain interprets and processes mental states. It offers valuable insights into the current state of mind-reading research in adults and paves the way for future exploration in this field.
* Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.