Social priming modulates the neural response to ostracism: a new exploratory approach

ABSTRACT

The present study sought to evaluate whether social priming modulates neural responses to ostracism, such that making arbitrary interpersonal decisions increases the experience of social exclusion more than making arbitrary physical decisions. This exploratory event-related potential (ERP) study utilized the Lunchroom task, in which adults (N = 28) first selected one of two options that included either interpersonal or physical descriptors. Participants then received ostracism outcome feedback within a lunchroom scenario in which they were either excluded (e.g. sitting alone) or included (e.g. surrounded by others). While the N2 component was sensitive to priming decision condition, only the P3 component discriminated between ostracism decisions. Further inspection of the neural sources indicated that the amygdala, anterior cingulate cortex, and superior temporal gyrus were more engaged for exclusion than inclusion conditions during both N2 and P3 temporal windows. Evaluation of temporal source dynamics suggest that the effects of ostracism are predominant between 250–500 ms and were larger following interpersonal than physical decisions. These results suggest that being ostracized evokes a larger neural response that is modulated following priming of the social brain.

KEYWORDS:

• Ostracism
• social exclusion
• social priming
• event-related potentials
• source estimation

Acknowledgments

Thank you to the individuals for their participation in this study. The author is grateful for assistance with data collection and input on earlier drafts from Dr. Allison L. Skinner, as well as being grateful for feedback and suggestions from the anonymous reviewers and Dr. Anne B. Arnett. This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, and not-for-profit sectors. The author would like to thank Dr. Dennis L. Molfese for supporting her graduate work.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Supplementary material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed here.