Previous TMS studies have reported a decrease in motor cortical output during pain observation. In contrast, recent behavioural studies have shown that response times are faster after pain observation. This suggests that there is a mismatch between motor activity during vs. after pain observation. We propose that these opposing effects of pain observation on motor activity may be explained by task constraints, as participants in TMS studies are instructed to keep still and relax their hands, while participants in behavioural studies maintain a state of readiness to respond. Task and methodological differences make it difficult to compare the results from TMS and behavioural paradigms examining the motor consequences of pain observation. As such, the aim of the current study is to directly test whether task instructions affect motor activity in TMS and behavioural measures of motor activity in the context of pain observation, within a single experiment. Participants watched videos of hands in painful vs. non-painful scenarios while TMS-induced motor evoked potentials were recorded. In the "Active" block, participants responded to a cue that appeared immediately after each video; in the "Passive" block, they relaxed their hand. Contrary to expectations, participants showed enhanced motor cortical output during pain observation (vs. no-pain) in both blocks. We discuss these results in relation to the wider literature on the social neuroscience of empathy.

中文翻译：

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移动或不移动：无论运动准备状态如何，在疼痛观察期间运动皮层输出都会增强

先前的 TMS 研究报告了疼痛观察期间运动皮质输出的减少。相比之下，最近的行为研究表明，疼痛观察后反应时间更快。这表明疼痛观察期间与之后的运动活动之间存在不匹配。我们提出，疼痛观察对运动活动的这些相反影响可以通过任务限制来解释，因为 TMS 研究的参与者被指示保持静止并放松他们的手，而行为研究的参与者则保持准备好做出反应的状态。任务和方法的差异使得很难比较 TMS 和行为范式的结果，检查疼痛观察的运动后果。像这样，当前研究的目的是在单个实验中直接测试任务指令是否影响 TMS 中的运动活动和疼痛观察背景下运动活动的行为测量。参与者在疼痛与非疼痛场景中观看手部视频，同时记录 TMS 诱发的运动诱发电位。在“活动”块中，参与者对每个视频后立即出现的提示做出反应；在“被动”块中，他们放松了手。与预期相反，参与者在两个街区的疼痛观察期间（与无疼痛相比）表现出增强的运动皮层输出。我们将这些结果与有关移情的社会神经科学的更广泛的文献相关联。参与者在疼痛与非疼痛场景中观看手部视频，同时记录 TMS 诱发的运动诱发电位。在“活动”块中，参与者对每个视频后立即出现的提示做出反应；在“被动”块中，他们放松了手。与预期相反，参与者在两个街区的疼痛观察期间（与无痛相比）表现出增强的运动皮层输出。我们将这些结果与有关移情的社会神经科学的更广泛的文献相关联。参与者在疼痛与非疼痛场景中观看手部视频，同时记录 TMS 诱发的运动诱发电位。在“活动”块中，参与者对每个视频后立即出现的提示做出反应；在“被动”块中，他们放松了手。与预期相反，参与者在两个街区的疼痛观察期间（与无痛相比）表现出增强的运动皮层输出。我们将这些结果与有关移情的社会神经科学的更广泛的文献相关联。参与者在两个街区的疼痛观察期间（与无疼痛相比）表现出增强的运动皮层输出。我们将这些结果与有关移情的社会神经科学的更广泛的文献相关联。参与者在两个街区的疼痛观察期间（与无疼痛相比）表现出增强的运动皮层输出。我们将这些结果与有关移情的社会神经科学的更广泛的文献相关联。