There is accumulating evidence that the actions of others are represented in the motor system, leading to automatic imitation. However, whereas early work focused mainly on the effects of observing a single agent, recent studies indicate that the actions of multiple agents can be represented simultaneously. Yet, theorizing has lagged behind. The current study extends the dual-route model of automatic imitation to include multiple agents, and demonstrates, in five simulation studies, that the extended model is able to capture four critical multi-agent effects. Importantly, however, it was necessary to augment the model with a control mechanism regulating response inhibition based on the number of observed actions. Furthermore, additional simulation indicated that this mechanism could be driven by response conflict. Together, our results demonstrate how theories of automatic imitation can be extended from single- to multi-agent settings. As such, they constitute an important step towards a mechanistic understanding of social interaction beyond the dyad.

中文翻译：

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自动模仿多个代理：一个计算模型

有越来越多的证据表明，其他人的动作在运动系统中表现出来，导致自动模仿。然而，早期的工作主要集中在观察单个代理的效果，最近的研究表明多个代理的动作可以同时表示。然而，理论化已经落后了。当前的研究将自动模仿的双路径模型扩展到包括多个代理，并在五个模拟研究中证明扩展模型能够捕获四个关键的多代理效应。然而，重要的是，有必要使用基于观察到的动作数量调节响应抑制的控制机制来增强模型。此外，额外的模拟表明这种机制可能是由响应冲突驱动的。一起，我们的结果展示了如何将自动模仿理论从单智能体设置扩展到多智能体设置。因此，它们构成了对超越二元组的社会互动的机械理解的重要一步。