| Sumario: | A study was conducted to examine the brain activations of individuals in response to images in four categories corresponding to pride, pity, envy, and disgust. Data were obtained from analysis of functional magnetic resonance imaging for 10 participants who viewed photographs of social groups and 12 participants who viewed objects; each picture dependably represented one quadrant or category within the stereotype content model (SCM). Findings revealed that the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC)—which previous studies have shown to be necessary for social cognition—was activated in response to images of all social groups except for drug addicts and the homeless; these groups especially activated insula and amygdala, a pattern consistent with disgust, the emotion predicted for these images by the SCM. Findings also revealed that object images, although categorized according to the same emotions, did not activate the mPFC. Findings imply that extreme out-groups may be perceived as something less than human, or as dehumanized.
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