Perspectives on Imitation: From Neuroscience to Social Science: Volume 2

Abstract

Reviews the book, "Perspectives on Imitation: From Neuroscience to Social Science" by Susan Hurley and Nick Chater (Eds.) (see record 2005-07604-000). The authors have brought together researchers from a wide range of disciplines to tackle the subject on a number of different levels, from the underlying neural mechanisms, through possible evolutionary roots and the development of imitation in human infants, to the roles that imitation might play in adult life and society. Each volume is subdivided into two sections. Mechanisms of Imitation and Imitation in Animals are contained in Volume 1, and Imitation and Human Development and Imitation and Culture are dealt with in Volume 2. In the second volume, Kinsbourne depicts imitation as integral to attachment in infants through providing a way to entrain to others' behavior. The section entitled Imitation in Animals covers some fascinating research that may shed some light on imitation in different contexts. The book covers a wide range of imitation research from a number of different disciplines in an accessible, yet thought-provoking way. It captures the evident excitement created by the discovery of mirror neurons, and the realization that imitation seems to be a pervasive form of behavior in human society. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)