Mirror Neurons and Social Media
As social media becomes more and more present in our daily lives, researchers have explored its connection with mirror neurons. Learn more about this and what it means.
What do Mirror Neurons Do?
Mirror neurons are specialized brain cells that fire both when you do an action and when you observe somebody doing said action. First discovered in the brains of macaque monkeys in 1992 by a team of researchers at the University of Parma, Italy, they have been found to be related to several complex mental processes, such as empathy and learning through observation.
For most of human history, this learning came from watching our family members, peers, and communities. Today, however, as the world has become increasingly more digital, a lot of this learning comes from the people we observe on our phone and computer screens, making social media a powerful new environment for observational learning.
Social Media as a New Learning Environment
According to studies done by researchers at the University of Maine, the world collectively spends 11.5 billion hours on social media platforms daily. During this time, we are exposed to many more behaviors, emotions, and opinions than if we weren’t online.
Because mirror neurons are believed to play a role in learning through observation, they may also help explain why content on social media spreads so quickly. When we see someone express an opinion or perform an action online, similar neural pathways can be activated inside our brains, making us more likely to empathize, imitate social behaviors, or adopt social norms. This might be one of the reasons behind why trends spread so fast online, and it shows that social media can reinforce behaviors and shape expectations about what is considered normal or acceptable, rather than simply entertaining us.
Furthermore, Neurologist V. S. Ramachandran argues that mirror neurons helped drive human cultural evolution by allowing skills and knowledge to spread through imitation. Some researchers suggest social media may be accelerating this same process by spreading ideas to millions of people in hours rather than generations.
The Influence of Social Media on Our Minds
Social media has a complicated influence on our minds, much more complex than “monkey see, monkey do”. Following acts of violence such as school shootings, the media has questioned if violent video games or exposure to violent media on social media is partially to blame.
While this explanation seems like it makes sense, researchers caution against a simple cause-and-effect explanation, because if people automatically imitated everything they saw, nearly everyone who had watched a violent movie or played a violent video game would engage in violent behavior. Instead, media influences behavior in more subtle ways by shaping emotions, values, and perceptions of what is considered normal.
Mirror neurons offer one possible explanation for this phenomenon.
Rather than forcing people to copy what they observe, mirror neurons help simulate the actions and emotions of others, allowing people to learn through observation and develop empathy. Repeated exposure to certain behaviors or attitudes, whether positive or negative, can gradually reinforce social norms or expectations. Because of how constantly we are consuming content on social media, it can amplify this process.
What the Research Says
A 2023 review of social cognitive neuroscience found that digital communication engages many of the same brain systems involved in face-to-face interaction, but mirror neuron activity may be reduced because screens provide fewer nonverbal cues.
Although scientists are still investigating the long-term effects of digital communication, these findings suggest that what we post, share, and engage with online can influence both individual behavior and broader culture.
Bibliography
Doheny, M. M., & Lighthall, N. R. (2023). Social cognitive neuroscience in the digital age. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 17, 1168788. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2023.1168788
Lickerman, A., MD. (2011, March 21). How neurology creates culture and social media accelerates it. Psychology Today. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/happiness-in-world/201103/mirror-neurons-and-social-media
Doheny MM, Lighthall NR. Social cognitive neuroscience in the digital age. Front Hum Neurosci. 2023 May 30;17:1168788. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2023.1168788. PMID: 37323935; PMCID: PMC10265515.
Social Media Statistics Details - Undiscovered Maine - University of Maine. (2026, March 3). Undiscovered Maine. https://umaine.edu/undiscoveredmaine/small-business/resources/marketing-for-small-business/social-media-tools/social-media-statistics-details/
TED-Ed. (2013, August 31). The neurons that shaped civilization - VS Ramachandran [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l80zgw07W4Y
