The Impact of Remote Social Communication on Modern Social Cognition and Behavior: Neural Mechanisms and Implications Across Non-Clinical and Clinical Populations

Over the past decade, tech-mediated social communication—encompassing digital messaging, video calls, short-form video, and social media—has transformed how humans process social information, interact, and form relationships. While these platforms greatly expand opportunities for connection, growing evidence shows that they also reshape the cognitive, affective, and neural processes underlying social behavior. Remote communication differs from face-to-face interaction in key ways: reduced nonverbal cues, asynchronous exchanges, altered feedback loops, and continuous exposure to curated social content. These distinctive features may influence core social-cognitive processes such as self-referential processing, emotion recognition and regulation, empathy, theory of mind, reward sensitivity, and motivation. The neural systems supporting these functions—including the medial prefrontal cortex, temporoparietal junction, amygdala, and mentalizing and reward networks—may adapt to digital contexts in ways that have tangible consequences for everyday functioning.

This Research Topic aims to advance understanding of how remote social communication shapes social cognition and behavior, with particular focus on associated neural mechanisms and clinical implications. It seeks empirical, theoretical, and clinical contributions addressing how digital interaction affects both non-clinical (adolescents, healthy adults, and aging individuals) and clinical populations, including individuals with neurodegenerative diseases (e.g., Alzheimer’s, frontotemporal dementia, Parkinson’s), acquired brain injury, schizophrenia, autism spectrum disorder, or mood and anxiety disorders. A key goal is to integrate perspectives from neuropsychology, social neuroscience, and mental health research to reveal whether digital modes of communication yield compensatory benefits or exacerbate social-cognitive vulnerabilities across the lifespan.

To gather further insights into how remote communication influences social cognition and its underlying neural architecture, we welcome submissions that explore, but are not limited to, the following themes:

• Effects of digital platforms, tools, and robots on social cognition and everyday functioning (e.g., theory of mind, empathy, emotion recognition, perspective-taking)
• Neural correlates and neuroimaging studies of remote versus face-to-face social interaction
• Social media, reward processing, motivation, and self-referential comparison and evaluation
• Perception and trust in the era of social media and artificial intelligence
• Impact on social behavior, relationships, and psychological well-being
• Remote communication in neurodegenerative and neurodevelopmental disorders
• Digital social interaction in psychiatric populations (depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, autism spectrum disorders)
• Child and adolescent brain development in today’s digital environment
• Loneliness, social isolation, and digital connectedness in aging populations
• Telehealth, teletherapy, and digital interventions for social-cognitive rehabilitation
• Methodological and ethical considerations in studying remote social cognition
• Cross-cultural perspectives on digital social communication