Episode 16: Don't Learn Alone—How Real-Time Connection Supercharges Your Brain with Dr. Sara De Felice

Key Topics & Takeaways:

• Learning in a Social Context:
  • Social vs. Solo Learning: Understand the critical differences between learning “from” others (e.g., recorded lectures) and learning “with” others (live, interactive sessions), and why the latter can boost retention and engagement. 
  • The Role of Joint Attention: Learn how simultaneous focus (e.g., both teacher and learner attending to the same object or idea) enhances brain synchrony and memory consolidation. 
• Theoretical Perspectives:
  • Operant Conditioning vs. Social Cognitive Theory: Explore how traditional action-consequence learning compares with social cognitive approaches where observation, anticipation, and modeling play key roles. 
  • Interactivity’s Hidden Benefits: Discover how even subtle non-verbal cues (like eye contact and nodding) facilitate dynamic, real-time adjustments during teaching and learning. 
• Neuroscience of Social Interaction:
  • Key Brain Regions: Insights into the medial dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and the temporal parietal junction—the hubs of our “social brain” that process shared attention and perspective-taking. 
  • Hyperscanning Techniques: An introduction to how neuroscientists measure simultaneous brain activity in interacting individuals to better understand live social learning. 
• Implications for Education and the Workplace:
  • Enhancing Learning Environments: Discussion on the growing trend toward interactive and collaborative learning—both in academia and corporate training—and how these approaches can lead to improved outcomes. 
  • Future Research Directions: A look ahead at how further study into the quality of social interactions (e.g., the impact of relationship dynamics on learning) could reshape our understanding of education and organizational behavior. 

Guest Information & Resources:

Dr. Sara De Felice

• Position: Research Associate, Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge 
• Research Interests: Cognitive and neural mechanisms of human learning, social interaction, and the use of multi-modal approaches (including hyperscanning) to study interacting brains. 

Connect with Sara:

• Google Scholar: Sara De Felice
• Twitter: @sara_de_felice
• LinkedIn: Sara De Felice
• University Profile: Sara De Felice – University of Cambridge

Key Publication:

• Article: “Learning from others is good, with others is better: the role of social interaction in human acquisition of new knowledge” 
  • Citation: De Felice S, Hamilton AFC, Ponari M, Vigliocco G. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci. 2023 Feb 13;378(1870):20210357. doi: 10.1098/rstb.2021.0357. 
  • PubMed: Link