Dr. Giacomo Rizzolatti explains that the mirror neuron system is not always enough for understanding to take place. This is because the mirror system does not work with inferences about a situation beyond what the individual has experienced. Instead, the mirror system provides understanding from a first person point of view. Given this, humans have two ways of understanding things: (1) conceptual understanding (inferences) and (2) experience-based understanding (first person). During conceptual understanding, inferences are made in order to understanding. During experience-based understanding, an individual’s experience coincides with another’s experience to provide understanding.
