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Wu X, Jia H, Zhao K, Wang E, Li Y. An ERP investigation of electrocortical responses in pain empathy from childhood through adolescence into adulthood. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2024; 19:nsae020. [PMID: 38483508 PMCID: PMC10939050 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsae020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2023] [Revised: 01/12/2024] [Accepted: 02/27/2024] [Indexed: 03/17/2024] Open
Abstract
Only a few studies investigated the neurodevelopment of pain empathy. Here, the temporal dynamics of electrocortical processes in pain empathy during individual neurodevelopment from childhood through adolescence into adulthood, along with the moderation effect of top-down attention, were investigated using the event-related potential (ERP) technique. To investigate the role of top-down attention in empathy development, both A-P task and A-N task were conducted. In the A-P and A-N task, participants are instructed to judge whether the models in pictures were painful or non-painful and count the number of limbs in pictures, respectively. We found that compared to the adolescent and adult groups, the children group responded significantly worse, along with stronger neural responses in both tasks. Compared to the adolescent and adult groups, the differential amplitudes between painful and non-painful conditions of P2, N2 and P3 were significantly larger in the children group. Moreover, this P3 differential amplitude could only be modulated by age in the A-P task. These results suggest that the capacity to empathize has not yet attained complete development in these children. Significantly more attention resources were involuntarily attracted by the nociceptive cues in these children, which could also reflect the immaturity of empathy ability in these children.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiangci Wu
- Institute of Psychology and Behavior, Henan University, Kaifeng 475004, China
- School of Psychology, Henan University, Kaifeng 475004, China
| | - Huibin Jia
- Institute of Psychology and Behavior, Henan University, Kaifeng 475004, China
- School of Psychology, Henan University, Kaifeng 475004, China
| | - Kaibin Zhao
- Henan International Joint Laboratory of Psychological Data Science, Zhengzhou Normal University, Zhengzhou 450044, China
| | - Enguo Wang
- Institute of Psychology and Behavior, Henan University, Kaifeng 475004, China
- School of Psychology, Henan University, Kaifeng 475004, China
| | - Yongxin Li
- Institute of Psychology and Behavior, Henan University, Kaifeng 475004, China
- School of Psychology, Henan University, Kaifeng 475004, China
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2
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Miedzobrodzka E, van Hooff JC, Krabbendam L, Konijn EA. Desensitized gamers? Violent video game exposure and empathy for pain in adolescents - an ERP study. Soc Neurosci 2023; 18:365-381. [PMID: 37990996 PMCID: PMC10721224 DOI: 10.1080/17470919.2023.2284999] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2023] [Accepted: 11/14/2023] [Indexed: 11/23/2023]
Abstract
This Event-Related Potential (ERP) study aimed to test how habitual and short-term violent video game exposure (VVGE) may affect empathy for pain responses in adolescents. In a within-subjects design, boys (N = 56; aged 12-16 years) performed a pain judgment task before and immediately after playing a violent video game. In this task, participants judged whether photos of hands depicted on their screen were in a painful situation or not. While both the P3 and the LPP components were not related to habitual violent video game exposure, general exposure to antisocial media content predicted lower P3 amplitudes to painful pictures. Further, 40 min of violent gameplay did not affect the P3 responses; however, it temporarily decreased LPP responses to painful pictures, suggesting a modest short-term desensitization effect. However, this latter interpretation is limited by a strong LPP pain effect - a significant amplitude difference between painful and non-painful pictures - that remained present in the post-game condition. Such persistent LPP effect may relate to the notion that adolescents are still learning how to properly regulate their emotional reactions. This study contributes to the limited literature on violent video games' desensitization in adolescents' brains, opening new avenues for media violence research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ewa Miedzobrodzka
- Department of Communication Science, Media Psychology Program, Faculty of Social Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
- Department of Clinical, Neuro-, and Developmental Psychology and Institute of Brain and Behavior Amsterdam, Faculty of Behavioral and Movement Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Johanna C. van Hooff
- College of Life Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Lydia Krabbendam
- Department of Clinical, Neuro-, and Developmental Psychology and Institute of Brain and Behavior Amsterdam, Faculty of Behavioral and Movement Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Elly A. Konijn
- Department of Communication Science, Media Psychology Program, Faculty of Social Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
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3
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Petereit P, Weiblen R, Perry A, Krämer UM. Effects of social presence on behavioral, neural, and physiological aspects of empathy for pain. Cereb Cortex 2023; 33:9954-9970. [PMID: 37462059 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhad257] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2023] [Revised: 06/22/2023] [Accepted: 06/26/2023] [Indexed: 09/16/2023] Open
Abstract
In mediated interactions (e.g. video calls), less information is available about the other. To investigate how this affects our empathy for one another, we conducted an electroencephalogram study, in which 30 human participants observed 1 of 5 targets undergoing painful electric stimulation, once in a direct interaction and once in a live, video-mediated interaction. We found that observers were as accurate in judging others' pain and showed as much affective empathy via video as in a direct encounter. While mu suppression, a common neural marker of empathy, was not sensitive to others' pain, theta responses to others' pain as well as skin conductance coupling between participants were reduced in the video-mediated condition. We conclude that physical proximity with its rich social cues is important for nuanced physiological resonance with the other's experience. More studies are warranted to confirm these results and to understand their behavioral significance for remote social interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pauline Petereit
- Department of Neurology, University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee 160, 23538 Lübeck, Germany
- Center of Brain, Behavior and Metabolism (CBBM), University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee 160, 23538 Lübeck, Germany
| | - Ronja Weiblen
- Department of Neurology, University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee 160, 23538 Lübeck, Germany
- Center of Brain, Behavior and Metabolism (CBBM), University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee 160, 23538 Lübeck, Germany
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee 160, 23538 Lübeck, Germany
| | - Anat Perry
- Psychology Department, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Mount Scopus, 91905 Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Ulrike M Krämer
- Department of Neurology, University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee 160, 23538 Lübeck, Germany
- Center of Brain, Behavior and Metabolism (CBBM), University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee 160, 23538 Lübeck, Germany
- Department of Psychology, University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee 160, 23538 Lübeck, Germany
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Feldman R. The neurobiology of hatred: Tools of Dialogue© intervention for youth reared amidst intractable conflict impacts brain, behaviour, and peacebuilding attitudes. Acta Paediatr 2023; 112:603-616. [PMID: 36655828 DOI: 10.1111/apa.16676] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2022] [Revised: 12/19/2022] [Accepted: 01/16/2023] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Abstract
Myths, drama, and sacred texts have warned against the fragile nature of human love; the closer the affiliative bond, the quicker it can turn into hatred, suggesting similarities in the neurobiological underpinnings of love and hatred. Here, I offer a theoretical account on the neurobiology of hatred based on our model on the biology of human attachments and its three foundations; the oxytocin system, the "affiliative brain", comprising the neural network sustaining attachment, and biobehavioural synchrony, the process by which humans create a coupled biology through coordinated action. These systems mature in mammals in the context of the mother-infant bond and then transfer to support life within social groups. During this transition, they partition to support affiliation and solidarity to one's group and fear and hatred towards out-group based on minor variations in social behaviour. I present the Tools of Dialogue© intervention for outgroup members based on social synchrony. Applied to Israeli and Palestinian youth and implementing RCT, we measured social behaviour, attitudes, hormones, and social brain response before and after the 8-session intervention. Youth receiving the intervention increased reciprocity and reduced hostile behaviour towards outgroup, attenuated the neural marker of prejudice and increased neural empathic response, reduced cortisol and elevated oxytocin, and adapted attitudes of compromise. These neural changes predicted peacebuilding support 7 years later, when young adults can engage in civil responsibilities. Our intervention, the first to show long-term effects of inter-group intervention on brain and behaviour, demonstrates how social synchrony can tilt the neurobiology of hatred towards the pole of affiliation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruth Feldman
- Center of Developmental Social Neuroscience, Reichman University, Herzlia, Israel
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5
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Schwartz L, Levy J, Endevelt-Shapira Y, Djalovski A, Hayut O, Dumas G, Feldman R. Technologically-assisted communication attenuates inter-brain synchrony. Neuroimage 2022; 264:119677. [PMID: 36244598 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2022.119677] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2022] [Revised: 10/06/2022] [Accepted: 10/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
The transition to technologically-assisted communication has permeated all facets of human social life; yet, its impact on the social brain is still unknown and the effects may be particularly intense during periods of developmental transitions. Applying a two-brain perspective, the current preregistered study utilized hyperscanning EEG to measure brain-to-brain synchrony in 62 mother-child pairs at the transition to adolescence (child age; M = 12.26, range 10-14) during live face-to-face interaction versus technologically-assisted remote communication. The live interaction elicited 9 significant cross-brain links between densely inter-connected frontal and temporal areas in the beta range [14-30 Hz]. Mother's right frontal region connected with the child's right and left frontal, temporal, and central regions, suggesting its regulatory role in organizing the two-brain dynamics. In contrast, the remote interaction elicited only 1 significant cross-brain-cross-hemisphere link, attenuating the robust right-to-right-brain connectivity during live social moments that communicates socio-affective signals. Furthermore, while the level of social behavior was comparable between the two interactions, brain-behavior associations emerged only during the live exchange. Mother-child right temporal-temporal synchrony linked with moments of shared gaze and the degree of child engagement and empathic behavior correlated with right frontal-frontal synchrony. Our findings indicate that human co-presence is underpinned by specific neurobiological processes that should be studied in depth. Much further research is needed to tease apart whether the "Zoom fatigue" experienced during technological communication may stem, in part, from overload on more limited inter-brain connections and to address the potential cost of social technology for brain maturation, particularly among youth.
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Affiliation(s)
- Linoy Schwartz
- Center for Developmental Social Neuroscience, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel
| | - Jonathan Levy
- Center for Developmental Social Neuroscience, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel; Department of Neuroscience and Biomedical Engineering, Aalto University, Finland
| | | | - Amir Djalovski
- Center for Developmental Social Neuroscience, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel
| | - Olga Hayut
- Center for Developmental Social Neuroscience, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel
| | - Guillaume Dumas
- Precision Psychiatry and Social Physiology laboratory, CHU Sainte-Justine Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Ruth Feldman
- Center for Developmental Social Neuroscience, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel; Child Study Center, Yale University, United States.
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Levy J, Influs M, Masalha S, Goldstein A, Feldman R. Dialogue intervention for youth amidst intractable conflict attenuates neural prejudice response and promotes adults' peacemaking. PNAS NEXUS 2022; 1:pgac236. [PMID: 36712372 PMCID: PMC9802066 DOI: 10.1093/pnasnexus/pgac236] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2022] [Accepted: 10/11/2022] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Humans' dependence on group living has led to the formation of tenacious, often nonconscious negative perceptions of other social groups, a phenomenon termed "intergroup bias" that sustains one of the world's most imminent problem: intergroup conflicts. Adolescents' participation in intergroup conflicts has been continuously on the rise, rendering the need to devise interventions that can mitigate some of their deleterious effects on youth an urgent societal priority. Framed within the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and targeting youth, we implemented a dialogue-enhancing intervention for adolescents (16 to 18 years) reared amidst intractable conflict that builds on social synchrony and the neurobiology of affiliation. Implementing a randomized controlled trial design, before and after the 8-week intervention adolescents underwent magnetoencephalography to assess a neural marker of implicit prejudice and interviewed on their attitudes toward the conflict. Adolescents who received the intervention showed attenuation of the neural prejudice response, as indexed by sustained occipital alpha that was significantly reduced at post-intervention and adopted attitudes of peacemaking. Change in the neural prejudice response predicted attitudes of compromise and support in peacebuilding 7 years later, when young adults can already engage in active civil duties and responsibilities. These results underscore adolescence as a window of opportunity for enhancing inter-group dialogue and demonstrate the long-term associations between the neural evaluation of prejudice and self-reported measures of proclivity for compromise and peace in the context of an intractable century-long conflict.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan Levy
- Ivcher School of Psychology, Reichman University, 8 Ha'universita Street, Herzliya 4610101, Israel
- Department of Neuroscience and Biomedical Engineering, Aalto University, 02150 Espoo, Finland
| | - Moran Influs
- Ivcher School of Psychology, Reichman University, 8 Ha'universita Street, Herzliya 4610101, Israel
| | | | - Abraham Goldstein
- Gonda Multidisciplinary Brain Research Center and Department of Psychology, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 5290002, Israel
| | - Ruth Feldman
- Ivcher School of Psychology, Reichman University, 8 Ha'universita Street, Herzliya 4610101, Israel
- Child Study Center, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
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Yang D, Li X, Zhang Y, Li Z, Meng J. Skin Color and Attractiveness Modulate Empathy for Pain: An Event-Related Potential Study. Front Psychol 2022; 12:780633. [PMID: 35058849 PMCID: PMC8763853 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.780633] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2021] [Accepted: 12/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Although racial in-group bias in empathy for pain has been reported, empathic responses to others’ pain may be influenced by other characteristics besides race. To explore whether skin color and attractiveness modulate empathy for pain, we recorded 24 participants’ reactions to painful faces from racial in-group members with different skin color (fair, wheatish, or dark) and attractiveness (more or less attractive) using event-related potentials (ERPs). Results showed that, for more attractive painful faces, dark skin faces were judged as less painful and elicited smaller N2 amplitudes than fair- and wheatish-skinned faces. However, for less attractive faces, there were no significant differences among the three skin colors. Our findings suggest that empathy for pain toward racial in-group members may be influenced by skin color and attractiveness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Di Yang
- Key Laboratory of Applied Psychology, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, China.,School of Education, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, China
| | - Xiong Li
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China.,Key Laboratory of Basic Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
| | - Yinya Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Applied Psychology, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, China.,School of Education, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, China
| | - Zuoshan Li
- Key Laboratory of Applied Psychology, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, China.,School of Education, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, China
| | - Jing Meng
- Key Laboratory of Applied Psychology, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, China.,School of Education, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, China
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8
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Zebarjadi N, Levy J. Neural shifts in alpha rhythm's dual functioning during empathy. Brain Behav 2021; 11:e2355. [PMID: 34536976 PMCID: PMC8613432 DOI: 10.1002/brb3.2355] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2021] [Revised: 07/20/2021] [Accepted: 08/22/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Alpha oscillations are unique in their capacity to relay neuronal information through a dual-process named "gating by inhibition": rhythmic enhancement inhibits task-irrelevant regions while rhythmic suppression engages task-relevant regions in the brain. A social-cognitive process that operates by relying on the suppression of the alpha rhythm in the primary somatosensory cortex (S1) is the ability to generate empathy. This phenomenon has been evidenced in dozens of electrophysiological studies targeting adult human subjects. Yet, recent studies on the neurodevelopment of empathy indicate that in younger age, empathy does not involve alpha suppression in S1 but only enhancement. More interestingly, right before adulthood, this rhythm is still enhanced, but in a remarkable shift, a pattern of suppression emerges. In this registered magnetoencephalography (MEG) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study, we will capture frequency-decomposed neural activity particularly at the alpha range and its corresponding hemodynamic response and target subjects at around 20 years old as a unique time-window in development that allows investigating in parallel both low-alpha suppression and high-alpha enhancement. We aim to address two questions: (a) Does alpha power suppression in the S1 region during empathy correspond to BOLD increase in this region? (b) What is the functional role of alpha power enhancement during empathy development (BOLD signal increase or decrease)? Addressing these questions will particularly advance knowledge on the process of empathy in the brain, and the way in which it is underpinned by alpha oscillations. Moreover, examining these experimental outcomes can potentially lay the ground for future studies that would further examine the role of alpha oscillations in empathy during the course of development. METHODS Brain data of forty healthy individuals close to 20 years old will be recorded in two consecutive MEG and fMRI sessions while subjects observing physical pain versus neutral stimuli. Besides, each participant's subjective experiences wll be measred by questionnaires, interviews and rating of the stimuli.
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Affiliation(s)
- Niloufar Zebarjadi
- Department of Neuroscience and Biomedical Engineering, Aalto University, Espoo, Finland
| | - Jonathan Levy
- Department of Neuroscience and Biomedical Engineering, Aalto University, Espoo, Finland.,Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya, Herzliya, Israel
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Levy J, Goldstein A, Influs M, Masalha S, Feldman R. Neural Rhythmic Underpinnings of Intergroup Bias: Implications for Peace-Building Attitudes and Dialogue. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2021; 17:408-420. [PMID: 34519338 PMCID: PMC8972238 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsab106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2021] [Revised: 08/25/2021] [Accepted: 09/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Intergroup bias is a ubiquitous socio-cognitive phenomenon that, while sustaining human dependence on group living, often leads to prejudice, inequity, and violence; yet, its neural underpinnings remain unclear. Framed within the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and targeting youth, this study utilized magnetoencephalography to describe intrinsic neural oscillatory processes that represent the intergroup bias and may link with engagement in peacemaking in order to shed further light on the neural mechanisms underpinning intergroup conflict. Across the oscillatory spectrum, from very low to very high frequency bands, the only rhythm found to underlie the intergroup bias was the alpha rhythm. Alpha was continuously activated across the task and integrated a rapid perceptual component in occipital cortex with a top-down cognitive-control component in medial cingulate cortex. These components were distinctly associated with real-life intergroup dialog style and expressed attitudes that promote active engagement in peacemaking. Our findings suggest that the cortical alpha rhythm plays a crucial role in sustaining intergroup bias and address its impact on concrete intergroup experiences. Results highlight the need to provide opportunities for active peace-building dialog to youth reared amidst intractable conflicts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan Levy
- Interdisciplinary Center, Herzliya 46150, Israel.,Department of Neuroscience and Biomedical Engineering, Aalto University, Espoo 02150, Finland
| | - Abraham Goldstein
- Gonda Multidisciplinary Brain Research Center and Department of Psychology, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
| | - Moran Influs
- Interdisciplinary Center, Herzliya 46150, Israel
| | | | - Ruth Feldman
- Interdisciplinary Center, Herzliya 46150, Israel.,Child Study Center, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520, USA
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10
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Zebarjadi N, Adler E, Kluge A, Jääskeläinen IP, Sams M, Levy J. Rhythmic Neural Patterns During Empathy to Vicarious Pain: Beyond the Affective-Cognitive Empathy Dichotomy. Front Hum Neurosci 2021; 15:708107. [PMID: 34305559 PMCID: PMC8292834 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2021.708107] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2021] [Accepted: 06/14/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Empathy is often split into an affective facet for embodied simulation or sometimes sensorial processing, and a cognitive facet for mentalizing and perspective-taking. However, a recent neurophenomenological framework proposes a graded view on empathy (i.e., "Graded Empathy") that extends this dichotomy and considers multiple levels while integrating complex neural patterns and representations of subjective experience. In the current magnetoencephalography study, we conducted a multidimensional investigation of neural oscillatory modulations and their cortical sources in 44 subjects while observing stimuli that convey vicarious pain (vs no-pain) in a broad time window and frequency range to explore rich neural representations of pain empathy. Furthermore, we collected participants' subjective-experience of sensitivity to vicarious pain, as well as their self-reported trait levels of affective and cognitive empathy to examine the possible associations between neural mechanisms and subjective experiences and reports. While extending previous electrophysiological studies that mainly focused on alpha suppression, we found here four significant power modulation patterns corresponding to multiple facets of empathy: an early central (peaking in the paracentral sulcus) alpha (6-11 Hz) suppression pattern plausibly reflecting sensory processing, two early beta (15-23 Hz) suppression patterns in the mid-cingulate cortex (plausibly reflecting the affective component) and in the precuneus (plausibly reflecting the cognitive component), and a late anterior (peaking in the orbitofrontal cortex) alpha-beta (11-19 Hz) enhancement pattern (plausibly reflecting cognitive-control inhibitory response). Interestingly, the latter measure was negatively correlated with the subjective sensitivity to vicarious pain, thereby possibly revealing a novel inhibitory neural mechanism determining the subjective sensitivity to vicarious pain. Altogether, these multilevel findings cannot be accommodated by the dichotomous model of empathy (i.e., affective-cognitive), and provide empirical support to the Graded Empathy neurophenomenological framework. Furthermore, this work emphasizes the importance of examining multiple neural rhythms, their cortical generators, and reports of subjective-experience in the aim of elucidating the complex nature of empathy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Niloufar Zebarjadi
- Department of Neuroscience and Biomedical Engineering, Aalto University, Espoo, Finland
| | - Eliyahu Adler
- Department of Neuroscience and Biomedical Engineering, Aalto University, Espoo, Finland.,Department of Psychology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Annika Kluge
- Department of Neuroscience and Biomedical Engineering, Aalto University, Espoo, Finland
| | - Iiro P Jääskeläinen
- Department of Neuroscience and Biomedical Engineering, Aalto University, Espoo, Finland.,International Laboratory of Social Neurobiology, Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience, Higher School of Economics, Moscow, Russia
| | - Mikko Sams
- Department of Neuroscience and Biomedical Engineering, Aalto University, Espoo, Finland.,MAGICS-Aalto, Aalto University, Espoo, Finland
| | - Jonathan Levy
- Department of Neuroscience and Biomedical Engineering, Aalto University, Espoo, Finland.,Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya, Herzliya, Israel
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11
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Balconi M, Angioletti L. One's Interoception Affects the Representation of Seeing Others' Pain: A Randomized Controlled qEEG Study. Pain Res Manag 2021; 2021:5585060. [PMID: 33884043 PMCID: PMC8041555 DOI: 10.1155/2021/5585060] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2021] [Revised: 03/17/2021] [Accepted: 03/23/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Objective This research demonstrates that interoceptive attentiveness (IA) can modulate cortical oscillations related to the emotional and cognitive representations of observing pain in others. Methods Twenty participants were required to observe painful/nonpainful stimuli in an individual versus the interactive condition during the recording of the electroencephalogram. The sample was divided into experimental (EXP) and control (CTR) groups, and the EXP group was explicitly required to direct the attention on its interoceptive correlates while observing the stimuli. Results Mixed repeated measures, analyses of variance, were applied to each EEG frequency band. Significant findings were obtained mainly for theta and beta bands for the two groups. A hemispheric lateralisation effect was found, with right lateralisation of the theta band for the EXP group when observing painful stimuli and enhanced left activation of theta and beta bands for the CTR group when observing nonpainful stimuli. For both groups, frontal cortical regions were significantly sensitive to social scenarios, while posterior parietal activation was found for stimuli depicting the individual condition. Conclusions The results suggest that IA might enhance the emotional representation of painful stimuli, highlighting their negative and unpleasant features in the EXP group, while the attention of the CTR group was mainly drawn to nonpainful stimuli in social and individual conditions, with a positive valence. The role of frontal regions in the processing of social stimuli through social cognition, inducing emotional mirroring and requiring deeper analysis of the social context, was underlined. We propose that IA could be trained for promoting emotion regulation and empathic response.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michela Balconi
- International Research Center for Cognitive Applied Neuroscience (IrcCAN), Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Milan, Italy
- Research Unit in Affective and Social Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Milan, Italy
| | - Laura Angioletti
- International Research Center for Cognitive Applied Neuroscience (IrcCAN), Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Milan, Italy
- Research Unit in Affective and Social Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Milan, Italy
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12
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Levy J, Lankinen K, Hakonen M, Feldman R. The integration of social and neural synchrony: a case for ecologically valid research using MEG neuroimaging. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2021; 16:143-152. [PMID: 32382751 PMCID: PMC7812634 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsaa061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/02/2020] [Revised: 04/06/2020] [Accepted: 04/27/2020] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The recent decade has seen a shift from artificial and environmentally deprived experiments in neuroscience to real-life studies on multiple brains in interaction, coordination and synchrony. In these new interpersonal synchrony experiments, there has been a growing trend to employ naturalistic social interactions to evaluate mechanisms underlying synchronous neuronal communication. Here, we emphasize the importance of integrating the assessment of neural synchrony with measurement of nonverbal behavioral synchrony as expressed in various social contexts: relaxed social interactions, planning a joint pleasurable activity, conflict discussion, invocation of trauma, or support giving and assess the integration of neural and behavioral synchrony across developmental stages and psychopathological conditions. We also showcase the advantages of magnetoencephalography neuroimaging as a promising tool for studying interactive neural synchrony and consider the challenge of ecological validity at the expense of experimental rigor. We review recent evidence of rhythmic information flow between brains in interaction and conclude with addressing state-of-the-art developments that may contribute to advance research on brain-to-brain coordination to the next level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan Levy
- Department of Neuroscience and Biomedical Engineering, Aalto University, 02150 Espoo, Finland
- Interdisciplinary Center, Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, Herzliya 46150, Israel
| | - Kaisu Lankinen
- Department of Radiology, Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, USA
- Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Maria Hakonen
- Department of Neuroscience and Biomedical Engineering, Aalto University, 02150 Espoo, Finland
- Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland
| | - Ruth Feldman
- Interdisciplinary Center, Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, Herzliya 46150, Israel
- Yale University, Child Study Center, New Haven, CT 06520, USA
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13
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Djalovski A, Dumas G, Kinreich S, Feldman R. Human attachments shape interbrain synchrony toward efficient performance of social goals. Neuroimage 2020; 226:117600. [PMID: 33249213 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2020.117600] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2020] [Revised: 10/12/2020] [Accepted: 11/22/2020] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The human brain has undergone massive expansion across primate evolution through life amidst multi-layered social attachments; within families, among friends, and between clan members and this enabled humans to coordinate their brains with those of others toward the execution of complex social goals. We examined how human attachments facilitate efficient, resource-sensitive performance of social goals by balancing neural and behavioral synchrony. Using hyperscanning EEG, we collected neural data from male-female pairs in three groups (N=158, 79 pairs); long-term couples, best friends, and unfamiliar group members, during two ecologically-valid naturalistic tasks; motor coordination and empathy giving. Across groups and tasks, neural synchrony was supported by behavior coordination and orchestrated multiple neural rhythms. In the goal-directed motor task, interbrain synchrony implicated beta and gamma rhythms localized to sensorimotor areas. Couples showed the highest neural synchrony combined with greatest behavioral synchrony and such brain-behavior linkage resulted in speedy performance, conserving energy in the long run. The socially-oriented empathy task triggered neural synchrony in widely-distributed sensorimotor and bilateral temporal regions, integrated alpha, beta, and gamma rhythms, and implicated brain-behavior complementarity; couples displayed the highest behavioral synchrony combined with lowest neural synchrony toward greatest felt support while strangers exhibited the opposite pattern. Findings suggest that human attachments provide a familiar backdrop of temporal regularities, required for the brain's allostatic function, and interbrain and behavioral synchrony are sculpted by familiarity and closeness toward resource-sensitive performance of survival-related social goals, toiled by two.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amir Djalovski
- Center for Developmental Social Neuroscience, Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya, Herzliya, Israel; Department of Psychology, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
| | - Guillaume Dumas
- Precision Psychiatry and Social Physiology laboratory, CHU Sainte-Justine Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, University of Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Human Brain and Behavior Laboratory, Center for Complex Systems and Brain Sciences, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, Florida, USA
| | - Sivan Kinreich
- Department of Psychiatry, State University of New York Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY, USA
| | - Ruth Feldman
- Center for Developmental Social Neuroscience, Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya, Herzliya, Israel; Child Study Center, Yale University,.
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14
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Yoris A, Legaz A, Abrevaya S, Alarco S, López Peláez J, Sánchez R, García AM, Ibáñez A, Sedeño L. Multicentric evidence of emotional impairments in hypertensive heart disease. Sci Rep 2020; 10:14131. [PMID: 32839479 PMCID: PMC7445248 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-70451-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2019] [Accepted: 07/02/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The mechanisms underlying emotional alterations constitute a key research target in neuroscience. Emerging evidence indicates that these disruptions can be related to abnormal interoception (i.e., the sensing of visceral feelings), as observed in patients with cardiodynamic deficits. To directly assess these links, we performed the first multicenter study on emotion recognition and interoception in patients with hypertensive heart disease (HHD). Participants from two countries completed a facial emotion recognition test, and a subsample additionally underwent an interoception protocol based on a validated heartbeat detection task. HHD patients from both countries presented deficits in the recognition of overall and negative emotions. Moreover, interoceptive performance was impaired in the HHD group. In addition, a significant association between interoceptive performance and emotion recognition was observed in the control group, but this relation was abolished in the HHD group. All results survived after covariance with cognitive status measures, suggesting they were not biased by general cognitive deficits in the patients. Taken together, these findings suggest that emotional recognition alterations could represent a sui generis deficit in HHD, and that it may be partially explained by the disruption of mechanisms subserving the integration of neuro-visceral signals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adrián Yoris
- Institute of Cognitive and Translational Neuroscience (INCYT), INECO Foundation, Favaloro University, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), Pacheco de Melo 1860, C1126AAB, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Agustina Legaz
- National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), Pacheco de Melo 1860, C1126AAB, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Universidad de San Andrés, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Sofía Abrevaya
- Institute of Cognitive and Translational Neuroscience (INCYT), INECO Foundation, Favaloro University, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), Pacheco de Melo 1860, C1126AAB, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Sofía Alarco
- Institute of Cognitive and Translational Neuroscience (INCYT), INECO Foundation, Favaloro University, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | | | - Ramiro Sánchez
- Metabolic and Arterial Hypertension Unit, Favaloro Foundation Hospital, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Adolfo M García
- National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), Pacheco de Melo 1860, C1126AAB, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Universidad de San Andrés, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Faculty of Education, National University of Cuyo (UNCuyo), Mendoza, Argentina
- Departamento de Lingüística y Literatura, Facultad de Humanidades, Universidad de Santiago de Chile, Santiago, Chile
- Global Brain Health Institute, University of California, San Francisco, USA
| | - Agustín Ibáñez
- National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), Pacheco de Melo 1860, C1126AAB, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Universidad de San Andrés, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Global Brain Health Institute, University of California, San Francisco, USA
- Universidad Autónoma del Caribe, Barranquilla, Colombia
- Center for Social and Cognitive Neuroscience (CSCN), School of Psychology, Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez, Santiago, Chile
| | - Lucas Sedeño
- National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), Pacheco de Melo 1860, C1126AAB, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
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15
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Abstract
Resilience - a key topic in clinical science and practice - still lacks a clear conceptualization that integrates its evolutionary and human-specific features, refrains from exclusive focus on fear physiology, incorporates a developmental approach, and, most importantly, is not based on the negation (i.e., absence of symptoms following trauma). Building on the initial condition of mammals, whose brain matures in the context of the mother's body and caregiving behavior, we argue that systems and processes that participate in tuning the brain to the social ecology and adapting to its hardships mark the construct of resilience. These include the oxytocin system, the affiliative brain, and biobehavioral synchrony, all characterized by great flexibility across phylogenesis and ontogenesis. Three core features of resilience are outlined: plasticity, sociality and meaning. Mechanisms of sociality by which coordinated action supports diversity, endurance and adaptation are described across animal evolution. Humans' biobehavioral synchrony matures from maternal attuned behavior in the postpartum to adult-adult relationships of empathy, perspective-taking and intimacy, and extends from the mother-child relationship to other affiliative bonds throughout life, charting a fundamental trajectory in the development of resilience. Findings from three high-risk cohorts, each tapping a distinct disruption to maternal-infant bonding (prematurity, maternal depression, and early life stress/trauma), and followed from birth to adolescence/young adulthood, demonstrate how components of the neurobiology of affiliation confer resilience and uniquely shape the social brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruth Feldman
- Interdisciplinary CenterHerzliyaIsrael,Yale Child Study CenterUniversity of YaleNew HavenCTUSA
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16
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Levy J, Bader O. Graded Empathy: A Neuro-Phenomenological Hypothesis. Front Psychiatry 2020; 11:554848. [PMID: 33329092 PMCID: PMC7732462 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2020.554848] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2020] [Accepted: 10/07/2020] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
The neuroscience of empathy has enormously expanded in the past two decades, thereby making instrumental progress for the understanding of neural substrates involved in affective and cognitive aspects of empathy. Yet, these conclusions have relied on ultrasimplified tasks resulting in the affective/cognitive dichotomy that was often modeled and overemphasized in pathological, developmental, and genetic studies of empathy. As such, the affective/cognitive model of empathy could not straightforwardly accommodate and explain the recent surge of neuroscientific data obtained from studies employing naturalistic approaches and intergroup conditions. Inspired by phenomenological philosophy, this article paves the way for a new scientific perspective on empathy that breaks thorough the affective/cognitive dichotomy. This neuro-phenomenological account leans on phenomenological analyses and can straightforwardly explain recent neuroscience data. It emphasizes the dynamic, subjective, and piecemeal features of empathic experiences and unpicks the graded nature of empathy. The graded empathy hypothesis postulates that attending to others' expressions always facilitates empathy, but the parametric modulation in the levels of the empathic experience varies as a function of one's social interest (e.g., via intergroup or inter-personal cues) in the observed other. Drawing on multiple resources that integrate neuroscience with phenomenology, we describe the potential of this graded framework in an era of real-life experimentation. By wearing lenses of neuro-phenomenology, this original perspective can change the way empathy is considered.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan Levy
- Department of Neuroscience and Biomedical Engineering, Aalto University, Espoo, Finland.,Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya, Herzliya, Israel
| | - Oren Bader
- Department of General Psychiatry, Center of Psychosocial Medicine, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
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17
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Riečanský I, Lamm C. The Role of Sensorimotor Processes in Pain Empathy. Brain Topogr 2019; 32:965-976. [PMID: 31705422 PMCID: PMC6882755 DOI: 10.1007/s10548-019-00738-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2019] [Accepted: 10/18/2019] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
Pain is a salient, aversive sensation which motivates avoidance, but also has a strong social signaling function. Numerous studies have shown that regions of the nervous system active in association with first-hand pain are also active in response to the pain of others. When witnessing somatic pain, such as seeing bodies in painful situations, significant activations occur not only in areas related to the processing of negative emotions, but also in neuronal structures engaged in somatosensation and the control of skeletal muscles. These empathy-related sensorimotor activations are selectively reviewed in this article, with a focus on studies using electrophysiological methods and paradigms investigating responses to somatic pain. Convergent evidence from these studies shows that these activations (1) occur at multiple levels of the nervous system, from the spinal cord up to the cerebral cortex, (2) are best conceptualized as activations of a defensive system, in line with the role of pain to protect body from injury, and (3) contribute to establishing a matching of psychological states between the sufferer and the observer, which ultimately supports empathic understanding and motivate prosocial action. Future research should thus focus on how these sensorimotor responses are related to higher-order empathic responses, including affective sharing and emotion regulation, and how this motivates approach-related prosocial behaviors aimed at alleviating the pain and suffering of others.
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Affiliation(s)
- Igor Riečanský
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Basic Psychological Research and Research Methods, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Liebiggasse 5, 1010, Vienna, Austria
- Department of Behavioural Neuroscience, Centre of Experimental Medicine, Institute of Normal and Pathological Physiology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Sienkiewiczova 1, 813 71, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Claus Lamm
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Basic Psychological Research and Research Methods, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Liebiggasse 5, 1010, Vienna, Austria.
- Cognitive Neuroscience, International School for Advanced Studies, Via Bonomea 265, 34136, Trieste, Italy.
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18
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Levy J, Yirmiya K, Goldstein A, Feldman R. Chronic trauma impairs the neural basis of empathy in mothers: Relations to parenting and children's empathic abilities. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2019; 38:100658. [PMID: 31121480 PMCID: PMC6969352 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2019.100658] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2018] [Revised: 04/29/2019] [Accepted: 05/09/2019] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Early life stress carries long-term negative consequences for children's well-being and maturation of the social brain. Here, we utilize a unique cohort to test its effects on mothers' social brain, targeting mothers' neural empathic response in relation to caregiving and child empathic abilities. Mother-child dyads living in a zone of repeated war-related trauma were followed from early childhood and mother-child behavioral synchrony was repeatedly observed. At pre-adolescence(11-13 years) children's empathic abilities were assessed and mothers(N = 88, N = 44 war-exposed) underwent magnetoencephalography(MEG) while exposed to vicarious pain. All mothers showed alpha suppression in sensorimotor regions, indicating automatic response to others' pain. However, trauma-exposed mothers did not exhibit gamma oscillations in viceromotor cortex, a neural marker of mature empathy which utilizes interoceptive mechanisms for higher-order understanding and does not emerge before adulthood. Mother-child synchrony across the first decade predicted mothers' viceromotor gamma, and both synchrony and maternal viceromotor gamma mediated the relations between war-exposure and child empathic abilities, possibly charting a cross-generational pathway from mothers' mature neural empathy to children's empathic capacities. Our findings are first to probe the maternal social brain in adolescence in relation to parenting and underscore the need for targeted interventions to mothers raising children in contexts of chronic stress.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Karen Yirmiya
- Interdisciplinary Center, Herzliya, 46150, Israel; Department of Psychology and the Gonda Brain Center, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, 5290002, Israel
| | - Abraham Goldstein
- Department of Psychology and the Gonda Brain Center, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, 5290002, Israel
| | - Ruth Feldman
- Interdisciplinary Center, Herzliya, 46150, Israel; Yale University, Child Study Center, New Haven, CT, 06520, USA.
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19
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The neural development of empathy is sensitive to caregiving and early trauma. Nat Commun 2019; 10:1905. [PMID: 31015471 PMCID: PMC6478745 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-09927-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/01/2019] [Accepted: 04/03/2019] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Empathy is a core human social ability shaped by biological dispositions and caregiving experiences; yet the mechanisms sustaining maturation of the neural basis of empathy are unknown. Here, we followed eighty-four children, including 42 exposed to chronic war-related adversity, across the first decade of life, and assessed parenting, child temperament, and anxiety disorders as contributors to the neural development of empathy. At preadolescence, participants underwent magenetoencephalography while observing others’ distress. Preadolescents show a widely-distributed response in structures implicating the overlap of affective (automatic) and cognitive (higher-order) empathy, which is predicted by mother-child synchrony across childhood. Only temperamentally reactive young children growing in chronic adversity, particularly those who later develop anxiety disorders, display additional engagement of neural nodes possibly reflecting hyper-mentalizing and ruminations over the distressing stimuli. These findings demonstrate how caregiving patterns fostering interpersonal resonance, reactive temperament, and chronic adversity combine across early development to shape the human empathic brain. People’s early experiences and dispositions influence their ability to show and feel empathy. Here, using a sample of children exposed to war-related trauma, the authors examine how parenting, temperament, anxiety, and adversity affect the maturation of neural responses associated with empathy.
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20
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Influs M, Masalha S, Zagoory-Shaon O, Feldman R. Dialogue intervention to youth amidst intractable conflict attenuates stress response to outgroup. Horm Behav 2019; 110:68-76. [PMID: 30807738 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2019.02.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2018] [Revised: 02/17/2019] [Accepted: 02/19/2019] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Encounter with outgroup has been shown to elicit physiological stress response and when outgroup is perceived as threatening to one's own family and community, stress is higher. In such contexts, becoming familiar and learning to empathize with the other side may reduce stress. Building on the long-lasting Israeli-Palestinian conflict, we developed an eight-week group intervention focused on dialogue and empathy and tested it within a randomized controlled trial. Eighty-eight Israeli-Jewish and Arab-Palestinian adolescents (16-18 years) were randomly assigned to intervention or control groups. Before(T1) and after(T2) intervention, one-on-one interaction with outgroup member was videotaped, cortisol levels assessed five times during a 2.5-hour session involving exposure to outgroup stimuli, and adolescents were interviewed regarding national conflict. Intervention reduced cortisol response to social contact and reminders of outgroup (F = 4.92, p = .032, Eta2 = 0.109). This HPA-activity suppression was defined by two pathways. First, intervention had a direct impact on cortisol decrease; and second, intervention increased youth's behavioral empathy during one-on-one interaction with outgroup member and this empathic response mediated the effect of intervention on cortisol reduction. Adolescents' belief in the potential for reconciliation at T1 predicted greater empathy at T2. Our study provides the first evidence-based intervention for youth growing up amidst intractable conflict and demonstrates its impact on adolescents' physiological stress response to outgroup. Results contribute to research on the neurobiology of ingroup/outgroup relations, highlight the key role of dialogical empathy and social interactions for interventions targeting youth, and emphasize the importance of enhancing motivation for social inclusion for initiating positive behavioral and physiological processes. Clinical Trials Registry (NCT02122887; https://clinicaltrials.gov).
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Affiliation(s)
- Moran Influs
- Interdisciplinary Center, Herzlia, Israel; Department of Psychology, Bar Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
| | | | | | - Ruth Feldman
- Interdisciplinary Center, Herzlia, Israel; Child Study Center, Yale University, New Haven, CT, United States of America.
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21
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Levy J, Yirmiya K, Goldstein A, Feldman R. The Neural Basis of Empathy and Empathic Behavior in the Context of Chronic Trauma. Front Psychiatry 2019; 10:562. [PMID: 31474883 PMCID: PMC6706815 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2019.00562] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2018] [Accepted: 07/17/2019] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Background: Accumulating evidence in social neuroscience suggests that mature human empathy relies on the integration of two types of processes: a lower-order process mainly tapping into automatic and sensory mechanisms and a higher-order process involving affect and cognition and modulated by top-down control. Studies have also indicated that neural measures of empathy often correlate with behavioral measures of empathy. Yet, little is known on the effects of chronic trauma on the neural and behavioral indices of empathy and the associations among them. Methods: Mothers exposed to chronic war-related trauma and nonexposed controls (N = 88, N = 41 war-exposed) underwent magnetoencephalography (MEG) while watching stimuli depicting vicarious emotional distress. Maternal empathic behavior was assessed during mother-child interaction involving a joint task. Results: Empathy-evoking vignettes elicited response in alpha rhythms in a network involving both sensorimotor and viceromotor (anterior insula) regions, suggesting integration of the sensory and affective components of empathy. Whereas exposure to chronic stress did not affect the level of neural activations in this network, it reduced maternal empathic behavior. Furthermore, trauma exposure impaired the coherence of brain and behavior; only among controls, but not among trauma-exposed mothers, the neural basis of empathy was predicted by maternal empathic behavior. Conclusions: Chronic stress takes a toll on the mother's empathic ability and indirectly impacts the neural basis of empathy by disrupting the coherence of brain and behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan Levy
- Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya, Herzliya, Israel
| | - Karen Yirmiya
- Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya, Herzliya, Israel.,Department of Psychology and the Gonda Brain Center, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
| | - Abraham Goldstein
- Department of Psychology and the Gonda Brain Center, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
| | - Ruth Feldman
- Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya, Herzliya, Israel.,Child Study Center, School of Medicine, Yale University, New Haven, CT, United States
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22
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Pratt M, Goldstein A, Feldman R. Child brain exhibits a multi-rhythmic response to attachment cues. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2018; 13:957-966. [PMID: 30085308 PMCID: PMC6137312 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsy062] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2018] [Revised: 05/22/2018] [Accepted: 07/24/2018] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Research on the human parental brain implicated brain networks involved in simulation, mentalization and emotion processing and indicated that stimuli of own parent-child interaction elicit greater integration among networks supporting attachment. Here, we examined children's neural activation while viewing own parent-child interactions and asked whether similar networks activate when children are exposed to attachment stimuli. Sixty-five 11-year-old children underwent magnetoencephalography (MEG) while observing own vs unfamiliar mother-child interaction. Own mother-child interactions elicited a greater neural response across distributed brain areas including alpha suppression in posterior regions, theta enhancement in the fusiform gyrus and beta- and gamma-band oscillations across a wide cluster in the right temporal cortex, comprising the superior temporal sulcus/superior temporal gyrus and insula. Theta and gamma activations were associated with the degree of mother-child social synchrony in the home ecology. Findings from this exploratory study are the first to show activations in children that are similar to previous findings in parents and comparable associations between social synchrony and gamma oscillations in temporal regions. Results indicate that attachment stimuli elicit a strong neural response in children that spreads across a wide range of oscillations, underscoring the considerable neural resources allocated to this fundamental, survival-related cue.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maayan Pratt
- Department of Psychology , Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel
| | - Abraham Goldstein
- Department of Psychology , Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel
- The Gonda Brain Sciences Center, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel
| | - Ruth Feldman
- Intradisciplinary Center, Herzliya, Israel
- Child Study Center, Yale University
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