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Li T, Xiong Q, Shi R, Yi L. Autistic and Non-autistic Children's Pain Perception is Modulated by Their First-Hand Pain Sensitivity and Theory of Mind. Res Child Adolesc Psychopathol 2024; 52:1173-1182. [PMID: 38345657 DOI: 10.1007/s10802-024-01176-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/31/2024] [Indexed: 07/03/2024]
Abstract
The current study examined whether autistic children's perception of others' pain could be modulated by their first-hand pain sensitivity and theory of mind (ToM). We measured the first-hand pain sensitivity, the rating of others' pain intensity, and the performance in the ToM tasks in 43 5- to 8-year-old autistic and 30 neurotypical children. Our results revealed hyposensitivity to first-hand pain, underestimation of others' pain intensity, as well as difficulties in the False Belief subtasks of ToM in autistic children. Furthermore, we detected an interaction between children's first-hand pain sensitivity and ToM in predicting their perception of others' pain. To be specific, for autistic and NT children with normal or hyper-sensitivity to first-hand pain, better performance on ToM predicted higher ratings for others' pain intensity; while for autistic and NT children with hyposensitivity to first-hand pain, ToM did not predict ratings for others' pain intensity. Our study contributes to the understanding of pain perception in young children and provides implications for clinical practices to improve social understanding in autistic children.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tianbi Li
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences & Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Qianhan Xiong
- Department of Counseling Psychology, Social Psychology, and Counseling, Ball State University, Muncie, IN, USA
| | - Ruoxi Shi
- Qingdao Autism Research Institute, Qingdao, Shandong, China
| | - Li Yi
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences & Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing, China.
- IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research at PKU Peking University, Peking University, Beijing, China.
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2
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Rütgen M, Lamm C. Dissecting shared pain representations to understand their behavioral and clinical relevance. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2024; 163:105769. [PMID: 38879099 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2024.105769] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2024] [Revised: 05/29/2024] [Accepted: 06/11/2024] [Indexed: 06/22/2024]
Abstract
Accounts of shared representations posit that the experience of pain and pain empathy rely on similar neural mechanisms. Experimental research employing novel analytical and methodological approaches has made significant advances in both the identification and targeted manipulation of such shared experiences and their neural underpinnings. This revealed that painful experiences can be shared on different representational levels, from pain-specific to domain-general features, such as negative affect and its regulation. In view of direct links between such representations and social behaviors such as prosocial behavior, conditions characterized by aberrant pain processing may come along with heavy impairments in the social domain, depending on the affected representational level. This has wide potential implications in light of the high prevalence of pain-related clinical conditions, their management, and the overuse of pain medication. In this review and opinion paper, we aim to chart the path toward a better understanding of the link between shared affect and prosocial behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Markus Rütgen
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Solna, Sweden.
| | - Claus Lamm
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria; Vienna Cognitive Science Hub, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
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3
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Raghuraman N, White JN, Watson L, Belleï-Rodriguez CÉ, Shafir R, Wang Y, Colloca L. Neuropsychological mechanisms of observational learning in human placebo effects. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2024:10.1007/s00213-024-06608-7. [PMID: 38743108 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-024-06608-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2023] [Accepted: 05/02/2024] [Indexed: 05/16/2024]
Abstract
Scientific evidence indicates that placebo effects are psychoneurobiological events involving the contribution of distinct central nervous systems and peripheral physiological mechanisms that influence pain perception and other symptoms. Placebo effects can occur without formal conditioning and direct prior experience because crucial information can be acquired through observational learning. Observation of benefits in another person results in placebo effects of a magnitude like those induced by directly experiencing an analgesic benefit. Understanding the psychological mechanisms of observationally induced placebo effects is a complex and multifaceted endeavor. While previous reviews have highlighted various frameworks and models to understand these phenomena, the underlying biological mechanisms have been overlooked. We summarize critically current understanding of its behavioral and neural mechanisms. Understanding the neural mechanisms of hypoalgesia driven by observation can serve as a foundation for future development of novel theoretical and methodological approaches and ultimately, applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nandini Raghuraman
- Department of Pain and Translational Symptom Science, University of Maryland School of Nursing, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Graduate Program in Life Sciences, Program in Epidemiology and Human Genetics, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Placebo Beyond Opinions Center, University of Maryland School of Nursing, Baltimore, USA
| | - Jewel N White
- Department of Pain and Translational Symptom Science, University of Maryland School of Nursing, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Placebo Beyond Opinions Center, University of Maryland School of Nursing, Baltimore, USA
- Graduate Program in Life Sciences, Program in Neuroscience, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, USA
| | - Lakota Watson
- Department of Pain and Translational Symptom Science, University of Maryland School of Nursing, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Graduate Program in Life Sciences, Program in Neuroscience, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, USA
| | | | - Roni Shafir
- Department of Pain and Translational Symptom Science, University of Maryland School of Nursing, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Placebo Beyond Opinions Center, University of Maryland School of Nursing, Baltimore, USA
| | - Yang Wang
- Department of Pain and Translational Symptom Science, University of Maryland School of Nursing, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Placebo Beyond Opinions Center, University of Maryland School of Nursing, Baltimore, USA
- Center to Advance Chronic Pain Research, University of Maryland, Baltimore, USA
| | - Luana Colloca
- Department of Pain and Translational Symptom Science, University of Maryland School of Nursing, Baltimore, MD, USA.
- Placebo Beyond Opinions Center, University of Maryland School of Nursing, Baltimore, USA.
- Center to Advance Chronic Pain Research, University of Maryland, Baltimore, USA.
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4
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Świder K, Moratti S, Bruña R. How to make calibration less painful-A proposition for an automatic, reliable and time-efficient procedure. Psychophysiology 2024; 61:e14505. [PMID: 38229548 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.14505] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2023] [Revised: 08/30/2023] [Accepted: 12/04/2023] [Indexed: 01/18/2024]
Abstract
In behavioral and neurophysiological pain studies, multiple types of calibration methods are used to quantify the individual pain sensation stimuli. Often, studies lack a detailed calibration procedure description, data linearity, and quality quantification and omit required control for sex pain differences. This hampers study repetition and interexperimental comparisons. Moreover, typical calibration procedures require a high number of stimulations, which may cause discomfort and stimuli habituation among participants. To overcome those shortcomings, we present an automatic calibration procedure with a novel stimuli estimation method for intraepidermal stimulation. We provide an in-depth data analysis of the collected self-reports from 70 healthy volunteers (37 males) and propose a method based on a dynamic truncated linear regression model (tLRM). We compare its estimates for the sensation (t) and pain (T) thresholds and mid-pain stimulation (MP), with those calculated using traditional estimation methods and standard linear regression models. Compared to the other methods, tLRM exhibits higher R2 and requires 36% fewer stimuli applications and has significantly higher t intensity and lower T and MP intensities. Regarding sex differences, t and T were found to be lower for females compared to males, regardless of the estimation method. The proposed tLRM method quantifies the calibration procedure quality, minimizes its duration and invasiveness, and provides validation of linearity between stimuli intensity and subjective scores, making it an enabling technique for further studies. Moreover, our results highlight the importance of control for sex in pain studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karolina Świder
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Psychology Faculty, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
- Centre for Cognitive and Computational Neuroscience (C3N), Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | - Stephan Moratti
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Psychology Faculty, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
- Centre for Cognitive and Computational Neuroscience (C3N), Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | - Ricardo Bruña
- Centre for Cognitive and Computational Neuroscience (C3N), Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
- Department of Radiology, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, IdISSC, Madrid, Spain
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5
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Nasiri-Dehsorkhi H, Vaziri S, Esmaillzadeh A, Adibi P. Negative expectations (nocebo phenomenon) in clinical interventions: A scoping review. JOURNAL OF EDUCATION AND HEALTH PROMOTION 2024; 13:106. [PMID: 38726093 PMCID: PMC11081451 DOI: 10.4103/jehp.jehp_269_23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2023] [Accepted: 05/06/2023] [Indexed: 05/12/2024]
Abstract
Unpredictable, undesirable, and confusing reactions in the face of psychological or medical interventions make the clinical presentation more complicated and may represent clinically unexplained symptoms and also disturbed the doctor-patients relationship and decrease patients' benefits of treatment. It seems that negative expectations from the treatment (nocebo phenomenon) can explain such reactions. The aim of the current study is a scoping review and investigate different aspects of the nocebo phenomenon (negative expectations) in clinical interventions. This paper follows a scoping review of the existence, importance, and multidimensions of the nocebo phenomenon in medical and psychological interventions. Data sources include literature databases (ProQuest, PubMed, Google Scholar, and Scopus) reviewed from inception dates to 2023, and the terms negative expectations, nocebo effect, placebo effect, negative placebo, and clinical interventions were searched. The review of the available articles showed that negative expectations play an important role in the process and effectiveness of clinical interventions. Negative expectations (here named nocebo effect) can significantly interfere with rapport and treatment processes. Some underlying components of the nocebo effect include negative expectancies, conditioning, social learning, memory, cognitive distortions, meaning, motivation, somatic focus, negative reinforcements, personality, anxiety, and neurophysiological factors such as CCK, dopamine, and cortisol are proposed for development and presence of nocebo phenomenon in clinical practice. Negative expectations with its biopsychosocial aspects play an important and amazing role in disorganizing medical and psychological interventions. Using appropriate methods to reduce nocebo effects in therapeutic interventions may increase treatment compliance and adherence and increase the effectiveness of interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hamid Nasiri-Dehsorkhi
- Department of Clinical Psychology, Roudehen Branch, Islamic Azad University, Roudehen, Iran
- Isfahan Gastroenterology and Hepatology Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
| | - Shahram Vaziri
- Department of Clinical Psychology, Roudehen Branch, Islamic Azad University, Roudehen, Iran
| | - Ahmad Esmaillzadeh
- Department of Community Nutrition, School of Nutritional Sciences and Dietetics, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Peyman Adibi
- Isfahan Gastroenterology and Hepatology Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
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6
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Qiao-Tasserit E, Corradi-Dell’Acqua C, Vuilleumier P. Influence of transient emotional episodes on affective and cognitive theory of mind. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2024; 19:nsae016. [PMID: 38442706 PMCID: PMC10914405 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsae016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2023] [Revised: 12/20/2023] [Accepted: 02/21/2024] [Indexed: 03/07/2024] Open
Abstract
Our emotions may influence how we interact with others. Previous studies have shown an important role of emotion induction in generating empathic reactions towards others' affect. However, it remains unclear whether (and to which extent) our own emotions can influence the ability to infer people's mental states, a process associated with Theory of Mind (ToM) and implicated in the representation of both cognitive (e.g. beliefs and intentions) and affective conditions. We engaged 59 participants in two emotion-induction experiments where they saw joyful, neutral and fearful clips. Subsequently, they were asked to infer other individuals' joy, fear (affective ToM) or beliefs (cognitive ToM) from verbal scenarios. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, we found that brain activity in the superior temporal gyrus, precuneus and sensorimotor cortices were modulated by the preceding emotional induction, with lower response when the to-be-inferred emotion was incongruent with the one induced in the observer (affective ToM). Instead, we found no effect of emotion induction on the appraisal of people's beliefs (cognitive ToM). These findings are consistent with embodied accounts of affective ToM, whereby our own emotions alter the engagement of key brain regions for social cognition, depending on the compatibility between one's own and others' affect.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emilie Qiao-Tasserit
- Laboratory of Behavioural Neurology and Imaging of Cognition, Department of Neuroscience, University Medical Center, University of Geneva, Geneva CH-1206, Switzerland
- Geneva Neuroscience Center, University of Geneva, Geneva CH-1206, Switzerland
- Swiss Center for Affective Sciences, University of Geneva, Geneva CH-1209, Switzerland
| | - Corrado Corradi-Dell’Acqua
- Geneva Neuroscience Center, University of Geneva, Geneva CH-1206, Switzerland
- Theory of Pain Laboratory, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences (FPSE), University of Geneva, Geneva CH-1211, Switzerland
- Center for Mind/Brain Sciences (CIMeC), University of Trento, Rovereto IT-38068, Italy
| | - Patrik Vuilleumier
- Laboratory of Behavioural Neurology and Imaging of Cognition, Department of Neuroscience, University Medical Center, University of Geneva, Geneva CH-1206, Switzerland
- Geneva Neuroscience Center, University of Geneva, Geneva CH-1206, Switzerland
- Swiss Center for Affective Sciences, University of Geneva, Geneva CH-1209, Switzerland
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7
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Gerrans P. Pain suffering and the self. An active allostatic inference explanation. Neurosci Conscious 2024; 2024:niae002. [PMID: 38348334 PMCID: PMC10860504 DOI: 10.1093/nc/niae002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2023] [Revised: 01/06/2024] [Accepted: 01/16/2024] [Indexed: 02/15/2024] Open
Abstract
Distributed processing that gives rise to pain experience is anchored by a multidimensional self-model. I show how the phenomenon of pain asymbolia and other atypical pain-related conditions (Insensitivity to Pain, Chronic Pain, 'Social' Pain, Insensitivity to Pain, Chronic Pain, 'Social' Pain, empathy for pain and suffering) can be explained by this idea. It also explains the patterns of association and dissociation among neural correlates without importing strong modular assumptions. It treats pain processing as a species of allostatic active inference in which the mind co-ordinates its processing resources to optimize basic bodily functioning at different time scales. The self is inferred to be source and target of regulation in this process. The self-modelling account reconciles conflicting deaffectualization and depersonalization accounts of pain asymbolia by showing how depersonalization and pain asymbolia arise at different levels of hierarchical self modelling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Philip Gerrans
- Department of Philosophy, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia
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8
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Gamble RS, Henry JD, Decety J, Vanman EJ. The role of external factors in affect-sharing and their neural bases. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2024; 157:105540. [PMID: 38211739 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2024.105540] [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: 05/24/2023] [Revised: 01/03/2024] [Accepted: 01/05/2024] [Indexed: 01/13/2024]
Abstract
Affect-sharing, the ability to vicariously feel another person's emotions, is the primary component of empathy that is typically thought to rely on the observer's capacity to feel the emotions of others. However, external signals, such as the target's physical characteristics, have been demonstrated to influence affect-sharing in the neuroscientific literature that speaks to the underappreciated role of external factors in eliciting affect-sharing. We consider factors that influence affect-sharing, including physical cues, emotional cues, situational factors, and observer-target relationships, as well as the neural circuits involved in these processes. Our review reveals that, while neural network activation is primarily responsible for processing affect-sharing, external factors also co-activate a top-down cognitive processing network to modulate the conscious process of affect-sharing. From this knowledge, an integrative framework of external factor interactions with affect-sharing are explained in detail. Finally, we identify critical areas for future research in social and affective neuroscience, including research gaps and incorporation of ecologically valid paradigms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roger S Gamble
- School of Psychology, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, 4072 Brisbane, QLD, Australia.
| | - Julie D Henry
- School of Psychology, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, 4072 Brisbane, QLD, Australia
| | - Jean Decety
- Department of Psychology, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Eric J Vanman
- School of Psychology, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, 4072 Brisbane, QLD, Australia
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9
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Corradi‐Dell'Acqua C, Hofstetter C, Sharvit G, Hugli O, Vuilleumier P. Healthcare experience affects pain-specific responses to others' suffering in the anterior insula. Hum Brain Mapp 2023; 44:5655-5671. [PMID: 37608624 PMCID: PMC10619377 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.26468] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2023] [Revised: 07/13/2023] [Accepted: 07/22/2023] [Indexed: 08/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Medical students and professional healthcare providers often underestimate patients' pain, together with decreased neural responses to pain information in the anterior insula (AI), a brain region implicated in self-pain processing and negative affect. However, the functional significance and specificity of these neural changes remains debated. Across two experiments, we recruited university medical students and emergency nurses to test the role of healthcare experience on the brain reactivity to other's pain, emotions, and beliefs, using both pictorial and verbal cues. Brain responses to self-pain was also assessed and compared with those to observed pain. Our results confirmed that healthcare experience decreased the activity in AI in response to others' suffering. This effect was independent from stimulus modality (pictures or texts), but specific for pain, as it did not generalize to inferences about other mental or affective states. Furthermore, representational similarity and multivariate pattern analysis revealed that healthcare experience impacted specifically a component of the neural representation of others' pain that is shared with that of first-hand nociception, and related more to AI than to other pain-responsive regions. Taken together, our study suggests a decreased propensity to appraise others' suffering as one's own, associated with a reduced recruitment of pain-specific information in AI. These findings provide new insights into neural mechanisms leading to pain underestimation by caregivers in clinical settings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Corrado Corradi‐Dell'Acqua
- Theory of Pain Laboratory, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences (FPSE)University of GenevaGenevaSwitzerland
- Geneva Neuroscience CenterUniversity of GenevaGenevaSwitzerland
- Laboratory of Behavioural Neurology and Imaging of Cognition, Department of NeuroscienceUniversity Medical Center, University of GenevaGenevaSwitzerland
| | - Christoph Hofstetter
- Laboratory of Behavioural Neurology and Imaging of Cognition, Department of NeuroscienceUniversity Medical Center, University of GenevaGenevaSwitzerland
| | - Gil Sharvit
- Laboratory of Behavioural Neurology and Imaging of Cognition, Department of NeuroscienceUniversity Medical Center, University of GenevaGenevaSwitzerland
- Swiss Center for Affective Sciences, University of GenevaGenevaSwitzerland
- Balgrist University Hospital and University of ZurichZurichSwitzerland
| | - Olivier Hugli
- Emergency Department, University Hospital of Lausanne (UHL)LausanneSwitzerland
| | - Patrik Vuilleumier
- Geneva Neuroscience CenterUniversity of GenevaGenevaSwitzerland
- Laboratory of Behavioural Neurology and Imaging of Cognition, Department of NeuroscienceUniversity Medical Center, University of GenevaGenevaSwitzerland
- Swiss Center for Affective Sciences, University of GenevaGenevaSwitzerland
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Lengersdorff LL, Wagner IC, Mittmann G, Sastre-Yagüe D, Lüttig A, Olsson A, Petrovic P, Lamm C. Neuroimaging and behavioral evidence that violent video games exert no negative effect on human empathy for pain and emotional reactivity to violence. eLife 2023; 12:e84951. [PMID: 37975654 PMCID: PMC10791126 DOI: 10.7554/elife.84951] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2022] [Accepted: 11/17/2023] [Indexed: 11/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Influential accounts claim that violent video games (VVGs) decrease players' emotional empathy by desensitizing them to both virtual and real-life violence. However, scientific evidence for this claim is inconclusive and controversially debated. To assess the causal effect of VVGs on the behavioral and neural correlates of empathy and emotional reactivity to violence, we conducted a prospective experimental study using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). We recruited 89 male participants without prior VVG experience. Over the course of two weeks, participants played either a highly violent video game or a non-violent version of the same game. Before and after this period, participants completed an fMRI experiment with paradigms measuring their empathy for pain and emotional reactivity to violent images. Applying a Bayesian analysis approach throughout enabled us to find substantial evidence for the absence of an effect of VVGs on the behavioral and neural correlates of empathy. Moreover, participants in the VVG group were not desensitized to images of real-world violence. These results imply that short and controlled exposure to VVGs does not numb empathy nor the responses to real-world violence. We discuss the implications of our findings regarding the potential and limitations of experimental research on the causal effects of VVGs. While VVGs might not have a discernible effect on the investigated subpopulation within our carefully controlled experimental setting, our results cannot preclude that effects could be found in settings with higher ecological validity, in vulnerable subpopulations, or after more extensive VVG play.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lukas Leopold Lengersdorff
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of ViennaViennaAustria
| | - Isabella C Wagner
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of ViennaViennaAustria
| | - Gloria Mittmann
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of ViennaViennaAustria
| | - David Sastre-Yagüe
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of ViennaViennaAustria
| | - Andre Lüttig
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of ViennaViennaAustria
| | - Andreas Olsson
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Division of Psychology, Karolinska InstituteStockholmSweden
| | - Pedrag Petrovic
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Division of Psychology, Karolinska InstituteStockholmSweden
| | - Claus Lamm
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of ViennaViennaAustria
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11
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Flasbeck V, Matthiessen A, Alabowitz A, Rusu AC, Brüne M. Is your pain my pain? A study exploring the relation between pain sensitivity, pain thresholds and empathy for somatic and psychological pain. BRITISH JOURNAL OF CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY 2023; 62:748-761. [PMID: 37605326 DOI: 10.1111/bjc.12436] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2023] [Revised: 07/14/2023] [Accepted: 08/06/2023] [Indexed: 08/23/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Research has shown that empathy for both somatic and psychological pain recruits affective components of the so-called pain matrix, a set of brain regions that is activated during the perception of somatic pain. In addition, the subjective evaluation of experimentally induced somatic pain is related to empathy for somatic pain. In contrast, it is unclear whether or not the subjective sensitivity to somatic pain impacts on empathy for psychological pain. METHODS In the present study, 55 healthy participants conducted a pain-pressure-test (PPT) and a cold-pressor test (CPT) in order to assess pain thresholds, pain tolerance and evaluation of pain during the task. They further conducted the social interaction empathy task (SIET), which investigates empathy for somatic as well as psychological pain. All participants completed the interpersonal-reactivity index (IRI) and the pain-sensitivity questionnaire (PSQ). RESULTS Participants who are in general more sensitive to somatic pain, as indicated by high-PSQ scores, showed higher empathy, that is, higher pain ratings, for both somatic and psychological painful situations observed in others as compared to those with low-PSQ scores. High-PSQ scores and high pain and unpleasantness ratings during the CPT were correlated with empathy for pain (both pain conditions), whereas pain thresholds (PPT) and pain tolerance thresholds (CPT) did not correlate with empathy. The IRI subscore 'personal distress' correlated with psychological pain ratings. CONCLUSIONS Thus, empathy for both somatic and psychological pain were related to the subjective evaluation of somatic pain and general pain sensitivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vera Flasbeck
- Division of Social Neuropsychiatry and Evolutionary Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Preventive Medicine, LWL University Hospital Bochum, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Annegret Matthiessen
- Division of Social Neuropsychiatry and Evolutionary Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Preventive Medicine, LWL University Hospital Bochum, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
- Department of Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, Faculty of Medicine, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Anne Alabowitz
- Division of Social Neuropsychiatry and Evolutionary Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Preventive Medicine, LWL University Hospital Bochum, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
- Department of Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, Faculty of Medicine, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Adina Carmen Rusu
- Department of Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, Faculty of Medicine, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Martin Brüne
- Division of Social Neuropsychiatry and Evolutionary Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Preventive Medicine, LWL University Hospital Bochum, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
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12
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Banwinkler M, Rütgen M, Lamm C, Hartmann H. A pill as a quick solution: association between painkiller intake, empathy, and prosocial behavior. Sci Rep 2023; 13:18320. [PMID: 37884594 PMCID: PMC10603176 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-45267-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2023] [Accepted: 10/17/2023] [Indexed: 10/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Previous research has demonstrated a link between the administration of analgesic drugs and the reduction of empathy levels in humans. This apparent blunting effect of pain medication has been explained through shared neural mechanisms for the first-hand and the empathic experience of pain (simulation theory). Considering that analgesics are among the most consumed drugs in the world and the ability to empathize with others is fundamental to human social interactions, the aim of the present study was to investigate whether the typical day-to-day analgesic consumption rate in Austria and Germany is associated with a reduction in empathy and prosocial behavior. We therefore collected self-reports of analgesic consumption behavior as well as empathy for pain and prosocial behavior measures in an online survey (n = 940). Analyses revealed no significant association between the analgesic intake frequency and measures of empathy or prosocial behavior. However, liberal intake of analgesics (i.e. mind-set of "a pill is a quick solution") was linked to lower empathic concern and helping behavior, which may hint towards a negative effect in people who take pain medication for non-pain related issues or episodes of low pain. Nevertheless, further research is needed to investigate the effects of analgesic drugs in high frequency users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Magdalena Banwinkler
- Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne Germany, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
| | - Markus Rütgen
- Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Claus Lamm
- Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Helena Hartmann
- Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
- Clinical Neurosciences, Department for Neurology and Center for Translational and Behavioral Neuroscience, University Hospital Essen, Essen, Germany.
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13
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Hartmann H, Banwinkler M, Riva F, Lamm C. To respond or not to respond: exploring empathy-related psychological and structural brain differences between placebo analgesia responders and non-responders. Front Psychol 2023; 14:1257522. [PMID: 37849473 PMCID: PMC10577216 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1257522] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2023] [Accepted: 09/14/2023] [Indexed: 10/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction Placebo responsiveness is highly variable across individuals. In the domain of pain, it may range from pronounced hypoalgesia to no response at all. Which factors predict such variation awaits clarification, as the available literature is characterized by mixed and inconclusive results. Particularly interesting in this case are social factors such as empathy or prosocial behavior, as prior work has stressed the connection between feeling pain yourself and empathizing with pain observed in others. Methods In a mixed confirmatory and exploratory approach, this study investigated potential psychological and structural brain differences between placebo responders and non-responders in the domain of pain. We aggregated data of four behavioral and neuroimaging studies that had been designed to investigate the effects of placebo analgesia on empathy. Results Analyses comparing groups of placebo responders and non-responders showed significant group differences in trait characteristics, with responders reporting increased helping behavior and lower psychopathic traits compared to non-responders. Uncorrected results further showed higher pain-related empathic concern in responders vs. non-responders. These results were accompaniedby tentative group differences in brain structure: placebo analgesia non-responders exhibited increased gray matter volume in left inferior temporal and parietal supramarginal cortical areas, and an increased cortical surface area in bilateral middle temporal cortex. Discussion Together, our findings suggest that modifiability of one's pain perception by means of placebo effects is linked to personality traits characterizing social emotions and behavior. They also hint that these psychological as well as brain structural characteristics might be beneficial for the identification of placebo responders. At the same time, they stress the importance of considering contextual factors such as the study setting or paradigm when investigating the association between individual characteristics and placebo responding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Helena Hartmann
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Clinical Neurosciences, Department of Neurology, University Hospital Essen, Essen, Germany
| | - Magdalena Banwinkler
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
| | - Federica Riva
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Claus Lamm
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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14
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Troncoso A, Soto V, Gomila A, Martínez-Pernía D. Moving beyond the lab: investigating empathy through the Empirical 5E approach. Front Psychol 2023; 14:1119469. [PMID: 37519389 PMCID: PMC10374225 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1119469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2022] [Accepted: 06/05/2023] [Indexed: 08/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Empathy is a complex and multifaceted phenomenon that plays a crucial role in human social interactions. Recent developments in social neuroscience have provided valuable insights into the neural underpinnings and bodily mechanisms underlying empathy. This methodology often prioritizes precision, replicability, internal validity, and confound control. However, fully understanding the complexity of empathy seems unattainable by solely relying on artificial and controlled laboratory settings, while overlooking a comprehensive view of empathy through an ecological experimental approach. In this article, we propose articulating an integrative theoretical and methodological framework based on the 5E approach (the "E"s stand for embodied, embedded, enacted, emotional, and extended perspectives of empathy), highlighting the relevance of studying empathy as an active interaction between embodied agents, embedded in a shared real-world environment. In addition, we illustrate how a novel multimodal approach including mobile brain and body imaging (MoBi) combined with phenomenological methods, and the implementation of interactive paradigms in a natural context, are adequate procedures to study empathy from the 5E approach. In doing so, we present the Empirical 5E approach (E5E) as an integrative scientific framework to bridge brain/body and phenomenological attributes in an interbody interactive setting. Progressing toward an E5E approach can be crucial to understanding empathy in accordance with the complexity of how it is experienced in the real world.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alejandro Troncoso
- Center for Social and Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Adolfo Ibáñez University, Santiago, Chile
| | - Vicente Soto
- Center for Social and Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Adolfo Ibáñez University, Santiago, Chile
| | - Antoni Gomila
- Department of Psychology, University of the Balearic Islands, Palma de Mallorca, Spain
| | - David Martínez-Pernía
- Center for Social and Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Adolfo Ibáñez University, Santiago, Chile
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15
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Lin C, Zhuo S, Zheng Q, Li X, Peng W. The relationship between oxytocin and empathy for others' pain: Testing the mediating effect of first-hand pain sensitivity. Physiol Behav 2023:114266. [PMID: 37301493 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2023.114266] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2023] [Revised: 06/06/2023] [Accepted: 06/08/2023] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Although previous studies have shown that oxytocin attenuates first-hand pain sensitivity, studies of its effects on empathic reactions to the observation of others' pain have yielded inconsistent and controversial results. Given the link between first-hand pain and empathy for others' pain, we hypothesized that oxytocin affects empathy for others' pain by modulating first-hand pain sensitivity. Using a double-blind, placebo-controlled, between-participant experimental design, healthy participants (n = 112) were randomly assigned to either an intranasal oxytocin or placebo group. Pain sensitivity was evaluated by pressure pain threshold, and empathic responses were assessed by ratings in response to viewing video clips depicting others in physically painful scenarios. Results showed that pressure pain thresholds decreased over time in both groups, indicating increased sensitivity to first-hand pain after repeated measurements. However, this decrease was smaller for participants who received intranasal oxytocin, indicative of oxytocin-induced attenuation of first-hand pain sensitivity. In addition, although empathic ratings were comparable between oxytocin and placebo groups, first-hand pain sensitivity fully mediated the impact of oxytocin on pain empathetic ratings. Thus, intranasal oxytocin can indirectly affect pain empathic ratings by reducing first-hand pain sensitivity. These findings expand our understanding of the relationship among oxytocin, pain, and empathy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chennan Lin
- School of Psychology, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Shiwei Zhuo
- School of Psychology, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Qianqian Zheng
- School of Psychology, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Xiaoyun Li
- School of Psychology, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Weiwei Peng
- School of Psychology, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China.
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16
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Blythe JS, Thomaidou MA, Peerdeman KJ, van Laarhoven AI, van Schothorst MM, Veldhuijzen DS, Evers AW. Placebo effects on cutaneous pain and itch: a systematic review and meta-analysis of experimental results and methodology. Pain 2023; 164:1181-1199. [PMID: 36718994 PMCID: PMC10184563 DOI: 10.1097/j.pain.0000000000002820] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2022] [Revised: 09/14/2022] [Accepted: 10/20/2022] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
ABSTRACT Placebo effects, positive treatment outcomes that go beyond treatment processes, can alter sensations through learning mechanisms. Understanding how methodological factors contribute to the magnitude of placebo effects will help define the mechanisms by which these effects occur. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of experimental placebo studies in cutaneous pain and itch in healthy samples, focused on how differences in methodology contribute to the resulting placebo effect magnitude. We conducted meta-analyses by learning mechanism and sensation, namely, for classical conditioning with verbal suggestion, verbal suggestion alone, and observational learning, separately for pain and itch. We conducted subgroup analyses and meta-regression on the type of sensory stimuli, placebo treatment, number of acquisition and evocation trials, differences in calibrated intensities for placebo and control stimuli during acquisition, age, and sex. We replicated findings showing that a combination of classical conditioning with verbal suggestion induced larger placebo effects on pain ( k = 68, g = 0 . 59) than verbal suggestion alone ( k = 39, g = 0.38) and found a smaller effect for itch with verbal suggestion alone ( k = 7, g = 0.14). Using sham electrodes as placebo treatments corresponded with larger placebo effects on pain than when topical gels were used. Other methodological and demographic factors did not significantly affect placebo magnitudes. Placebo effects on pain and itch reliably occur in experimental settings with varied methods, and conditioning with verbal suggestion produced the strongest effects. Although methods may shape the placebo effect to some extent, these effects appear robust overall, and their underlying learning mechanisms may be harnessed for applications outside the laboratory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph S. Blythe
- Health, Medical and Neuropsychology Unit, Leiden University, Leiden, the Netherlands
- Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Mia A. Thomaidou
- Health, Medical and Neuropsychology Unit, Leiden University, Leiden, the Netherlands
- Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Kaya J. Peerdeman
- Health, Medical and Neuropsychology Unit, Leiden University, Leiden, the Netherlands
- Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Antoinette I.M. van Laarhoven
- Health, Medical and Neuropsychology Unit, Leiden University, Leiden, the Netherlands
- Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden, the Netherlands
- Department of Psychiatry, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | | | - Dieuwke S. Veldhuijzen
- Health, Medical and Neuropsychology Unit, Leiden University, Leiden, the Netherlands
- Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Andrea W.M. Evers
- Health, Medical and Neuropsychology Unit, Leiden University, Leiden, the Netherlands
- Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden, the Netherlands
- Medical Delta Healthy Society, Leiden University, Technical University Delft, and Erasmus University Rotterdam, Rotterdam, the Netherlands
- Department of Psychiatry, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, the Netherlands
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17
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Contreras-Huerta LS, Coll MP, Bird G, Yu H, Prosser A, Lockwood PL, Murphy J, Crockett MJ, Apps MAJ. Neural representations of vicarious rewards are linked to interoception and prosocial behaviour. Neuroimage 2023; 269:119881. [PMID: 36702212 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2023.119881] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2022] [Revised: 12/12/2022] [Accepted: 01/14/2023] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Every day we constantly observe other people receiving rewards. Theoretical accounts posit that vicarious reward processing might be linked to people's sensitivity to internal body states (interoception) and facilitates a tendency to act prosocially. However, the neural processes underlying the links between vicarious reward processing, interoception, and prosocial behaviour are poorly understood. Previous research has linked vicarious reward processing to the anterior cingulate gyrus (ACCg) and the anterior insula (AI). Can we predict someone's propensity to be prosocial or to be aware of interoceptive signals from variability in how the ACCg and AI process rewards? Here, participants monitored rewards being delivered to themselves or a stranger during functional magnetic resonance imaging. Later, they performed a task measuring their willingness to exert effort to obtain rewards for others, and a task measuring their propensity to be aware and use interoceptive respiratory signals. Using multivariate similarity analysis, we show that people's willingness to be prosocial is predicted by greater similarity between self and other representations in the ACCg. Moreover, greater dissimilarity in self-other representations in the AI is linked to interoceptive propensity. These findings highlight that vicarious reward is linked to bodily signals in AI, and foster prosocial tendencies through the ACCg.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luis Sebastian Contreras-Huerta
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3PH, UK; Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, University of Oxford, Oxford OX3 9DU, UK; Centre for Human Brain Health, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK; Institute for Mental Health, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK; Center for Social and Cognitive Neuroscience (CSCN), School of Psychology, Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez, Viña del Mar, Chile.
| | - Michel-Pierre Coll
- School of Psychology and CIRRIS research center, Laval University, Quebec City QC G1V 0A6, Canada
| | - Geoffrey Bird
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3PH, UK; School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK
| | - Hongbo Yu
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA
| | - Annayah Prosser
- Department of Psychology, University of Bath, BA2 7AY, United Kingdom
| | - Patricia L Lockwood
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3PH, UK; Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, University of Oxford, Oxford OX3 9DU, UK; Centre for Human Brain Health, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK; Institute for Mental Health, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK; Christ Church, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 1DP, UK
| | - Jennifer Murphy
- Department of Psychology, Royal Holloway, University of London, London TW20 0EY, UK
| | - M J Crockett
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3PH, UK; Department of Psychology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA; Department of Psychology and University Center for Human Values, Princeton University, Princeton, USA
| | - Matthew A J Apps
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3PH, UK; Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, University of Oxford, Oxford OX3 9DU, UK; Centre for Human Brain Health, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK; Institute for Mental Health, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK; Christ Church, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 1DP, UK.
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18
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McCommon SA, Turk B, Roach A, Jelsone-Swain L. Acetaminophen changes Mu rhythm power related to pain empathy. Neuropsychologia 2023; 184:108544. [PMID: 36948452 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2023.108544] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2022] [Revised: 01/30/2023] [Accepted: 03/14/2023] [Indexed: 03/24/2023]
Abstract
Empathy is an intricate ability that entails the subjective feeling and understanding of emotions someone else may be experiencing. Acetaminophen, the active ingredient found in Tylenol, is among the most common pain medications consumed. There is new evidence, however, that suggests this common analgesic may also dampen empathic processes. However, no previous study has investigated the effect acetaminophen may have on pain empathy or mu power during a pain empathy task. Therefore, participants were randomly assigned to either an experimental (acetaminophen) or control (sugar) group in a double-blinded experimental research design aimed to measure mu power (using EEG) and behavioral responses to painful and non-painful images. Participants in the experimental group were administered 1000 mg of acetaminophen, and it was verified that participants were unaware which group they were assigned. We found that mu suppression was greater in the acetaminophen group, which was strongest at electrode C3. Additionally, mu power differences between painful and non-painful images were related to trait empathy, and mu power during the painful images were positively correlated with empathy scores. Results from this study suggest that in addition to reducing physical pain, acetaminophen may also change the brain response when perceiving others in pain. The implications of these findings could possibly lead to changes in how we prescribe and administer this common drug.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Anne McCommon
- Department of Psychology University of South Carolina Aiken, 471 University Parkway, Aiken, SC, 29801, USA
| | - Brooke Turk
- Department of Psychology University of South Carolina Aiken, 471 University Parkway, Aiken, SC, 29801, USA
| | - Alexandra Roach
- Department of Psychology University of South Carolina Aiken, 471 University Parkway, Aiken, SC, 29801, USA
| | - Laura Jelsone-Swain
- Department of Psychology University of South Carolina Aiken, 471 University Parkway, Aiken, SC, 29801, USA.
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19
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Johnson J, Sattler D, Van Hiel A, Dierckx K, Luo S, Vezzali L. Empathy for a Black Woman Victim of Police Sexual Violence: The Roles of Crime-Related Stress and Stereotype Attributions. JOURNAL OF INTERPERSONAL VIOLENCE 2023; 38:4640-4661. [PMID: 36036552 DOI: 10.1177/08862605221118964] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Police sexual violence has been ranked as the second most common form of misconduct among police officers. Moreover, there is evidence that Black women are at heightened risk of being victims of such police violence. A report titled Say Her Name: Resisting Police Brutality Against Black Women has brought international attention to the minimal empirical focus on such police violence toward Black women. To address this lacuna in the literature, using an incident of police sexual assault of a woman, we assessed whether victim's race and participants' level of crime-related stress (i.e., stress due to crime victimization) would influence empathic responding toward the victim. Prolific participants (N = 411) first completed a measure of crime-related stress. They then read an article describing a White police officer's sexual assault of a Black or White woman. Next, participants completed a racial stereotype-related measure (i.e., Black women's higher sexual proclivity) and a stereotype-unrelated measure (i.e., perceived victim untrustworthiness), and reported their victim-directed empathic responding. At high stress levels, participants reported less empathy for the Black (relative to White) victim. At low stress levels, there was greater Black victim-directed empathy. The race effects on empathy were mediated by heightened attribution of Black women-related stereotypical beliefs to the Black victim at high stress levels and by diminished attribution at low stress levels. In sum, we addressed the lacuna in the literature on police sexual violence against Black women while providing evidence that stress can play a critical role in the occurrence of the oft-cited outgroup-directed empathy deficit.
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20
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Vecchio A, De Pascalis V. ERP indicators of situational empathy pain. Behav Brain Res 2023; 439:114224. [PMID: 36427591 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2022.114224] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2022] [Revised: 11/17/2022] [Accepted: 11/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
This study aimed to validate a recent conceptualization proposed by Coll and colleagues (2017a) that defines empathic response as a situational, cognitively complex process requiring emotion identification and affective sharing. Sixty right-handed women university students (18-29 years) voluntarily participated in the study. We measured ratings for empathy pain to assess the individual differences in empathy. At the same time, we collected peak amplitudes of the event-related potentials (ERPs) components to empathic stimulations of painful faces or hand stimuli and neutral images. Electrophysiological results proved that the P2, N170, N2, and P3 ERP components were associated with the modulation of empathic responses. Participants with low empathic responses (p < 0.05) disclosed a larger frontal central N2 for the painful hands than for painful faces (p < .05) and a reduced temporoparietal N170 for painful hands compared to neutral ones. Furthermore, our results highlighted higher frontal central P3a and P3b to painful stimuli than controls (p ≤ 0.01). We explained these findings assuming that in identifying the emotional value of a stimulus, the emotional content can modulate the reorientation of attention and the in-memory updating process associated with the empathic response. Results are in line with Coll and colleagues' conceptualization of the empathic response that includes two cognitive processes, the identification of emotions, and affective sharing, related to the recognition of the emotional state of the other in the self.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arianna Vecchio
- Department of Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
| | - Vilfredo De Pascalis
- Department of Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy; Department of Psychology, Sapienza Foundation, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
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21
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Dapor C, Sperandio I, Meconi F. Fading boundaries between the physical and the social world: Insights and novel techniques from the intersection of these two fields. Front Psychol 2023; 13:1028150. [PMID: 36861005 PMCID: PMC9969107 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.1028150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2022] [Accepted: 12/12/2022] [Indexed: 02/15/2023] Open
Abstract
This review focuses on the subtle interactions between sensory input and social cognition in visual perception. We suggest that body indices, such as gait and posture, can mediate such interactions. Recent trends in cognitive research are trying to overcome approaches that define perception as stimulus-centered and are pointing toward a more embodied agent-dependent perspective. According to this view, perception is a constructive process in which sensory inputs and motivational systems contribute to building an image of the external world. A key notion emerging from new theories on perception is that the body plays a critical role in shaping our perception. Depending on our arm's length, height and capacity of movement, we create our own image of the world based on a continuous compromise between sensory inputs and expected behavior. We use our bodies as natural "rulers" to measure both the physical and the social world around us. We point out the necessity of an integrative approach in cognitive research that takes into account the interplay between social and perceptual dimensions. To this end, we review long-established and novel techniques aimed at measuring bodily states and movements, and their perception, with the assumption that only by combining the study of visual perception and social cognition can we deepen our understanding of both fields.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cecilia Dapor
- Department of Psychology and Cognitive Science, University of Trento, Rovereto, Italy
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22
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Li X, Wu J, Li X, Zhang J. The effect of intraperitoneal and intra-RMTg infusions of CTAP on rats' social interaction. Behav Brain Res 2023; 446:114333. [PMID: 36764486 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2023.114333] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2022] [Revised: 02/02/2023] [Accepted: 02/07/2023] [Indexed: 02/11/2023]
Abstract
Social interaction is necessary for the development of individuals and society. Social interaction behaviors are rewarding. Similar to exogenous opioids, social interaction behaviors are able to induce rewarding effects that are regulated by the endogenous opioid system as well. As one type of opioid receptor, μ-opioid receptors (MORs), are densely expressed in the rostromedial tegmental nucleus (RMTg), which results in the RMTg being extremely sensitive to rewarding effects induced by exogenous and endogenous opioids. Here, we investigated how RMTg MORs played a role in rewarding effects induced by social interaction behaviors of male Wistar rats, using a conditioned place preference (CPP) model. Results showed that the CPP induced by social interaction behaviors was inhibited when the function of MORs was blocked via injecting CTAP (a selective MOR antagonist) intraperitoneally, and intra-RMTg injections of lower doses of CTAP affected the CPP in the same way. In addition, injecting CTAP intraperitoneally significantly inhibited the expression of pouncing behavior, while intra-RMTg injections of CTAP significantly inhibited the expression of all three types of social behaviors. These results suggest that RMTg MORs may be a crucial target and remain to be further explored in order to better understand the mechanism of the rewarding effects of social interaction behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xuhong Li
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Learning and Cognition, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China; Department of Education, Lyuliang University, Lyuliang, China
| | - Jing Wu
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Learning and Cognition, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China; Department of Education, Henan Normal University, Xinxiang, China
| | - Xinwang Li
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Learning and Cognition, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China.
| | - Jianjun Zhang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Beijing, China; Shanxi Key Laboratory of Chinese Medicine Encephalopathy, Shanxi University of Chinese Medicine, Jinzhong, China.
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23
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Müllner-Huber A, Anton-Boicuk L, Pronizius E, Lengersdorff L, Olsson A, Lamm C. The causal role of affect sharing in driving vicarious fear learning. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0277793. [PMID: 36399451 PMCID: PMC9674158 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0277793] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2022] [Accepted: 11/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Vicarious learning, i.e. learning through observing others rather than through one's own experiences, is an integral skill of social species. The aim of this study was to assess the causal role of affect sharing, an important aspect of empathy, in vicarious fear learning. N = 39 participants completed a vicarious Pavlovian fear conditioning paradigm. In the learning stage, they watched another person-the demonstrator-responding with distress when receiving electric shocks to a color cue (conditioned stimulus; CS+; a different color served as CS-). In the subsequent test stage, an increased skin conductance response (SCR) to the CS+ presented in the absence of the demonstrator indexed vicarious fear learning. Each participant completed this paradigm under two different hypnotic suggestions, which were administered to induce high or low affect sharing with the demonstrator in the learning stage, following a counterbalanced within-subject design. In the learning stage, high affect sharing resulted in stronger unconditioned SCR, increased eye gaze toward the demonstrator's face, and higher self-reported unpleasantness while witnessing the demonstrator's distress. In the test stage, participants showed a stronger conditioned fear response (SCR) when they had learned under high, compared to low, affect sharing. In contrast, participants' declarative memory of how many shocks the demonstrator had received with each cue was not influenced by the affect sharing manipulation. These findings demonstrate that affect sharing is involved in enhancing vicarious fear learning, and thus advance our understanding of the role of empathy, and more generally emotion, in social observational learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexa Müllner-Huber
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- * E-mail: (AMH); (CL)
| | - Lisa Anton-Boicuk
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Ekaterina Pronizius
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Lukas Lengersdorff
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Andreas Olsson
- Division of Psychology, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Claus Lamm
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- * E-mail: (AMH); (CL)
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24
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Sun L, Lukkarinen L, Putkinen V, Karlsson HK, Hirvonen J, Tiihonen J, Lauerma H, Scott S, Nummenmaa L. Mu-opioid receptor system modulates responses to vocal bonding and distress signals in humans. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2022; 377:20210181. [PMID: 36126675 PMCID: PMC9489292 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2021.0181] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2021] [Accepted: 02/10/2022] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Laughter is a contagious prosocial signal that conveys bonding motivation; adult crying conversely communicates desire for social proximity by signalling distress. Endogenous mu-opioid receptors (MORs) modulate sociability in humans and non-human primates. In this combined PET-fMRI study (n = 17), we tested whether central MOR tone is associated with regional brain responses to social signals of laughter and crying. MOR availability was measured with positron emission tomography (PET) using the high-affinity agonist radioligand [11C]carfentanil. Haemodynamic responses to social laughter and crying vocalizations were measured using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Social laughter evoked activation in the auditory cortex, insula, cingulate cortex, amygdala, primary and secondary somatosensory cortex, and primary and secondary motor cortex; crying sounds led to more restricted activation in the auditory cortex and nearby areas. MOR availability was negatively correlated with the haemodynamic responses to social laughter in the primary and secondary somatosensory cortex, primary and secondary motor cortex, posterior insula, posterior cingulate cortex, precuneus, cuneus, temporal gyri and lingual gyrus. For crying-evoked activations, MOR availability was negatively correlated with medial and lateral prefrontal haemodynamic responses. Altogether our findings highlight the role of the MOR system in modulating acute brain responses to both positive and negative social signals. This article is part of the theme issue 'Cracking the laugh code: laughter through the lens of biology, psychology and neuroscience'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lihua Sun
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China
- Turku PET Centre, University of Turku, and Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland
| | - Lasse Lukkarinen
- Turku PET Centre, University of Turku, and Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Turku, and Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland
- Psychiatric Hospital for Prisoners, Health Care Services for Prisoners, Turku, Finland
| | - Vesa Putkinen
- Turku PET Centre, University of Turku, and Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland
| | - Henry K. Karlsson
- Turku PET Centre, University of Turku, and Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland
| | - Jussi Hirvonen
- Department of Radiology, University of Turku, and Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland
| | - Jari Tiihonen
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institute and Center for Psychiatry Research, Stockholm City Council, Stockholm, Sweden
- Department of Forensic Psychiatry, University of Eastern Finland and Niuvanniemi Hospital, Kuopio, Finland
| | - Hannu Lauerma
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Turku, and Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland
- Psychiatric Hospital for Prisoners, Health Care Services for Prisoners, Turku, Finland
| | - Sophie Scott
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London, UK
| | - Lauri Nummenmaa
- Turku PET Centre, University of Turku, and Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland
- Department of Psychology, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
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25
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Hartmann H, Forbes PAG, Rütgen M, Lamm C. Placebo Analgesia Reduces Costly Prosocial Helping to Lower Another Person's Pain. Psychol Sci 2022; 33:1867-1881. [PMID: 36173691 DOI: 10.1177/09567976221119727] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Painkiller administration lowers pain empathy, but whether this also reduces prosocial behavior is unknown. In this preregistered study, we investigated whether inducing analgesia through a placebo painkiller reduced effortful helping. When given the opportunity to reduce the pain of another person, individuals experiencing placebo analgesia (n = 45 adults from Austria; 21 male, 24 female) made fewer prosocial choices at the lowest helping level and exerted less physical effort when helping, compared with controls whose pain sensitivity was unaltered (n = 45; 21 male, 24 female). Self-reported empathic unpleasantness positively correlated with prosocial choices across the whole sample. While not replicating group differences in empathy, a mediation analysis revealed that the level of unpleasantness to other people's pain fully mediated the effect of placebo analgesia on prosocial choices. Given the importance of prosociality for social cohesion, these findings have broad potential implications both for individuals under the influence of painkillers and for society at large.
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Affiliation(s)
- Helena Hartmann
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna
- Social Brain Laboratory, Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences
| | - Paul A G Forbes
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna
| | - Markus Rütgen
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna
| | - Claus Lamm
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna
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26
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Zhao Y, Zhang L, Rütgen M, Sladky R, Lamm C. Effective connectivity reveals distinctive patterns in response to others' genuine affective experience of disgust. Neuroimage 2022; 259:119404. [PMID: 35750254 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2022.119404] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2021] [Revised: 06/19/2022] [Accepted: 06/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Empathy is significantly influenced by the identification of others' emotions. In a recent study, we have found increased activation in the anterior insular cortex (aIns) that could be attributed to affect sharing rather than perceptual saliency, when seeing another person genuinely experiencing pain as opposed to merely acting to be in pain. In that prior study, effective connectivity between aIns and the right supramarginal gyrus (rSMG) was revealed to represent what another person really feels. In the present study, we used a similar paradigm to investigate the corresponding neural signatures in the domain of empathy for disgust - with participants seeing others genuinely sniffing unpleasant odors as compared to pretending to smell something disgusting (in fact the disgust expressions in both conditions were acted for reasons of experimental control). Consistent with the previous findings on pain, we found stronger activations in aIns associated with affect sharing for genuine disgust (inferred) compared with pretended disgust. However, instead of rSMG we found engagement of the olfactory cortex. Using dynamic causal modeling (DCM), we estimated the neural dynamics of aIns and the olfactory cortex between the genuine and pretended conditions. This revealed an increased excitatory modulatory effect for genuine disgust compared to pretended disgust. For genuine disgust only, brain-to-behavior regression analyses highlighted a link between the observed modulatory effect and a few empathic traits. Altogether, the current findings complement and expand our previous work, by showing that perceptual saliency alone does not explain responses in the insular cortex. Moreover, it reveals that different brain networks are implicated in a modality-specific way when sharing the affective experiences associated with pain vs. disgust.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yili Zhao
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Liebiggasse 5, Vienna 1010, Austria
| | - Lei Zhang
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Liebiggasse 5, Vienna 1010, Austria
| | - Markus Rütgen
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Liebiggasse 5, Vienna 1010, Austria; Vienna Cognitive Science Hub, University of Vienna, Liebiggasse 5, Vienna 1010, Austria
| | - Ronald Sladky
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Liebiggasse 5, Vienna 1010, Austria
| | - Claus Lamm
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Liebiggasse 5, Vienna 1010, Austria; Vienna Cognitive Science Hub, University of Vienna, Liebiggasse 5, Vienna 1010, Austria.
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Li X, Lou W, Zhang W, Tong RKY, Hu L, Peng W. Ongoing first-hand pain facilitates somatosensory resonance but inhibits affective sharing in empathy for pain. Neuroimage 2022; 263:119599. [PMID: 36049698 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2022.119599] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2022] [Revised: 08/05/2022] [Accepted: 08/28/2022] [Indexed: 10/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Alterations of empathy for others' pain among patients with chronic pain remained inconsistent. Here, applying a capsaicin-based ongoing pain model on healthy participants, this study investigated how ongoing first-hand pain influences empathic reactions to vicarious pain stimuli. Healthy participants were randomly treated with topical capsaicin cream (capsaicin group) or hand cream (control group) on the left forearm. Video clips showing limbs in painful and non-painful situations were used to induce empathic responses. The capsaicin group showed greater empathic neural responses in the right primary somatosensory cortex (S1) than the control group but smaller responses in the left anterior insula (AI) accompanied with smaller empathic pain-intensity ratings. Notably, the intensity of ongoing pain negatively correlated with empathy-related neural responses in the left AI. Inter-subject phase synchronization analysis was used to assess stimulus-dependent dynamic functional connectivity within or between brain regions engaged in pain empathy. The capsaicin group showed greater empathy-related neural synchronization within S1 and between S1 and AI, but less synchronization within AI and between AI and MCC. Behaviorally, the differential inter-subject pain-intensity rating alignment between painful and non-painful videos was more positive for the capsaicin group than for the control group, and this effect was partially mediated by the inter-subject neural synchronization between S1 and AI. These results suggest that ongoing first-hand pain facilitates neural activation and synchronization within brain regions associated with empathy-related somatosensory resonance at the cost of inhibiting activation and synchronization within brain regions engaged in empathy-related affective sharing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoyun Li
- School of Psychology, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Wutao Lou
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Wenyun Zhang
- School of Psychology, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Raymond Kai-Yu Tong
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Li Hu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Weiwei Peng
- School of Psychology, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China.
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Sarasso P, Francesetti G, Roubal J, Gecele M, Ronga I, Neppi-Modona M, Sacco K. Beauty and Uncertainty as Transformative Factors: A Free Energy Principle Account of Aesthetic Diagnosis and Intervention in Gestalt Psychotherapy. Front Hum Neurosci 2022; 16:906188. [PMID: 35911596 PMCID: PMC9325967 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2022.906188] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2022] [Accepted: 06/09/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Drawing from field theory, Gestalt therapy conceives psychological suffering and psychotherapy as two intentional field phenomena, where unprocessed and chaotic experiences seek the opportunity to emerge and be assimilated through the contact between the patient and the therapist (i.e., the intentionality of contacting). This therapeutic approach is based on the therapist’s aesthetic experience of his/her embodied presence in the flow of the healing process because (1) the perception of beauty can provide the therapist with feedback on the assimilation of unprocessed experiences; (2) the therapist’s attentional focus on intrinsic aesthetic diagnostic criteria can facilitate the modification of rigid psychopathological fields by supporting the openness to novel experiences. The aim of the present manuscript is to review recent evidence from psychophysiology, neuroaesthetic research, and neurocomputational models of cognition, such as the free energy principle (FEP), which support the notion of the therapeutic potential of aesthetic sensibility in Gestalt psychotherapy. Drawing from neuroimaging data, psychophysiology and recent neurocognitive accounts of aesthetic perception, we propose a novel interpretation of the sense of beauty as a self-generated reward motivating us to assimilate an ever-greater spectrum of sensory and affective states in our predictive representation of ourselves and the world and supporting the intentionality of contact. Expecting beauty, in the psychotherapeutic encounter, can help therapists tolerate uncertainty avoiding impulsive behaviours and to stay tuned to the process of change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pietro Sarasso
- BraIn Plasticity and Behaviour Changes Research Group, Department of Psychology, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
- *Correspondence: Pietro Sarasso,
| | - Gianni Francesetti
- International Institute for Gestalt Therapy and Psychopathology, Turin Center for Gestalt Therapy, Turin, Italy
| | - Jan Roubal
- Psychotherapy Training Gestalt Studia, Training in Psychotherapy Integration, Center for Psychotherapy Research in Brno, Masaryk University, Brno, Czechia
| | - Michela Gecele
- International Institute for Gestalt Therapy and Psychopathology, Turin Center for Gestalt Therapy, Turin, Italy
| | - Irene Ronga
- BraIn Plasticity and Behaviour Changes Research Group, Department of Psychology, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
| | - Marco Neppi-Modona
- BraIn Plasticity and Behaviour Changes Research Group, Department of Psychology, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
| | - Katiuscia Sacco
- BraIn Plasticity and Behaviour Changes Research Group, Department of Psychology, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
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29
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A neuroscientific perspective on the computational theory of social groups. Behav Brain Sci 2022; 45:e126. [PMID: 35796376 DOI: 10.1017/s0140525x2100128x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Abstract
We welcome a computational theory on social groups, yet we argue it would benefit from a broader scope. A neuroscientific perspective offers the possibility to disentangle which computations employed in a group context are genuinely social in nature. Concurrently, we emphasize that a unifying theory of social groups needs to additionally consider higher-level processes like motivations and emotions.
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30
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Chae Y, Park HJ, Lee IS. Pain modalities in the body and brain: Current knowledge and future perspectives. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2022; 139:104744. [PMID: 35716877 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104744] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2022] [Revised: 05/29/2022] [Accepted: 06/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Development and validation of pain biomarkers has become a major issue in pain research. Recent advances in multimodal data acquisition have allowed researchers to gather multivariate and multilevel whole-body measurements in patients with pain conditions, and data analysis techniques such as machine learning have led to novel findings in neural biomarkers for pain. Most studies have focused on the development of a biomarker to predict the severity of pain with high precision and high specificity, however, a similar approach to discriminate different modalities of pain is lacking. Identification of more accurate and specific pain biomarkers will require an in-depth understanding of the modality specificity of pain. In this review, we summarize early and recent findings on the modality specificity of pain in the brain, with a focus on distinct neural activity patterns between chronic clinical and acute experimental pain, direct, social, and vicarious pain, and somatic and visceral pain. We also suggest future directions to improve our current strategy of pain management using our knowledge of modality-specific aspects of pain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Younbyoung Chae
- College of Korean Medicine, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, the Republic of Korea; Acupuncture & Meridian Science Research Center, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, the Republic of Korea
| | - Hi-Joon Park
- College of Korean Medicine, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, the Republic of Korea; Acupuncture & Meridian Science Research Center, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, the Republic of Korea
| | - In-Seon Lee
- College of Korean Medicine, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, the Republic of Korea; Acupuncture & Meridian Science Research Center, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, the Republic of Korea.
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31
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Vaccaro AG, Heydari P, Christov-Moore L, Damasio A, Kaplan JT. Perspective-taking is associated with increased discriminability of affective states in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2022; 17:1082-1090. [PMID: 35579186 PMCID: PMC9714424 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsac035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2021] [Revised: 04/05/2022] [Accepted: 05/16/2022] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Recent work using multivariate-pattern analysis (MVPA) on functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data has found that distinct affective states produce correspondingly distinct patterns of neural activity in the cerebral cortex. However, it is unclear whether individual differences in the distinctiveness of neural patterns evoked by affective stimuli underlie empathic abilities such as perspective-taking (PT). Accordingly, we examined whether we could predict PT tendency from the classification of blood-oxygen-level-dependent (BOLD) fMRI activation patterns while participants (n = 57) imagined themselves in affectively charged scenarios. We used an MVPA searchlight analysis to map where in the brain activity patterns permitted the classification of four affective states: happiness, sadness, fear and disgust. Classification accuracy was significantly above chance levels in most of the prefrontal cortex and in the posterior medial cortices. Furthermore, participants' self-reported PT was positively associated with classification accuracy in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex and insula. This finding has implications for understanding affective processing in the prefrontal cortex and for interpreting the cognitive significance of classifiable affective brain states. Our multivariate approach suggests that PT ability may rely on the grain of internally simulated affective representations rather than simply the global strength.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anthony G Vaccaro
- Jon Brain and Creativity Institute, Department of Psychology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0001, USA
| | - Panthea Heydari
- Jon Brain and Creativity Institute, Department of Psychology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0001, USA
| | - Leonardo Christov-Moore
- Jon Brain and Creativity Institute, Department of Psychology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0001, USA
| | - Antonio Damasio
- Jon Brain and Creativity Institute, Department of Psychology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0001, USA
| | - Jonas T Kaplan
- Correspondence should be addressed to Jonas T. Kaplan, Brain and Creativity Institute, 3620A McClintock Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USA. E-mail:
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32
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Puiu AA, Votinov M, Habel U, Konrad K. Testosterone administration does not alter the brain activity supporting cognitive and affective empathy. COMPREHENSIVE PSYCHONEUROENDOCRINOLOGY 2022; 10:100134. [PMID: 35755204 PMCID: PMC9216345 DOI: 10.1016/j.cpnec.2022.100134] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2021] [Revised: 03/29/2022] [Accepted: 03/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Although there is evidence that testosterone has deteriorating effects on cognitive and affective empathy, whether testosterone administration influences both routes to understanding others has not yet been simultaneously investigated. We conducted a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) pharmacological study using a within-subjects, randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind crossover design to examine the effects of 100 mg transdermal testosterone administration on brain activation during a task that examines affective and cognitive empathy simultaneously in a sample of 23 healthy right-handed adult men. Relative to placebo, testosterone did not alter affective or cognitive empathy functional brain networks. Instead, the task yielded activation in the canonical networks associated with both types of empathy. Affective empathy yielded activation in the inferior and middle frontal gyri, inferior temporal gyri, and the cingulate cortex. Cognitive empathy was associated with activation of the temporoparietal junction, medial prefrontal cortex, middle and inferior temporal gyri, and temporal pole. Behaviourally, testosterone administration decreased error rates and increased participants’ confidence in their responses regardless of response accuracy. Independent of testosterone administration, participants reported higher affective responses during emotionally negative scenarios. Even though our results provide further evidence that testosterone administration in healthy men does not alter brain activity underlying cognitive and affective empathy, testosterone administration does influence the empathic concern and hence socio-cognitive processes. The reproducibility and variability of the current and previous findings should nevertheless be addressed in upcoming studies. High testosterone concentrations are associated with deficient social cognition such as higher aggression and lower empathy. We investigated whether 100mg testosterone administration alters the brain activity supporting empathy in 23 healthy men. Results showed that neither affective nor cognitive empathy brain network activity was altered by testosterone. Independent of testosterone, participants responded with more affective empathy and concern during negative scenarios. Our results show that acute testosterone administration in healthy men does not alter most socio-cognitive processes.
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33
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Effective Oriental Magic for Analgesia: Acupuncture. EVIDENCE-BASED COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE 2022; 2022:1451342. [PMID: 35313481 PMCID: PMC8934214 DOI: 10.1155/2022/1451342] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2021] [Revised: 01/21/2022] [Accepted: 02/08/2022] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Pain is a kind of complex physiological and psychological symptom, which makes the person debilitated and uncomfortable. Some persistent pain is unbearable for the patients, reducing the quality of life and bringing considerable pressure to the individuals and society. Pain killers seem to be effective in analgesia for patients, but their safety and addiction are crucial issues. From the theory of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), the blocked meridian is the main cause of pain, and effective acupuncture can play a positive analgesic effect. Acupuncture that can date back thousands of years is one of the ancient medical practices in China. Its safety and effectiveness are respected. Based on its superior safety and inferior side effects, it has been gradually recognized as a therapeutic intervention method for complementary medicine, which is also generally used to treat multiple pain diseases. It is shown by modern medical studies that neurotransmitters are the material basis for the acupuncture effect, and the effect of acupuncture analgesia is related to changes in neurotransmitters. However, the specific mechanism has not been elucidated. This review aims to comprehensively discuss the historical evolution of acupuncture analgesia, clinical research of acupuncture analgesia, comparison of acupuncture and drug therapy, the neurotransmitter mechanism of acupuncture analgesia, the effect of acupuncture manipulation on analgesia, and bibliometric analysis of acupuncture treatment for pain, to explore the superiority and related mechanism of acupuncture analgesia from different aspects, and to provide a more effective treatment for alleviating patients' pain.
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34
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Superposition mechanism as a neural basis for understanding others. Sci Rep 2022; 12:2859. [PMID: 35190582 PMCID: PMC8861173 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-06717-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2021] [Accepted: 02/02/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Social cognition has received much attention in fields such as neuroscience, psychology, cognitive science, and philosophy. Theory-theory (TT) and simulation theory (ST) provide the dominant theoretical frameworks for research on social cognition. However, neither theory addresses the matter of how the concepts of “self” and “other” are acquired through the development of human and nonhuman agents. Here, we show that the internal representations of “self” and “other” can be developed in an artificial agent only through the simple predictive learning achieved by deep neural networks with the superposition mechanism we herein propose. That is, social cognition can be achieved without a pre-given (or innate) framework of self and other; this is not assumed (or is at least unclear) in TT and ST. We demonstrate that the agent with the proposed model can acquire basic abilities of social cognition such as shared spatial representations of self and other, perspective-taking, and mirror-neuron-like activities of the agent’s neural network. The result indicates that the superposition mechanism we propose is a necessary condition for the development of the concepts of “self” and “other” and, hence, for the development of social cognition in general.
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35
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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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36
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Paul K, Tik M, Hahn A, Sladky R, Geissberger N, Wirth EM, Kranz GS, Pfabigan DM, Kraus C, Lanzenberger R, Lamm C, Windischberger C. Give me a pain that I am used to: distinct habituation patterns to painful and non-painful stimulation. Sci Rep 2021; 11:22929. [PMID: 34824311 PMCID: PMC8617189 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-01881-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2021] [Accepted: 10/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Pain habituation is associated with a decrease of activation in brain areas related to pain perception. However, little is known about the specificity of these decreases to pain, as habituation has also been described for other responses like spinal reflexes and other sensory responses. Thus, it might be hypothesized that previously reported reductions in activation are not specifically related to pain habituation. For this reason, we performed a 3 T fMRI study using either painful or non-painful electrical stimulation via an electrode attached to the back of the left hand. Contrasting painful vs. non-painful stimulation revealed significant activation clusters in regions well-known to be related to pain processing, such as bilateral anterior and posterior insula, primary/secondary sensory cortices (S1/S2) and anterior midcingulate cortex (aMCC). Importantly, our results show distinct habituation patterns for painful (in aMCC) and non-painful (contralateral claustrum) stimulation, while similar habituation for both types of stimulation was identified in bilateral inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) and contralateral S2. Our findings thus distinguish a general habituation in somatosensory processing (S2) and reduced attention (IFG) from specific pain and non-pain related habituation effects where pain-specific habituation effects within the aMCC highlight a change in affective pain perception.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katharina Paul
- MR Center of Excellence, Center for Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, Medical University of Vienna, Waehringer Guertel 18-20, 1090, Vienna, Austria
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Martin Tik
- MR Center of Excellence, Center for Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, Medical University of Vienna, Waehringer Guertel 18-20, 1090, Vienna, Austria
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Andreas Hahn
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Ronald Sladky
- MR Center of Excellence, Center for Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, Medical University of Vienna, Waehringer Guertel 18-20, 1090, Vienna, Austria
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Nicole Geissberger
- MR Center of Excellence, Center for Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, Medical University of Vienna, Waehringer Guertel 18-20, 1090, Vienna, Austria
| | - Eva-Maria Wirth
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Georg S Kranz
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China
| | - Daniela M Pfabigan
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Department of Behavioural Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Christoph Kraus
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Rupert Lanzenberger
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Claus Lamm
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Christian Windischberger
- MR Center of Excellence, Center for Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, Medical University of Vienna, Waehringer Guertel 18-20, 1090, Vienna, Austria.
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37
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Zhao Y, Zhang L, Rütgen M, Sladky R, Lamm C. Neural dynamics between anterior insular cortex and right supramarginal gyrus dissociate genuine affect sharing from perceptual saliency of pretended pain. eLife 2021; 10:e69994. [PMID: 34409940 PMCID: PMC8443248 DOI: 10.7554/elife.69994] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2021] [Accepted: 08/17/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Empathy for pain engages both shared affective responses and self-other distinction. In this study, we addressed the highly debated question of whether neural responses previously linked to affect sharing could result from the perception of salient affective displays. Moreover, we investigated how the brain network involved in affect sharing and self-other distinction underpinned our response to a pain that is either perceived as genuine or pretended (while in fact both were acted for reasons of experimental control). We found stronger activations in regions associated with affect sharing (anterior insula [aIns] and anterior mid-cingulate cortex) as well as with affective self-other distinction (right supramarginal gyrus [rSMG]), in participants watching video clips of genuine vs. pretended facial expressions of pain. Using dynamic causal modeling, we then assessed the neural dynamics between the right aIns and rSMG in these two conditions. This revealed a reduced inhibitory effect on the aIns to rSMG connection for genuine pain compared to pretended pain. For genuine pain only, brain-to-behavior regression analyses highlighted a linkage between this inhibitory effect on the one hand, and pain ratings as well as empathic traits on the other. These findings imply that if the pain of others is genuine and thus calls for an appropriate empathic response, neural responses in the aIns indeed seem related to affect sharing and self-other distinction is engaged to avoid empathic over-arousal. In contrast, if others merely pretend to be in pain, the perceptual salience of their painful expression results in neural responses that are down-regulated to avoid inappropriate affect sharing and social support.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yili Zhao
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of ViennaViennaAustria
| | - Lei Zhang
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of ViennaViennaAustria
| | - Markus Rütgen
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of ViennaViennaAustria
- Vienna Cognitive Science Hub, University of ViennaViennaAustria
| | - Ronald Sladky
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of ViennaViennaAustria
| | - Claus Lamm
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of ViennaViennaAustria
- Vienna Cognitive Science Hub, University of ViennaViennaAustria
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38
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Meconi F, Hodsoll J, Goranova Z, Degano G, Di Lello N, Miniussi C, Avenanti A, Mevorach C. Remember as we empathize. Do brain mechanisms engaged in autobiographical memory retrieval causally affect empathy awareness? A combined TMS and EEG registered report. J Neurosci Res 2021; 99:2377-2389. [PMID: 34185890 DOI: 10.1002/jnr.24906] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2020] [Revised: 04/12/2021] [Accepted: 05/17/2021] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
Social interactions are partly driven by our ability to empathize-the capacity to share and understand others' inner states. While a growing body of evidence suggests a link between past experiences and empathy, to what degree empathy is dependent on our own previous experiences (autobiographical memories, AMs) is still unclear. Whereas neuroimaging studies have shown wide overlapping brain networks underpinning AM and empathic processes, studies on clinical populations with memory loss have not always shown empathy is impaired. The current transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and electroencephalography study will seek to shed light on this neuropsychological puzzle by testing whether self-perceived empathy is causally linked to AM retrieval. Cortical activity, together with self-rating of empathy, will be recorded for scenarios that echo personal experiences while a brain region critical for AM retrieval will be transiently inhibited using TMS before task performance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Federica Meconi
- School of Psychology and Centre for Human Brain Health, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | - John Hodsoll
- Department of Biostatistics, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Zheni Goranova
- School of Psychology and Centre for Human Brain Health, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | - Giulio Degano
- School of Psychology and Centre for Human Brain Health, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | - Nicolò Di Lello
- Department of Social and Developmental Psychology, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - Carlo Miniussi
- Center for Mind/Brain Sciences - CIMeC, University of Trento, Rovereto, Italy
| | - Alessio Avenanti
- Centre for Studies and Research in Cognitive Neuroscience (CsrNC), Department of Psychology, Campus of Cesena, Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Cesena, Italy.,Centro de Investigaci on en Neuropsicología y Neurosciencias Cognitivas, Universidad Catolica Del Maule, Talca, Chile
| | - Carmel Mevorach
- School of Psychology and Centre for Human Brain Health, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
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39
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Naor N, Rohr C, Schaare LH, Limbachia C, Shamay-Tsoory S, Okon-Singer H. The neural networks underlying reappraisal of empathy for pain. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2021; 15:733-744. [PMID: 32701145 PMCID: PMC7511887 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsaa094] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2019] [Revised: 06/15/2020] [Accepted: 06/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Emotion regulation plays a central role in empathy. Only by successfully regulating our own emotions can we reliably use them in order to interpret the content and valence of others’ emotions correctly. In an functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)-based experiment, we show that regulating one’s emotion via reappraisal modulated biased emotional intensity ratings following an empathy for pain manipulation. Task-based analysis revealed increased activity in the right inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) when painful emotions were regulated using reappraisal, whereas empathic feelings that were not regulated resulted in increased activity bilaterally in the precuneus, supramarginal gyrus and middle frontal gyrus (MFG), as well as the right parahippocampal gyrus. Functional connectivity analysis indicated that the right IFG plays a role in the regulation of empathy for pain, through its connections with regions in the empathy for pain network. Furthermore, these connections were further modulated as a function of the type of regulation used: in sum, our results suggest that accurate empathic judgment (i.e. empathy that is unbiased) relies on a complex interaction between neural regions involved in emotion regulation and regions associated with empathy for pain. Thus, demonstrating the importance of emotion regulation in the formulation of complex social systems and sheds light on the intricate network implicated in this complex process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Navot Naor
- University of Maryland, Department of Psychology, College Park, MD 20742-5031, USA
| | - Christiane Rohr
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Department of Neurology, Leipzig 04103, Germany
| | - Lina H Schaare
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Department of Neurology, Leipzig 04103, Germany
| | - Chirag Limbachia
- University of Maryland, Department of Psychology, College Park, MD 20742-5031, USA
| | | | - Hadas Okon-Singer
- University of Haifa, Department of Psychology, Haifa 3498838, Israel
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40
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Increasing self-other bodily overlap increases sensorimotor resonance to others' pain. COGNITIVE AFFECTIVE & BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE 2021; 20:19-33. [PMID: 31190136 PMCID: PMC7012796 DOI: 10.3758/s13415-019-00724-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Empathy for another person’s pain and feeling pain oneself seem to be accompanied by similar or shared neural responses. Such shared responses could be achieved by mapping the bodily states of others onto our own bodily representations. We investigated whether sensorimotor neural responses to the pain of others are increased when experimentally reducing perceived bodily distinction between the self and the other. Healthy adult participants watched video clips of the hands of ethnic ingroup or outgroup members being painfully penetrated by a needle syringe or touched by a cotton swab. Manipulating the video presentation to create a visuospatial overlap between the observer’s and the target’s hand increased the perceived bodily self-attribution of the target’s hand. For both ingroup and outgroup targets, this resulted in increased neural responses to the painful injections (compared with nonpainful contacts), as indexed by desynchronizations of central mu and beta scalp rhythms recorded using electroencephalography. Furthermore, these empathy-related neural activations were stronger in participants who reported stronger bodily self-attribution of the other person’s hand. Our findings provide further evidence that empathy for pain engages sensorimotor resonance mechanisms. They also indicate that reducing bodily self-other distinction may increase such resonance for ingroup as well as outgroup targets.
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41
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Meconi F, Linde-Domingo J, S Ferreira C, Michelmann S, Staresina B, Apperly IA, Hanslmayr S. EEG and fMRI evidence for autobiographical memory reactivation in empathy. Hum Brain Mapp 2021; 42:4448-4464. [PMID: 34121270 PMCID: PMC8410563 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.25557] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2021] [Revised: 05/26/2021] [Accepted: 05/31/2021] [Indexed: 01/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Empathy relies on the ability to mirror and to explicitly infer others' inner states. Theoretical accounts suggest that memories play a role in empathy, but direct evidence of reactivation of autobiographical memories (AM) in empathy is yet to be shown. We addressed this question in two experiments. In Experiment 1, electrophysiological activity (EEG) was recorded from 28 participants. Participants performed an empathy task in which targets for empathy were depicted in contexts for which participants either did or did not have an AM, followed by a task that explicitly required memory retrieval of the AM and non‐AM contexts. The retrieval task was implemented to extract the neural fingerprints of AM and non‐AM contexts, which were then used to probe data from the empathy task. An EEG pattern classifier was trained and tested across tasks and showed evidence for AM reactivation when participants were preparing their judgement in the empathy task. Participants self‐reported higher empathy for people depicted in situations they had experienced themselves as compared to situations they had not experienced. A second independent fMRI experiment replicated this behavioural finding and showed increased activation for AM compared to non‐AM in the brain networks underlying empathy: precuneus, posterior parietal cortex, superior and inferior parietal lobule, and superior frontal gyrus. Together, our study reports behavioural, electrophysiological, and fMRI evidence that robustly supports AM reactivation in empathy.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Juan Linde-Domingo
- School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham.,Max Plank Institute Berlin for Human Development, Berlin, Germany
| | | | - Sebastian Michelmann
- School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham.,Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton, New Jersey, USA
| | - Bernhard Staresina
- School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham.,Center for Human Brain Health, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | - Ian A Apperly
- School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham
| | - Simon Hanslmayr
- School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham.,Center for Human Brain Health, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK.,Institute for Neuroscience and Psychology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland
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42
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Hartmann H, Riva F, Rütgen M, Lamm C. Placebo Analgesia Does Not Reduce Empathy for Naturalistic Depictions of Others' Pain in a Somatosensory Specific Way. Cereb Cortex Commun 2021; 2:tgab039. [PMID: 34296184 PMCID: PMC8276832 DOI: 10.1093/texcom/tgab039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2021] [Revised: 05/18/2021] [Accepted: 05/26/2021] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
The shared representations account postulates that sharing another's pain recruits underlying brain functions also engaged during first-hand pain. Critically, direct causal evidence for this was mainly shown for affective pain processing, while the contribution of somatosensory processes to empathy remains controversial. This controversy may be explained, however, by experimental paradigms that did not direct attention towards a specific body part, or that did not employ naturalistic depictions of others' pain. In this preregistered functional magnetic resonance imaging study, we aimed to test whether causal manipulation of first-hand pain affects empathy for naturalistic depictions of pain in a somatosensory-matched manner. Forty-five participants underwent a placebo analgesia induction in their right hand and observed pictures of other people's right and left hands in pain. We found neither behavioral nor neural evidence for somatosensory-specific modulation of pain empathy. However, exploratory analyses revealed a general effect of the placebo on empathy, and higher brain activity in bilateral anterior insula when viewing others' right hands in pain (i.e., corresponding to one's own placebo hand). These results refine our knowledge regarding the neural mechanisms of pain empathy, and imply that the sharing of somatosensory representations seems to play less of a causal role than the one of affective representations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Helena Hartmann
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, 1010 Vienna, Austria
| | - Federica Riva
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, 1010 Vienna, Austria
| | - Markus Rütgen
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, 1010 Vienna, Austria
| | - Claus Lamm
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, 1010 Vienna, Austria
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43
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Rütgen M, Pfabigan DM, Tik M, Kraus C, Pletti C, Sladky R, Klöbl M, Woletz M, Vanicek T, Windischberger C, Lanzenberger R, Lamm C. Detached empathic experience of others' pain in remitted states of depression - An fMRI study. Neuroimage Clin 2021; 31:102699. [PMID: 34049164 PMCID: PMC8167276 DOI: 10.1016/j.nicl.2021.102699] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2021] [Revised: 05/10/2021] [Accepted: 05/10/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Major depressive disorder is strongly associated with impairments and difficulties in social interactions. Deficits in empathy, a vital skill for social interactions, have been identified as a risk factor for relapse. However, research on empathy in remitted states of depression is scarce. We chose a social neuroscience approach to investigate potentially altered neural processes involved in sub-components of empathy in remitted states of depression. We expected aberrations in cognitive components of empathy, based on previous reports regarding their role as risk factors for relapse. METHODS Employing functional magnetic resonance imaging and a pain empathy task (video clips of painful medical treatments), we compared behavioral and neural empathic responses of unmedicated remitted depressive patients (N = 32) to those of untreated acutely depressed patients (N = 29) and healthy controls (N = 35). Self-report ratings of pain evaluation and affect-sharing were obtained. RESULTS Compared to controls and acutely depressed patients, remitted depressive patients reported higher pain evaluation and showed increased activity in the right temporo-parietal junction. This region, which is central to self-other distinction and which has been linked to adopting a detached perspective, also exhibited reduced connectivity to the anterior insula. Furthermore, we observed reduced activity in regions involved in emotion processing (amygdala) and perception of affective facial expressions (fusiform face area, posterior superior temporal sulcus). CONCLUSIONS Remitted states of depression are associated with a detached empathic style in response to others' pain, characterized by increased self-other distinction, lowered affective processing, and reduced connectivity between empathy-related brain regions. Although this may prevent emotional harm in specific situations, it may reduce opportunities for positive experiences in social interactions in the long run.
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Affiliation(s)
- Markus Rütgen
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
| | - Daniela Melitta Pfabigan
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Martin Tik
- Center for Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Christoph Kraus
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Carolina Pletti
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria; Developmental Psychology Unit, Department of Psychology and Pedagogy, Ludwig Maximilian University, Munich, Germany
| | - Ronald Sladky
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria; Center for Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Manfred Klöbl
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Michael Woletz
- Center for Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Thomas Vanicek
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Christian Windischberger
- Center for Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Rupert Lanzenberger
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Claus Lamm
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
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44
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Schurz M, Uddin LQ, Kanske P, Lamm C, Sallet J, Bernhardt BC, Mars RB, Bzdok D. Variability in Brain Structure and Function Reflects Lack of Peer Support. Cereb Cortex 2021; 31:4612-4627. [PMID: 33982758 PMCID: PMC8408465 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhab109] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2020] [Revised: 03/02/2021] [Accepted: 03/24/2021] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Humans are a highly social species. Complex interactions for mutual support range from helping neighbors to building social welfare institutions. During times of distress or crisis, sharing life experiences within one's social circle is critical for well-being. By translating pattern-learning algorithms to the UK Biobank imaging-genetics cohort (n = ~40 000 participants), we have delineated manifestations of regular social support in multimodal whole-brain measurements. In structural brain variation, we identified characteristic volumetric signatures in the salience and limbic networks for high- versus low-social support individuals. In patterns derived from functional coupling, we also located interindividual differences in social support in action-perception circuits related to binding sensory cues and initiating behavioral responses. In line with our demographic profiling analysis, the uncovered neural substrates have potential implications for loneliness, substance misuse, and resilience to stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthias Schurz
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University Nijmegen, 6525 EN Nijmegen, The Netherlands
- Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3SR, UK
- Institute of Psychology, University of Innsbruck, 6020 Innsbruck, Austria
- Address correspondence to Matthias Schurz, PhD, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition, & Behaviour, Radboud University, Montessorilaan 3, B.0305, 6525 HR Nijmegen, Netherlands. and Danilo Bzdok, MD, PhD, Montreal Neurological Institute, 3801 rue University, Bureau #872D, Montréal (Québec) H3A 2B4, Canada.
| | - Lucina Q Uddin
- Department of Psychology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, Florida 33124, USA
- Neuroscience Program, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, Florida 33136, USA
| | - Philipp Kanske
- Clinical Psychology and Behavioral Neuroscience, Faculty of Psychology, Technische Universität Dresden, 01187 Dresden, Germany
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Claus Lamm
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, 1010 Vienna, Austria
| | - Jérôme Sallet
- Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3SR, UK
- University of Lyon, Univ Lyon 1, INSERM, Stem Cell and Brain Research Institute U1208, 69500 Bron, France
| | - Boris C Bernhardt
- McConnell Brain Imaging Centre (BIC), Montreal Neurological Institute (MNI), McGill University, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Rogier B Mars
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University Nijmegen, 6525 EN Nijmegen, The Netherlands
- Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, Centre for Functional MRI of the Brain (FMRIB), Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford OX3 9DU, UK
| | - Danilo Bzdok
- McConnell Brain Imaging Centre (BIC), Montreal Neurological Institute (MNI), McGill University, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2B4, Canada
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Medicine, School of Computer Science, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2B4, Canada
- Mila-Quebec Artificial Intelligence Institute, Montreal, Quebec H2S 3H1, Canada
- Address correspondence to Matthias Schurz, PhD, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition, & Behaviour, Radboud University, Montessorilaan 3, B.0305, 6525 HR Nijmegen, Netherlands. and Danilo Bzdok, MD, PhD, Montreal Neurological Institute, 3801 rue University, Bureau #872D, Montréal (Québec) H3A 2B4, Canada.
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45
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Ashar YK, Andrews-Hanna JR, Halifax J, Dimidjian S, Wager TD. Effects of Compassion Training on Brain Responses to Suffering other. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2021; 16:1036-1047. [PMID: 33948660 PMCID: PMC8483284 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsab052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2019] [Revised: 04/07/2021] [Accepted: 05/04/2021] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Compassion meditation (CM) is a promising intervention for enhancing compassion, although its active ingredients and neurobiological mechanisms are not well-understood. To investigate these, we conducted a three-armed placebo-controlled randomized trial (N = 57) with longitudinal functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). We compared a 4-week CM program delivered by smartphone application with (i) a placebo condition, presented to participants as the compassion-enhancing hormone oxytocin, and (ii) a condition designed to control for increased familiarity with suffering others, an element of CM which may promote compassion. At pre- and post-intervention, participants listened to compassion-eliciting narratives describing suffering others during fMRI. CM increased brain responses to suffering others in the medial orbitofrontal cortex (mOFC) relative to the familiarity condition, p < 0.05 family-wise error rate corrected. Among CM participants, individual differences in increased mOFC responses positively correlated with increased compassion-related feelings and attributions, r = 0.50, p = 0.04. Relative to placebo, the CM group exhibited a similar increase in mOFC activity at an uncorrected threshold of P < 0.001 and 10 contiguous voxels. We conclude that the mOFC, a region closely related to affiliative affect and motivation, is an important brain mechanism of CM. Effects of CM on mOFC function are not explained by familiarity effects and are partly explained by placebo effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yoni K Ashar
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience., University of Colorado, Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA.,Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, USA
| | | | - Joan Halifax
- Upaya Institute and Zen Center. Santa Fe, NM, USA
| | - Sona Dimidjian
- Department of Psychology, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA.,University of Colorado Boulder, Renee Crown Wellness Institute. Boulder, CO USA
| | - Tor D Wager
- Department of Psychology and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH, USA
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46
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Paradiso E, Gazzola V, Keysers C. Neural mechanisms necessary for empathy-related phenomena across species. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2021; 68:107-115. [PMID: 33756399 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2021.02.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2020] [Revised: 02/05/2021] [Accepted: 02/09/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
The neural basis of empathy and prosociality has received much interest over the past decades. Neuroimaging studies localized a network of brain regions with activity that correlates with empathy. Here, we review how the emergence of rodent and nonhuman primate models of empathy-related phenomena supplements human lesion and neuromodulation studies providing evidence that activity in several nodes is necessary for these phenomena to occur. We review proof that (i) affective states triggered by the emotions of others, (ii) motivations to act in ways that benefit others, and (iii) emotion recognition can be altered by perturbing brain activity in many nodes identified by human neuroimaging, with strongest evidence for the cingulate and the amygdala. We also include evidence that manipulations of the oxytocin system and analgesics can have such effects, the latter providing causal evidence for the recruitment of an individual's own nociceptive system to feel with the pain of others.
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Affiliation(s)
- Enrica Paradiso
- Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, KNAW, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Valeria Gazzola
- Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, KNAW, Amsterdam, Netherlands; Brain and Cognition, Department of Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Netherlands.
| | - Christian Keysers
- Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, KNAW, Amsterdam, Netherlands; Brain and Cognition, Department of Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Netherlands.
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47
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Zunhammer M, Spisák T, Wager TD, Bingel U. Meta-analysis of neural systems underlying placebo analgesia from individual participant fMRI data. Nat Commun 2021; 12:1391. [PMID: 33654105 PMCID: PMC7925520 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-21179-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2020] [Accepted: 01/04/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The brain systems underlying placebo analgesia are insufficiently understood. Here we performed a systematic, participant-level meta-analysis of experimental functional neuroimaging studies of evoked pain under stimulus-intensity-matched placebo and control conditions, encompassing 603 healthy participants from 20 (out of 28 eligible) studies. We find that placebo vs. control treatments induce small, widespread reductions in pain-related activity, particularly in regions belonging to ventral attention (including mid-insula) and somatomotor networks (including posterior insula). Behavioral placebo analgesia correlates with reduced pain-related activity in these networks and the thalamus, habenula, mid-cingulate, and supplementary motor area. Placebo-associated activity increases occur mainly in frontoparietal regions, with high between-study heterogeneity. We conclude that placebo treatments affect pain-related activity in multiple brain areas, which may reflect changes in nociception and/or other affective and decision-making processes surrounding pain. Between-study heterogeneity suggests that placebo analgesia is a multi-faceted phenomenon involving multiple cerebral mechanisms that differ across studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthias Zunhammer
- Center for Translational Neuro- and Behavioral Sciences, Dept. of Neurology, University Hospital Essen, Essen, Germany
| | - Tamás Spisák
- Center for Translational Neuro- and Behavioral Sciences, Dept. of Neurology, University Hospital Essen, Essen, Germany
| | - Tor D Wager
- Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Laboratory, Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH, USA.
| | - Ulrike Bingel
- Center for Translational Neuro- and Behavioral Sciences, Dept. of Neurology, University Hospital Essen, Essen, Germany.
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Nazeri-Rezaabad M, Jamalpoor Z, Alemrajabi MS, Nozari M, Razavinasab M, Nezhadi A. Chronic Exposure to Morphine Leads to a Reduced Affective Pain Response in the Presence of Hyperalgesia in an Animal Model of Empathy. ADDICTION & HEALTH 2021; 12:251-258. [PMID: 33623644 PMCID: PMC7878003 DOI: 10.22122/ahj.v12i4.280] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Background Empathy is the capability to represent the mental and emotional states of other subjects. Previous studies have demonstrated a possible correlation between morphine addiction and altered empathy response in morphine-addicted subjects. This study was performed to evaluate the effect of chronic morphine exposure as an animal model of morphine addiction on empathic changes in affective and sensory pain. Methods Adult male Wistar rats (3 months old) were used for the current study. Animals were grouped in cages of two (n = 8 for each group) and one animal was selected as the pain observer group. Pain observer animals received either saline or morphine (10 mg/kg, twice daily for 8 days). At ninth day, formalin [50 µg, 5%, subcutaneous (SC)] was injected into the hindpaw of the cagemate and placed inside the cage. Elevated plus maze (EPM) and open field test (OFT) were recruited to evaluate anxiety; hot plate and tail flick tests were used to assay sensory pain. Conditioned place aversion (CPA) was also measured as indicator of affective pain component. Findings Chronic morphine exposure led to a reduced level of anxiety in EPM and OFT assays. An opioid-induced hyperalgesia was observed in the sensory pain assays, while there was a reduced affective pain in the CPA paradigm in morphine-treated animals. Conclusion It might be plausible that chronic morphine exposure might alter empathy for pain through affective and not sensory pain pathways.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Zahra Jamalpoor
- Trauma Research Center, Aja University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | | | - Masoomeh Nozari
- Department of Physiology, School of Medicine AND Neuroscience Research Center, Neuropharmacology Institute, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran
| | - Moazamehosadat Razavinasab
- Department of Physiology, School of Medicine AND Neuroscience Research Center, Neuropharmacology Institute, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran
| | - Akram Nezhadi
- Neuroscience Research Center, Aja University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
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49
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Kroll SL, Thayer JF, Williams DP, Pfabigan DM, Baumgartner MR, Lamm C, Quednow BB. Chronic non-medical prescription opioid use and empathy for pain: Does pain make the difference? Psychophysiology 2021; 58:e13776. [PMID: 33569774 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.13776] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2020] [Revised: 01/04/2021] [Accepted: 01/05/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Non-medical prescription opioid use (NMPOU) is at the heart of the opioid epidemic in the United States. Although chronic opioid use is commonly accompanied by deficits in social functioning, little is known about the impact of chronic NMPOU on social cognitive functions. Social neuroscience models suggest that empathy activates similar or even equivalent neural structures as those underpinning the first-hand experience in that emotional state (e.g., pain). Therefore, we measured subjective and psychophysiological responses during an empathy-for-pain task in 23 individuals with NMPOU, objectively confirmed by hair and urine testing, and compared them with 29 opioid-naïve healthy controls. NMPOU individuals showed lower other-related and self-related unpleasantness ratings when seeing others in pain than controls. No differences between the control and NMPOU group were found in skin conductance responses and heart rate variability (HRV) assessed by root mean square of successive differences (RMSSD) in response to the task. However, RMSSD-HRV was strongly negatively correlated with self-related unpleasantness and craving in the NMPOU group. A subsequent mediation analysis showed a total effect of RMSSD-HRV on self-related unpleasantness with no mediation of craving. This indicates that stronger emotion regulation indexed by high RMSSD-HRV might have downregulating effects on sharing others' pain in NMPOU individuals but not in healthy controls, which was further accompanied by decreased ratings of personal distress and empathetic concern. These results contribute to a better understanding of social functioning in chronic opioid users, suggesting adequate emotion regulation and empathy trainings as therapeutic targets for future interventions of opioid use disorders and long-term pain treatment with opioids.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara L Kroll
- Experimental and Clinical Pharmacopsychology, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy, and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.,Center for Social and Affective Neuroscience, Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden
| | - Julian F Thayer
- Department of Psychological Science, University of California, Irvine, CA, USA
| | - DeWayne P Williams
- Department of Psychological Science, University of California, Irvine, CA, USA
| | - Daniela M Pfabigan
- Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Markus R Baumgartner
- Center for Forensic Hair Analysis, Institute of Forensic Medicine, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Claus Lamm
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Boris B Quednow
- Experimental and Clinical Pharmacopsychology, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy, and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.,Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich and Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
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50
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Distinct neural networks subserve placebo analgesia and nocebo hyperalgesia. Neuroimage 2021; 231:117833. [PMID: 33549749 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.117833] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2020] [Revised: 01/20/2021] [Accepted: 01/30/2021] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Neural networks involved in placebo analgesia and nocebo hyperalgesia processes have been widely investigated with neuroimaging methods. However, few studies have directly compared these two processes and it remains unclear whether common or distinct neural circuits are involved. To address this issue, we implemented a coordinate-based meta-analysis and compared neural representations of placebo analgesia (30 studies; 205 foci; 677 subjects) and nocebo hyperalgesia (22 studies; 301 foci; 401 subjects). Contrast analyses confirmed placebo-specific concordance in the right ventral striatum, and nocebo-specific concordance in the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC), left posterior insula and left parietal operculum during combined pain anticipation and administration stages. Importantly, no overlapping regions were found for these two processes in conjunction analyses, even when the threshold was low. Meta-analytic connectivity modeling (MACM) and resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) analyses on key regions further confirmed the distinct brain networks underlying placebo analgesia and nocebo hyperalgesia. Together, these findings indicate that the placebo analgesia and nocebo hyperalgesia processes involve distinct neural circuits, which supports the view that the two phenomena may operate via different neuropsychological processes.
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