1
|
Fan C, Wang H, Liu D, Sun J, Han F, He W. Proposer's moral identity modulates fairness processing in the ultimatum game: Evidence from behavior and brain potentials. Int J Psychophysiol 2024; 201:112360. [PMID: 38735630 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2024.112360] [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: 03/01/2024] [Revised: 04/19/2024] [Accepted: 05/09/2024] [Indexed: 05/14/2024]
Abstract
Economic decision-making is pivotal to both human private interests and the national economy. People pursue fairness in economic decision-making, but a proposer's moral identity can influence fairness processing. Previous ERP studies have revealed that moral identity has an effect on fairness considerations in the Ultimatum Game (UG), but the findings are inconsistent. To address the issue, we revised the moral-related sentences and used the ERP technique to measure the corresponding neural mechanism. We have observed that the fairness effect in UG can be mirrored in both MFN and P300 changes, whereas the moral identity effect on fairness in UG can be reflected by MFN but not P300 changes. These findings indicate that the moral identity of the proposer can modulate fairness processing in UG. The current study opens new avenues for clarifying the temporal course of the relationship between the proposer's moral identity and fairness in economic decision-making, which is beneficial for understanding the influencing mechanism of fairness processing and fair allocations in complex social contexts.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Cong Fan
- Research Center of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian 116029, PR China; Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Dalian, Liaoning Province, China
| | - Huanxin Wang
- Research Center of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian 116029, PR China; Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Dalian, Liaoning Province, China
| | - Dingyu Liu
- Research Center of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian 116029, PR China; Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Dalian, Liaoning Province, China
| | - Jiayi Sun
- Research Center of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian 116029, PR China; Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Dalian, Liaoning Province, China
| | - Fengxu Han
- Research Center of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian 116029, PR China; Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Dalian, Liaoning Province, China
| | - Weiqi He
- Research Center of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian 116029, PR China; Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Dalian, Liaoning Province, China.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Christian P, Kaiser J, Taylor PC, George M, Schütz-Bosbach S, Soutschek A. Belief Updating during Social Interactions: Neural Dynamics and Causal Role of Dorsomedial Prefrontal Cortex. J Neurosci 2024; 44:e1669232024. [PMID: 38649270 PMCID: PMC11140663 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.1669-23.2024] [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: 08/31/2023] [Revised: 02/11/2024] [Accepted: 03/03/2024] [Indexed: 04/25/2024] Open
Abstract
In competitive interactions, humans have to flexibly update their beliefs about another person's intentions in order to adjust their own choice strategy, such as when believing that the other may exploit their cooperativeness. Here we investigate both the neural dynamics and the causal neural substrate of belief updating processes in humans. We used an adapted prisoner's dilemma game in which participants explicitly predicted the coplayer's actions, which allowed us to quantify the prediction error between expected and actual behavior. First, in an EEG experiment, we found a stronger medial frontal negativity (MFN) for negative than positive prediction errors, suggesting that this medial frontal ERP component may encode unexpected defection of the coplayer. The MFN also predicted subsequent belief updating after negative prediction errors. In a second experiment, we used transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to investigate whether the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC) causally implements belief updating after unexpected outcomes. Our results show that dmPFC TMS impaired belief updating and strategic behavioral adjustments after negative prediction errors. Taken together, our findings reveal the time course of the use of prediction errors in social decisions and suggest that the dmPFC plays a crucial role in updating mental representations of others' intentions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Patricia Christian
- Department of Psychology, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Munich 80802, Germany
- Graduate School of Systemic Neurosciences, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Munich 82152, Germany
| | - Jakob Kaiser
- Department of Psychology, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Munich 80802, Germany
| | - Paul Christopher Taylor
- Department of Psychology, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Munich 80802, Germany
- Graduate School of Systemic Neurosciences, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Munich 82152, Germany
| | - Michelle George
- Department of Psychology, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Munich 80802, Germany
| | - Simone Schütz-Bosbach
- Department of Psychology, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Munich 80802, Germany
- Graduate School of Systemic Neurosciences, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Munich 82152, Germany
| | - Alexander Soutschek
- Department of Psychology, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Munich 80802, Germany
- Graduate School of Systemic Neurosciences, Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Munich 82152, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Jin K, Wu J, Zhang R, Zhang S, Wu X, Wu T, Gu R, Liu C. Observing heroic behavior and its influencing factors in immersive virtual environments. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2314590121. [PMID: 38625938 PMCID: PMC11047098 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2314590121] [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: 08/30/2023] [Accepted: 03/02/2024] [Indexed: 04/18/2024] Open
Abstract
Studying heroism in controlled settings presents challenges and ethical controversies due to its association with physical risk. Leveraging virtual reality (VR) technology, we conducted a three-study series with 397 participants from China to investigate heroic actions. Participants unexpectedly witnessed a criminal event in a simulated scenario, allowing observation of their tendency to physically intercept a thief. We examined situational factors (voluntariness, authority, and risk) and personal variables [gender, impulsivity, empathy, and social value orientation (SVO)] that may influence heroism. Also, the potential association between heroism and social conformity was explored. In terms of situational variables, voluntariness modulated participants' tendency to intercept the escaping thief, while perceived risk demonstrated its impact by interacting with gender. That is, in study 3 where the perceived risk was expected to be higher (as supported by an online study 5), males exhibited a greater inclination toward heroic behavior compared to females. Regarding other personal variables, the tendency to engage in heroic behavior decreased as empathy levels rose among males, whereas the opposite trend was observed for females. SVO influenced heroic behavior but without a gender interaction. Finally, an inverse relationship between heroism and social conformity was observed. The robustness of these findings was partly supported by the Chinese sample (but not the international sample) of an online study 4 that provided written descriptions of VR scenarios, indicating cultural variations. These results advance insights into motivational factors influencing heroism in the context of restoring order and highlight the power of VR technology in examining social psychological hypotheses beyond ethical constraints.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kelou Jin
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing100875, China
- International Data Group McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing100875, China
| | - Jie Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing100875, China
- International Data Group McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing100875, China
| | - Ran Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing100875, China
- International Data Group McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing100875, China
| | - Shen Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing100875, China
- International Data Group McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing100875, China
| | - Xiaoyan Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing100875, China
- International Data Group McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing100875, China
| | - Tingting Wu
- Beijing Key Lab of Learning and Cognition, School of Psychology, Capital Normal University, Beijing100048, China
| | - Ruolei Gu
- Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing100101, China
- Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing100049, China
| | - Chao Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing100875, China
- International Data Group McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing100875, China
- Center for Collaboration and Innovation in Brain and Learning Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing100875, China
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Brain Imaging and Connectomics, Beijing Normal University, Beijing100875, China
- National Demonstration Center for Experimental Psychology Education, Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing100875, China
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Luo X, Yu T, Tan M, Zhong Y. Impact of Empathic Concern on Prosocial Behavior in Gain and Loss Contexts: Evidence from Event-Related Potential. Brain Sci 2024; 14:400. [PMID: 38672049 PMCID: PMC11047841 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci14040400] [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: 03/21/2024] [Revised: 04/15/2024] [Accepted: 04/17/2024] [Indexed: 04/28/2024] Open
Abstract
This study employs event-related potential (ERP) to examine the impact of empathic concern on prosocial decision-making with costs in both gain and loss contexts. In this experiment, participants can choose between two types of lottery tickets and pay lottery money to help the target person gain more money or lose less money. The behavioral results showed that regardless of the context of the decision (financial loss or gain), participants tended to help individuals who had induced high empathic concern. ERP results show that compared to the low-empathic-concern condition, the high-empathic-concern condition induced greater P3 amplitude in the gain context. However, this change in P3 amplitude caused by empathic concern did not occur in the context of loss. These findings indicate that empathic concern has different psychological mechanisms that moderate prosocial behavior in gain and loss contexts.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Xi Luo
- Department of Psychology, School of Education Science, Hunan Normal University, Changsha 410081, China; (X.L.); (M.T.)
- School of Physics and Chemistry, Hunan First Normal University, Changsha 410205, China
- Cognition and Human Behavior Key Laboratory of Hunan Province, Changsha 410081, China
- Hunan Key Laboratory for Children’s Psychological Development and Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Changsha 410205, China
| | - Taowen Yu
- Department of Psychology, Changsha Normal University, Changsha 410100, China;
| | - Min Tan
- Department of Psychology, School of Education Science, Hunan Normal University, Changsha 410081, China; (X.L.); (M.T.)
- Cognition and Human Behavior Key Laboratory of Hunan Province, Changsha 410081, China
| | - Yiping Zhong
- Department of Psychology, School of Education Science, Hunan Normal University, Changsha 410081, China; (X.L.); (M.T.)
- Cognition and Human Behavior Key Laboratory of Hunan Province, Changsha 410081, China
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Chen P, Liu S, Zhang Y, Qin S, Mai X. Same allocation proposed by an individual or a group elicits distinct responses: Evidence from event-related potentials and neural oscillation. Neuroimage 2024; 290:120565. [PMID: 38453102 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2024.120565] [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: 11/22/2023] [Revised: 02/28/2024] [Accepted: 03/04/2024] [Indexed: 03/09/2024] Open
Abstract
People tend to perceive the same information differently depending on whether it is expressed in an individual or a group frame. It has also been found that the individual (vs. group) frame of expression tends to lead to more charitable giving and greater tolerance of wealth inequality. However, little is known about whether the same resource allocation in social interactions elicits distinct responses depending on proposer type. Using the second-party punishment task, this study examined whether the same allocation from different proposers (individual vs. group) leads to differences in recipient behavior and the neural mechanisms. Behavioral results showed that reaction times were longer in the unfair (vs. fair) condition, and this difference was more pronounced when the proposer was the individual (vs. group). Neural results showed that proposer type (individual vs. group) influenced early automatic processing (indicated by AN1, P2, and central alpha band), middle processing (indicated by MFN and right frontal theta band), and late elaborative processing (indicated by P3 and parietal alpha band) of fairness in resource allocation. These results revealed more attentional resources were captured by the group proposer in the early stage of fairness processing, and more cognitive resources were consumed by processing group-proposed unfair allocations in the late stage, possibly because group proposers are less identifiable than individual proposers. The findings provide behavioral and neural evidence for the effects of "individual/group" framing leading to cognitive differences. They also deliver insights into social governance issues, such as punishing individual and/or group violations.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Peiqi Chen
- Department of Psychology, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, China
| | - Siqi Liu
- Department of Psychology, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, China
| | - Yinling Zhang
- Department of Psychology, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, China
| | - Shaozheng Qin
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
| | - Xiaoqin Mai
- Department of Psychology, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, China; Laboratory of Department of Psychology, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, China.
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Yang L, Gao Y, Ao L, Wang H, Zhou S, Liu Y. Context Modulates Perceived Fairness in Altruistic Punishment: Neural Signatures from ERPs and EEG Oscillations. Brain Topogr 2024:10.1007/s10548-024-01039-1. [PMID: 38448713 DOI: 10.1007/s10548-024-01039-1] [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: 05/04/2023] [Accepted: 02/01/2024] [Indexed: 03/08/2024]
Abstract
Social norms and altruistic punitive behaviours are both based on the integration of information from multiple contexts. Individual behavioural performance can be altered by loss and gain contexts, which produce different mental states and subjective perceptions. In this study, we used event-related potential and time-frequency techniques to examine performance on a third-party punishment task and to explore the neural mechanisms underlying context-dependent differences in punishment decisions. The results indicated that individuals were more likely to reject unfairness in the context of loss (vs. gain) and to increase punishment as unfairness increased. In contrast, fairness appeared to cause an early increase in cognitive control signal enhancement, as indicated by the P2 amplitude and theta oscillations, and a later increase in emotional and motivational salience during decision-making in gain vs. loss contexts, as indicated by the medial frontal negativity and beta oscillations. In summary, individuals were more willing to sanction violations of social norms in the loss context than in the gain context and rejecting unfair losses induced more equity-related cognitive conflict than accepting unfair gains, highlighting the importance of context (i.e., gain vs. loss) in equity-related social decision-making processes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lei Yang
- School of Psychology and Mental Health, North China University of Science and Technology, 21 Bohai avenue, Caofeidian district, Tangshan, Hebei province, China
| | - Yuan Gao
- School of Psychology and Mental Health, North China University of Science and Technology, 21 Bohai avenue, Caofeidian district, Tangshan, Hebei province, China
| | - Lihong Ao
- School of Psychology and Mental Health, North China University of Science and Technology, 21 Bohai avenue, Caofeidian district, Tangshan, Hebei province, China
| | - He Wang
- School of Psychology and Mental Health, North China University of Science and Technology, 21 Bohai avenue, Caofeidian district, Tangshan, Hebei province, China
| | - Shuhang Zhou
- Meta Platform, Inc, 121 S Magnolia Ave, Apt 1, Millbrae, CA, 94030, USA
| | - Yingjie Liu
- School of Psychology and Mental Health, North China University of Science and Technology, 21 Bohai avenue, Caofeidian district, Tangshan, Hebei province, China.
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Li J, Li M, Sun Y, Zhang G, Fan W, Zhong Y. The impact of social hierarchies on neural response to feedback evaluations after advice giving. Hum Brain Mapp 2024; 45:e26611. [PMID: 38339957 PMCID: PMC10839742 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.26611] [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: 06/19/2023] [Revised: 12/27/2023] [Accepted: 01/16/2024] [Indexed: 02/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Advisors generally evaluate advisee-relevant feedback after advice giving. The response to these feedback-(1) whether the advice is accepted and (2) whether the advice is optimal-usually involves prestige. Prior literature has found that prestige is the basis by which individuals attain a superior status in the social hierarchy. However, whether advisors are motivated to attain a superior status when engaging in advice giving remains uncharacterized. Using event-related potentials, this study investigates how advisors evaluate feedback after giving advice to superior (vs. inferior) status advisees. A social hierarchy was first established based on two advisees (one was ranked as superior status and another as inferior status) as well as participants' performance in a dot-estimation task in which all participants were ranked as medium status. Participants then engaged in a game in which they were assigned roles as advisors to a superior or inferior status advisee. Afterward, the participants received feedback in two phases. In Phase 1, participants were told whether the advisees accepted the advice provided. In Phase 2, the participants were informed whether the advice they provided was correct. In these two phases, when the advisee was of superior status, participants exhibited stronger feedback-related negativity and P300 difference in response to (1) whether their advice was accepted, and (2) whether their advice was correct. Moreover, the P300 was notably larger when the participants' correct advice led to a gain for a superior-status advisee. In the context of advice giving, advisors are particularly motivated to attain a superior status when the feedback involving social hierarchies, which is reflected in higher sensitivity to feedback associated with superior status advisees at earlier and later stages during feedback evaluations in brains.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jin Li
- Department of PsychologyHunan Normal UniversityChangshaP.R. China
- Cognition and Human Behavior Key Laboratory of Hunan ProvinceChangshaP.R. China
| | - Mei Li
- School of PsychologySouth China Normal UniversityGuangzhouP.R. China
| | - Yu Sun
- School of PsychologyGuizhou Normal UniversityGuiyangP.R. China
| | - Guanfei Zhang
- Department of PsychologyHunan Normal UniversityChangshaP.R. China
- Cognition and Human Behavior Key Laboratory of Hunan ProvinceChangshaP.R. China
| | - Wei Fan
- Department of PsychologyHunan Normal UniversityChangshaP.R. China
- Cognition and Human Behavior Key Laboratory of Hunan ProvinceChangshaP.R. China
| | - Yiping Zhong
- Department of PsychologyHunan Normal UniversityChangshaP.R. China
- Cognition and Human Behavior Key Laboratory of Hunan ProvinceChangshaP.R. China
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Li M, Li J, Zhang G, Fan W, Zhong Y, Li H. The influence of altruistic personality, interpersonal distance and social observation on prosocial behavior: An event-related potential (ERP) study. COGNITIVE, AFFECTIVE & BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE 2023; 23:1460-1472. [PMID: 37700144 DOI: 10.3758/s13415-023-01124-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/18/2023] [Indexed: 09/14/2023]
Abstract
The psychological mechanisms that high and low altruists exhibit in different contexts remain unknown. This study examined the underlying mechanisms of the effect of altruistic personality, social observation, and interpersonal distance on prosocial behavior using event-related potentials (ERPs). Participants with high and low altruism were asked to make prosocial or non-prosocial choices toward different interpersonal distances (friends, acquaintances, or strangers) under the (non)observer condition. The electrophysiological responses to the choice stimuli were simultaneously recorded. The behavioral results demonstrated that high altruists had more prosocial choices, and these choices were unaffected by interpersonal distance and social observation. However, low altruists made more prosocial choices toward friends and acquaintances under the observer than nonobserver conditions, whereas their prosocial choices toward strangers showed no difference. The ERP results demonstrated that low altruists showed more negative N2 when the choice stimuli were toward strangers and acquaintances or under the nonobserver condition. Furthermore, low altruists showed larger P3 under the observer than nonobserver conditions when the choice stimuli were toward friends and acquaintances, while this difference was absent when the choice stimuli were toward strangers. However, for high altruists, no effect of interpersonal distance and social observation was observed in N2 and P3. These results suggest that the prosocial behavior of low altruists is mainly driven by reputational incentives, whereas high altruists are primarily motivated by concern about the well-being of others. Our findings provide insights into the prosocial behavior of high and low altruists in different contexts and support the empathy-altruism hypothesis.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mei Li
- Department of Psychology, Hunan Normal University, No. 36 Lushan Road, Yuelu Dist., Changsha, 410081, Hunan, China
- Department of Psychology, South China Normal University, No. 55 Zhongshan Road, TianHe Dist., Guangzhou, 510631, China
- Cognition and Human behaviour Key Laboratory of Hunan Province, Hunan, China
| | - Jin Li
- Department of Psychology, Hunan Normal University, No. 36 Lushan Road, Yuelu Dist., Changsha, 410081, Hunan, China
- Cognition and Human behaviour Key Laboratory of Hunan Province, Hunan, China
| | - Guanfei Zhang
- Department of Psychology, Hunan Normal University, No. 36 Lushan Road, Yuelu Dist., Changsha, 410081, Hunan, China
- Cognition and Human behaviour Key Laboratory of Hunan Province, Hunan, China
| | - Wei Fan
- Department of Psychology, Hunan Normal University, No. 36 Lushan Road, Yuelu Dist., Changsha, 410081, Hunan, China
- Cognition and Human behaviour Key Laboratory of Hunan Province, Hunan, China
| | - Yiping Zhong
- Department of Psychology, Hunan Normal University, No. 36 Lushan Road, Yuelu Dist., Changsha, 410081, Hunan, China.
- Cognition and Human behaviour Key Laboratory of Hunan Province, Hunan, China.
| | - Hong Li
- Department of Psychology, South China Normal University, No. 55 Zhongshan Road, TianHe Dist., Guangzhou, 510631, China.
- Institute of Brain and Psychological Sciences, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, China.
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Xuan-Na W, Mengzhen T, Xue W. The role of procedural justice and risk preference-based mechanisms in acceptance of public policy. Psych J 2023; 12:714-726. [PMID: 37386742 DOI: 10.1002/pchj.660] [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: 05/30/2022] [Accepted: 04/24/2023] [Indexed: 07/01/2023]
Abstract
The current study examines the relationship between procedural justice and acceptance of public policy, the mediating effect of uncertainty as well as the moderating effect of risk preference in this relationship. Study 1 conducted a questionnaire survey on 154 residents from Beijing. The results showed that risk preference moderated the effect of procedural justice on acceptance of public policy. Accordingly, Study 2 conducted a scenario experiment on 136 college students from Beijing to examine the mediating role of uncertainty, while retesting the moderating mechanism of risk preference in more detail. Results showed that risk preference significantly moderated the effect of procedural justice on acceptance of public policy. Specifically, uncertainty was more negatively associated with acceptance of public policy among the risk-averse individuals than risk-seeking individuals. Risk preference indirectly moderated the relationship between procedural justice and acceptance of public policy by moderating the relationship between uncertainty and acceptance of public policy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Wu Xuan-Na
- School of Psychology, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Tang Mengzhen
- School of Psychology, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Wu Xue
- School of Nursing, Peking University, Beijing, China
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Zhang RR, Meng YQ, Tian Y, Zou T. Which is More Important, Proposer Identity or Allocation Motive? Event-Related Potential in Economic Decision-Making. Psychol Res Behav Manag 2023; 16:3845-3856. [PMID: 37724137 PMCID: PMC10505400 DOI: 10.2147/prbm.s420608] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2023] [Accepted: 08/27/2023] [Indexed: 09/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Purpose Most studies have supported the view that individuals prefer to reward the in-group and discriminate against the out-group in response to unfair offers in the Ultimatum Game. However, the current study advanced a different view, that is, the "black sheep effect", in which in-group members were punished more severely compared with out-group members. This study aimed to incorporate proposer identity and allocation motive as possible explanations for offer rejection. Methods In the current study, the in-group and out-group identities were distinguished by their health condition, and the allocation motive was defined according to its benefit maximization. With a total of 89 healthy college student participants, a mixed design of 2 (proposer identity: out-group vs in-group) × 2 (allocation motive: selfish vs random) × 2 (offer type: unfair vs fair) was used in the Ultimatum Game. Event-related potential (ERP) technology was used, and ERPs were recorded while participants processed the task. Results The behavioral result showed that the "black sheep effect" was found on the fair offer when a random allocation motive was used. Our ERP result suggested that feedback-related negativity (FRN) and P300 were modulated by proposer identity but not by allocation motive. However, the allocation motive interacted with proposer identity affecting FRN and P300 when the fair offer was proposed. Conclusion These findings demonstrated that the "black sheep effect" was related to the experience of the out-group member, such as disadvantage or distress, but it was also modulated by allocation motive. Meanwhile, the out-group (depressed college students) captured more attention because they violated individual expectations, according to the P300. This finding plays an integral role in understanding the mechanism of response to the "black sheep effect".
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ran-Ran Zhang
- School of Medical Humanities, Guizhou Medical University, Guizhou, 550004, People’s Republic of China
- Researcher, Guizhou Health Development Research Center, Guizhou, 550004, People’s Republic of China
| | - Yu-Qing Meng
- School of Medical Humanities, Guizhou Medical University, Guizhou, 550004, People’s Republic of China
| | - Yan Tian
- School of Medical Humanities, Guizhou Medical University, Guizhou, 550004, People’s Republic of China
| | - Tao Zou
- Department of Psychiatry, Affiliated Hospital of Guizhou Medical University, Guizhou, 550004, People’s Republic of China
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Buskens V, Kovacic I, Rutterkamp E, van de Rijt A, Terburg D. Social preferences trump emotions in human responses to unfair offers. Sci Rep 2023; 13:9602. [PMID: 37311882 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-36715-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2023] [Accepted: 06/08/2023] [Indexed: 06/15/2023] Open
Abstract
People commonly reject unfair offers even if this leaves them worse off. Some explain this as a rational response based on social preferences. Others argue that emotions override self-interest in the determination of rejection behavior. We conducted an experiment in which we measured responders' biophysical reactions (EEG and EMG) to fair and unfair offers. We measured biophysical trait anger using resting-state EEG (frontal alpha-asymmetry), state anger using facial expressions, offer expectancy processing using event-related EEG (medial-frontal negativity; MFN) and self-reported emotions. We systematically varied whether rejections led proposers to lose their share (Ultimatum Game; UG) or not (Impunity Game; IG). Results favor preference-based accounts: Impunity minimizes rejection despite increasing subjectively reported anger. Unfair offers evoke frowning responses, but frowning does not predict rejection. Prosocial responders reject unfair UG offers more often after unmet fairness expectations. These results suggest that responders do not reject unfairness out of anger. Rather, people seem motivated to reject unfair offers when they violate their behavioral code but only when rejection has payoff consequences for the proposer, allowing them to reciprocate and restore equity. Thus, social preferences trump emotions when responding to unfair offers.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Vincent Buskens
- Department of Sociology/ICS, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
| | - Ingrid Kovacic
- Department of Sociology/ICS, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Elwin Rutterkamp
- Department of Sociology/ICS, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Arnout van de Rijt
- Department of Political and Social Sciences, European University Institute, Fiesole, Italy
| | - David Terburg
- Department of Psychology, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Zhao H, Zhang C, Tao R, Duan H, Xu S. Distinct inter-brain synchronization patterns underlying group decision-making under uncertainty with partners in different interpersonal relationships. Neuroimage 2023; 272:120043. [PMID: 37003448 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2023.120043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2022] [Revised: 02/04/2023] [Accepted: 03/16/2023] [Indexed: 04/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Humans may behave in different manners when making decisions with friends and strangers. Whether the interpersonal relationship and the characteristics of the individuals in the group affected the group decision-making under uncertainty in the real-time interaction remains unknown. Using the turn-based Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART), the present study examined the group decision-making propensity under uncertainty with partners in different interpersonal relationships and interpersonal orientations. Corresponding inter-brain synchronization (IBS) patterns at the prefrontal cortex (PFC) were also uncovered with the fNIRS-based hyperscanning approach. Behavioral results identified that dyads in the friend group exhibited the uncertainty-averse propensity when comparing with the stranger group. The fNIRS results reported that feedback-related IBS at the left inferior frontal gyrus (l-IFG) and medial frontopolar cortex (mFPC) during different feedbacks was modulated by interpersonal relationships. The IBS at all channels in the PFC during the positive and negative feedbacks, respectively, predicted the decision-making propensity under uncertainty in the stranger and friend groups based on the support vector machine (SVM) algorithm. The moderating role of the social value orientation (SVO) was also verified in the mediation effect of the dyad closeness on the decision-making propensity under uncertainty via the IBS at the right lateral frontopolar cortex (r-FPC). These findings demonstrated disparate behavioral responses and inter-brain synchronization patterns underlying group decision-making under uncertainty with partners in different interpersonal relationships.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hanxuan Zhao
- Center for Magnetic Resonance Imaging Research & Key Laboratory of Applied Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Shanghai International Studies University, 550, Dalian West Street, Shanghai 200083, China; College of International Business, Shanghai International Studies University, Shanghai, China
| | - Can Zhang
- Center for Magnetic Resonance Imaging Research & Key Laboratory of Applied Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Shanghai International Studies University, 550, Dalian West Street, Shanghai 200083, China; College of International Business, Shanghai International Studies University, Shanghai, China
| | - Ruiwen Tao
- Center for Magnetic Resonance Imaging Research & Key Laboratory of Applied Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Shanghai International Studies University, 550, Dalian West Street, Shanghai 200083, China; College of International Business, Shanghai International Studies University, Shanghai, China
| | - Haijun Duan
- Key Laboratory of Modern Teaching Technology, Ministry of Education, Shaanxi Normal University, 199 South Chang' an Road, Xi'an 710062, China.
| | - Sihua Xu
- Center for Magnetic Resonance Imaging Research & Key Laboratory of Applied Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Shanghai International Studies University, 550, Dalian West Street, Shanghai 200083, China; College of International Business, Shanghai International Studies University, Shanghai, China; School of Education, Huaibei Normal University, Huaibei, China; Anhui Engineering Research Center for Intelligent Computing and Application on Cognitive Behavior, Huaibei Normal University, Huaibei, China.
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Ogawa A, Asano S, Osada T, Tanaka M, Tochigi R, Kamagata K, Aoki S, Konishi S. Role of right temporoparietal junction for counterfactual evaluation of partner's decision in ultimatum game. Cereb Cortex 2023; 33:2947-2957. [PMID: 35718541 PMCID: PMC10016052 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhac252] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2022] [Revised: 05/27/2022] [Accepted: 05/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Humans assess the distributions of resources based on their aversion to unfairness. If a partner distributes in an unfair manner even though the partner had a less unfair distribution option, a recipient will believe that the partner should have chosen the counterfactual option. In this study, we investigated the neural basis for fairness evaluation of actual and counterfactual options in the ultimatum game. In this task, a partner chose one distribution option out of two options, and a participant accepted or rejected the option. The behavioral results showed that the acceptance rate was influenced by counterfactual evaluation (CE), among others, as defined by the difference of monetary amount between the actual and counterfactual options. The functional magnetic resonance imaging results showed that CE was associated with the right ventral angular gyrus (vAG) that provided one of convergent inputs to the supramarginal gyrus related to decision utility, which reflects gross preferences for the distribution options. Furthermore, inhibitory repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation administered to the right vAG reduced the behavioral component associated with CE. These results suggest that our acceptance/rejection of distribution options relies on multiple processes (monetary amount, disadvantageous inequity, and CE) and that the right vAG causally contributes to CE.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Saki Asano
- Department of Neurophysiology, Juntendo University School of Medicine, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8421, Japan
| | - Takahiro Osada
- Department of Neurophysiology, Juntendo University School of Medicine, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8421, Japan
| | - Masaki Tanaka
- Department of Neurophysiology, Juntendo University School of Medicine, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8421, Japan
| | - Reia Tochigi
- Department of Neurophysiology, Juntendo University School of Medicine, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8421, Japan
| | - Koji Kamagata
- Department of Radiology, Juntendo University School of Medicine, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8421, Japan
| | - Shigeki Aoki
- Department of Radiology, Juntendo University School of Medicine, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8421, Japan
| | - Seiki Konishi
- Department of Neurophysiology, Juntendo University School of Medicine, 2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8421, Japan
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Chen T, Tang R, Yang X, Peng M, Cai M. Moral transgression modulates fairness considerations in the ultimatum game: Evidence from ERP and EEG data. Int J Psychophysiol 2023; 188:1-11. [PMID: 36889599 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2023.03.001] [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: 12/19/2022] [Revised: 02/22/2023] [Accepted: 03/01/2023] [Indexed: 03/08/2023]
Abstract
People tend to dislike and punish unfair behaviors in social interactions, and this disposition may be moderated by the characteristics of their interaction partner. We used a modified ultimatum game (UG) to investigate players' responses to fair and unfair offers from proposers described as having performed either a moral transgression or a neutral behavior, and recorded an electroencephalogram. The participants' behavior in the UG suggests that people quickly demand more fairness from proposers who have committed moral transgressions rather than neutral behavior. Event-related potentials (ERPs) revealed a significant effect of offer type and of proposer type on P300 activity. The prestimulus α-oscillation power in the neutral behavior condition was significantly lower than that in the moral transgression condition. The post-stimulus β-event-related synchronization (β-ERS) was larger for the moral transgression condition than the neutral behavior condition in response to the least fair offers, and larger for neutral behavior than the moral transgression condition in response to the fairest offers. In summary, β-ERS was influenced by both proposer type and offer type, which revealed different neural responses to the offer from either a morally transgressive or a neutral behavior proposer.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tianlong Chen
- Key Laboratory of Adolescent Cyberpsychology and Behavior of the Ministry of Education and School of Psychology, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, China; School of Psychology, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, China
| | - Rui Tang
- Key Laboratory of Adolescent Cyberpsychology and Behavior of the Ministry of Education and School of Psychology, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, China; School of Psychology, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, China
| | - Xiaoying Yang
- Key Laboratory of Adolescent Cyberpsychology and Behavior of the Ministry of Education and School of Psychology, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, China; School of Psychology, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, China
| | - Ming Peng
- Key Laboratory of Adolescent Cyberpsychology and Behavior of the Ministry of Education and School of Psychology, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, China; School of Psychology, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, China; Key Laboratory of Human Development and Mental Health of Hubei Province, Wuhan 430079, China.
| | - Mengfei Cai
- Department of Psychology, Manhattanville College, New York, NY, USA
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Li M, Li J, Zhang G, Fan W, Li H, Zhong Y. Social distance modulates the influence of social observation on pro-environmental behavior: An event-related potential (ERP) study. Biol Psychol 2023; 178:108519. [PMID: 36801355 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2023.108519] [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: 08/25/2022] [Revised: 02/09/2023] [Accepted: 02/15/2023] [Indexed: 02/18/2023]
Abstract
Pro-environmental behavior benefits the environment but is individually costly. Therefore, understanding the neural processes of pro-environmental behavior can advance our knowledge of its implicit cost-benefit calculations and mechanisms. Previous studies have focused separately on the effects of social distance and social observation on explicit pro-environmental behavior responses, yet the underlying neurophysiological mechanism remains unknown. Using the event-related potentials (ERPs), we investigated the neural responses to the effects of social distance and social observation on pro-environmental behavior. Participants were instructed to decide between self-interest and pro-environmental choices towards different social distance targets (family members, acquaintances, or strangers) under observable and non-observable conditions. The behavioral results demonstrated that the rate of pro-environmental choices towards acquaintances and strangers was higher under the observable condition than under the non-observable condition. Nonetheless, the rate of pro-environmental choices was higher-unaffected by social observation-towards family members than towards acquaintances and strangers. The ERP results showed that the P2 and P3 amplitudes were smaller under the observable than under the non-observable condition when the potential bearers of environmental decisions were acquaintances and strangers. However, this difference did not emerge when the potential bearers of environmental decisions were family members. The ERP findings of smaller P2 and P3 amplitudes suggest that social observation may reduce the deliberate calculation of personal costs, thereby promoting individuals' pro-environmental behaviors towards acquaintances and strangers.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mei Li
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China; Department of Psychology, Hunan Normal University, Changsha, Hunan, China; Cognition and Human behaviour Key Laboratory of Hunan Province, China
| | - Jin Li
- Department of Psychology, Hunan Normal University, Changsha, Hunan, China; Cognition and Human behaviour Key Laboratory of Hunan Province, China
| | - Guanfei Zhang
- Department of Psychology, Hunan Normal University, Changsha, Hunan, China; Cognition and Human behaviour Key Laboratory of Hunan Province, China
| | - Wei Fan
- Department of Psychology, Hunan Normal University, Changsha, Hunan, China; Cognition and Human behaviour Key Laboratory of Hunan Province, China
| | - Hong Li
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China; Institute of Brain and Psychological Sciences, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, China.
| | - Yiping Zhong
- Department of Psychology, Hunan Normal University, Changsha, Hunan, China; Cognition and Human behaviour Key Laboratory of Hunan Province, China.
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Interpersonal relationships modulate subjective ratings and electrophysiological responses of moral evaluations. COGNITIVE, AFFECTIVE & BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE 2023; 23:125-141. [PMID: 36253608 DOI: 10.3758/s13415-022-01041-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 10/02/2022] [Indexed: 02/15/2023]
Abstract
This study explored how interpersonal relationships modulate moral evaluations in moral dilemmas. Participants rated moral acceptability in response to altruistic (prescriptive) and selfish (proscriptive) behavior conducted by allocators (i.e., a friend or stranger), toward the participants themselves or another stranger in a modified Dictator Game (Experiments 1 and 2). Event-related potential (ERP) data were recorded as participants observed the allocators' behavior (Experiment 2). Moral acceptability ratings showed that when the allocator was a friend, participants evaluated the friend's altruistic and selfish behavior toward another stranger as being less morally acceptable than when their friend showed the respective behavior toward the participants themselves. The ERP results showed that participants exhibited more negative medial frontal negativity (MFN) amplitude whether observing a friend's altruistic or selfish behavior toward a stranger (vs. participant oneself), indicating that friends' altruistic and selfish behaviors toward strangers (vs. participants) were processed as being less acceptable at the earlier and semi-automatic processing stage in brains. However, this effect did not emerge when the allocator was a stranger in subjective ratings and MFN results. In the later-occurring P3 component, no interpersonal relationship modulation occurred in moral evaluations. These findings suggest that interpersonal relationships affect moral evaluations from the second-party perspective.
Collapse
|
17
|
Sun Q, Luo S, Gao Q, Fan W, Liu Y. Intuitive thinking impedes cooperation by decreasing cooperative expectations for pro-self but not for pro-social individuals. THE JOURNAL OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY 2023; 163:62-78. [PMID: 36093968 DOI: 10.1080/00224545.2022.2122768] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
This study conducted two experiments to explore the effects of intuitive thinking and social value orientation (SVO) on cooperative behavior and assess the mediating effect of cooperative expectations. It manipulated intuitive thinking by increasing the participants' need for cognitive closure, classified SVO using the triple-dominance measure, measured cooperative behavior using the prisoner's dilemma game, and considered cooperative expectations based on participants' assessments of the cooperativeness of their counterparts. Both experiments showed that intuitive thinking increased and decreased the cooperation of pro-social and pro-self individuals, respectively. In pro-self individuals, cooperative expectations mediated the effect of intuitive thinking on cooperation.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Qian Sun
- East China Normal University.,Suzhou University of Science and Technology
| | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
18
|
Li Z, Dong D, Qiao J. The Role of Social Value Orientation in Chinese Adolescents' Moral Emotion Attribution. Behav Sci (Basel) 2022; 13:bs13010003. [PMID: 36661575 PMCID: PMC9854866 DOI: 10.3390/bs13010003] [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: 08/21/2022] [Revised: 12/03/2022] [Accepted: 12/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Previous studies have explored the role of cognitive factors and sympathy in children's development of moral emotion attribution, but the effect of personal dispositional factors on adolescents' moral emotion expectancy has been neglected. In this study, we address this issue by testing adolescents' moral emotion attribution with different social value orientation (SVO). Eight hundred and eighty Chinese adolescents were classified into proselfs, prosocials and mixed types in SVO and asked to indicate their moral emotions in four moral contexts (prosocial, antisocial, failing to act prosocially (FAP) and resisting antisocial impulse (RAI)). The findings revealed an obvious contextual effect in adolescents' moral emotion attribution and the effect depends on SVO. Prosocials evaluated more positively than proselfs and mixed types in the prosocial and RAI contexts, but proselfs evaluated more positively than prosocials and mixed types in the antisocial and FAP contexts. The findings indicate that individual differences of adolescents' moral emotion attribution have roots in their social value orientation, and suggest the role of dispositional factors in the processing of moral emotion.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Zhanxing Li
- Institute of Social Psychology, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, China
| | - Dong Dong
- Institute of Social Psychology, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, China
- Correspondence:
| | - Jun Qiao
- Institute of Social Psychology, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, China
- Xi’an Tieyi Binhe School, Xi’an 710038, China
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
The impact of social comparison and (un)fairness on upstream indirect reciprocity: Evidence from ERP. Neuropsychologia 2022; 177:108398. [PMID: 36283458 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2022.108398] [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: 06/15/2022] [Revised: 09/08/2022] [Accepted: 10/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Event-related potential (ERP) technology and the dictator game paradigm are used to explore the formation mechanism of upstream indirect reciprocity behaviors. We design a within subject experiment of 3 (social comparison: upward versus parallel versus downward) × 2 (treatment: fair versus unfair) involving 49 subjects. In the first round of allocations, subjects are forced to accept a monetary amount allocated to them by another player. In the second round, subjects assume the role of allocator and divide a monetary amount between themselves and a third party. Our results show the following: 1) Having received fair treatment from someone else, individuals engaged in downward comparison are more inclined to reciprocate the fairness they had received to a third party compared to individuals in parallel and upward comparison conditions. If individuals receive unfair treatment, they tend to repeat this behavior to a third party regardless of which social comparison condition they are in; 2) Under the condition of upward comparison, individuals receiving unfair treatment exhibit greater FRN amplitude and less P300 amplitude, but in parallel and downward comparison conditions, there is no significance in FRN and P300 amplitude between individuals receiving fair and unfair treatment.
Collapse
|
20
|
Zhang H, Dong Z, Cai S, Wu S. Distinct roles of the medial prefrontal cortex in advantageous and disadvantageous inequity aversion. Brain Cogn 2022; 164:105927. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bandc.2022.105927] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2022] [Revised: 10/13/2022] [Accepted: 10/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
|
21
|
Hou Q, Meng L. I am entitled to it! Social power and context modulate disadvantageous inequity aversion. Int J Psychophysiol 2022; 181:150-159. [PMID: 36154950 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2022.09.004] [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: 01/22/2022] [Revised: 04/14/2022] [Accepted: 09/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Previous research consistently indicated that social power influences one's fairness consideration. However, it is unclear how social power and context jointly affect inequity aversion and whether these processes would be manifested in brain activities. In this study, participants were randomly assigned into either high or low power condition and then took part in a modified ultimatum game (UG) as responders in both gain and loss contexts, with their event-related potentials (ERPs) recorded. Behavioral results showed that powerful participants were more likely to reject unfair offers in both contexts compared with powerless ones. In addition, powerful participants showed a more negative feedback-related negativity (FRN) loss-win difference wave (d-FRN) upon presentation of proposed offers compared with powerless participants only in the gain context. Interestingly, in a later time window, differences of P300 responses to proposed offers were modulated by social power in both gain and loss contexts. These results suggested that powerful people were more sensitive to fairness levels and FRN may manifest fairness consideration in a gain context, but not in a loss context. Meanwhile, P300 is sensitive to fairness considerations in both gain and loss contexts.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Qinghui Hou
- School of Business and Management, Shanghai International Studies University, Shanghai, China; Key Laboratory of Applied Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Shanghai International Studies University, Shanghai, China
| | - Liang Meng
- School of Business and Management, Shanghai International Studies University, Shanghai, China; Institute of Organizational Behavior and Organizational Neuroscience, Shanghai International Studies University, Shanghai, China.
| |
Collapse
|
22
|
Long C, Hu X, Qi G, Zhang L. Self-interest is intuitive during opportunity (in)equity: Evidence from multivariate pattern analysis of electroencephalography data. Neuropsychologia 2022; 174:108343. [PMID: 35932948 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2022.108343] [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: 03/22/2022] [Revised: 07/30/2022] [Accepted: 07/31/2022] [Indexed: 10/16/2022]
Abstract
Fairness is a remarkable preference for human society, involving both outcome and opportunity equity. Most previous studies have explored whether fairness itself or self-interest is intuitive during outcome (in)equity. However, intuition during outcome (in)equity can be affected by both fairness level and actual payoff. Since opportunity (in)equity is only affected by the fairness level, we explored only intuition during fairness by measuring event-related potential responses to opportunity (in)equity. Participants played a social non-competitive two-person choice game with advantage opportunity inequity (AI), opportunity equity (OE), and disadvantage opportunity inequity (DI). The behavioral results suggested an opportunity inequity bias, with greater feelings of fairness and pleasantness during OE than during AI and DI. However, multivariate pattern analysis of the event-related potential (ERP) data suggested that AI, OE, and DI can be significantly distinguished from each other in relatively early windows overlapping with early positive negativity (EPN), and AI and DI can be significantly further distinguished during a relatively late window overlapping with late positive potential (LPP). Moreover, the conventional ERP analysis found that EPN amplitudes were more negative for AI than for OE and DI, as well as for OE than for DI, suggesting a pleasure bias for increased self-interest. LPP amplitudes were greater for DI than for AI and OE, suggesting enhanced sensitivity to DI. These results suggest that self-interest is intuitive during opportunity (in)equity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Changquan Long
- Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality of the Ministry of Education, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, China.
| | - Xin Hu
- Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality of the Ministry of Education, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, China
| | - Guomei Qi
- Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality of the Ministry of Education, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, China
| | - Liping Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality of the Ministry of Education, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, China
| |
Collapse
|
23
|
Liu Z, Yang L, Long S, Wang J, Si Y, Huang L, Huang B, Ding R, Lu J, Yao D. The rewarding compensatory mechanism of music enhances the sense of fairness. Front Behav Neurosci 2022; 16:890739. [PMID: 35979225 PMCID: PMC9376466 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2022.890739] [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: 03/06/2022] [Accepted: 07/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Whether music can influence moral judgment is controversial in the aesthetics and philosophy of music. Aesthetic Autonomy pointed out that music had a morally educational function because of its lyrics or a particular context. The key to resolving the divergence is to select absolute music without lyrics or specific context as the eliciting material. In this study, 84 participants were recruited and randomly divided into three groups to complete the Ultimatum Game (UG) after listening to different stimuli: absolute music, white noise, and no sound. Behavioral results indicated that the participants’ acceptance of unfair offers was significantly lower in the music group. Also, participants in the music group have a shorter reaction time for rejecting an unfair offer than other unfair conditions. However, ERP comparison showed no significant difference in medial frontal negativity (MFN) amplitude, which reflects fairness levels, between the music group and the no sound group for either accepting or rejecting the moderately unfair offer. Brain network analyses revealed that participants in the music group showed stronger activation of rewarding circuits, including the ventral striatum, during the decision-making process of rejecting unfair offers, before the decision especially, compared to the no sound group. These results suggest that absolute music can influence fair decision-making. The reward activated by music compensates participants vicariously for the reward they receive for choosing self-interest in an unfair offer, participants no longer have to choose between self-interest and fairness norms, so the participants reject the unfair offer due to the negative emotions induced by the unfair offer.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Zhengxian Liu
- The Clinical Hospital of Chengdu Brain Science Institute, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
- Center for Information in Medicine, School of Life Sciences and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
- Faculty of Education, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
| | - Lan Yang
- College of International Education, Sichuan International Studies University, Chongqing, China
| | - Siyu Long
- The Clinical Hospital of Chengdu Brain Science Institute, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
- Center for Information in Medicine, School of Life Sciences and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
| | - Junce Wang
- The Clinical Hospital of Chengdu Brain Science Institute, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
- Center for Information in Medicine, School of Life Sciences and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
| | - Yajing Si
- The Clinical Hospital of Chengdu Brain Science Institute, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
- School of Psychology, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, China
| | - Lihui Huang
- Institute of Brain and Psychological Sciences, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, China
| | - Binxin Huang
- The Clinical Hospital of Chengdu Brain Science Institute, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
- Center for Information in Medicine, School of Life Sciences and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
| | - Rui Ding
- The Clinical Hospital of Chengdu Brain Science Institute, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
- Center for Information in Medicine, School of Life Sciences and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
| | - Jing Lu
- The Clinical Hospital of Chengdu Brain Science Institute, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
- Center for Information in Medicine, School of Life Sciences and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
- *Correspondence: Jing Lu,
| | - Dezhong Yao
- The Clinical Hospital of Chengdu Brain Science Institute, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
- Center for Information in Medicine, School of Life Sciences and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
- Research Unit of NeuroInformation, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Chengdu, China
- School of Electrical Engineering, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
- Dezhong Yao,
| |
Collapse
|
24
|
Prosociality moderates outcome evaluation in competition tasks. Sci Rep 2022; 12:11397. [PMID: 35794209 PMCID: PMC9259582 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-15570-3] [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: 02/25/2022] [Accepted: 06/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
The current study investigated the effect of prosociality on outcome evaluation without involving social comparison and reward processing in face-to-face competition tasks. The results showed that when faced with medium and large outcome feedback, the feedback-related negativity (FRN) amplitude induced in high-prosocial individuals was significantly more negative than that of low-prosocial individuals. In addition, the P300 amplitude induced in high-prosocial individuals was smaller than that in low-prosocial individuals in the face of large outcome feedback; hence, the prosociality score was significantly correlated with FRN amplitude. However, there was no significant difference in FRN between high-and low-prosocial individuals in the face of small outcome feedback. It was concluded that individual prosocial traits can moderate outcome evaluation.
Collapse
|
25
|
Gan T, Zhang Y, Zhang L, Gu R. Neural sensitivity to helping outcome predicts helping decision in real life. Neuropsychologia 2022; 173:108291. [PMID: 35690115 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2022.108291] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2022] [Revised: 05/10/2022] [Accepted: 06/07/2022] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
Prosocial helping behavior is a highly valued social practice across societies, but the willingness to help others varies among persons. In our opinion, that willingness should be associated with the sensitivity to helping outcome at the individual level - that is, increasing as a function of positive outcome sensitivity but decreasing as a function of negative outcome sensitivity. To examine this possibility, we asked participants to make helping decisions in a series of hypothetical scenarios, which provided outcome feedback (positive/negative) of those decisions. Event-related potential (ERP) response to helping outcome was recorded, such that the feedback-related negativity (FRN) and P300 were supposed to reflect the sensitivity to negative outcome and positive outcome, respectively. After the formal task, participants were asked if they would like to donate money to a charity. Consistent with our hypothesis, we found that compared to those who were not willing to donate, the participants who donated money (22 of 41 individuals) showed a smaller FRN but a larger P300. Among these participants, the amount of donation was negatively correlated with FRN response to negative outcome, but positively correlated with P300 response to positive outcome. These findings support the importance of helping outcome sensitivity to prosocial behavior.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tian Gan
- Department of Psychology, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou, China; Research Institute on Aging, School of Science, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou, China.
| | - Ying Zhang
- Department of Psychology, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Lisha Zhang
- Department of Psychology, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Ruolei Gu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China; Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
| |
Collapse
|
26
|
Interpersonal distance modulates the influence of social observation on prosocial behaviour: An event-related potential (ERP) study. Int J Psychophysiol 2022; 176:108-116. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2022.03.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2021] [Revised: 12/15/2021] [Accepted: 03/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
|
27
|
Hafer CL, Weissflog M, Drolet CE, Segalowitz SJ. The Relation Between Belief in a Just World and Early Processing of Deserved and Undeserved Outcomes: An ERP Study. Soc Neurosci 2022; 17:95-116. [PMID: 35125043 DOI: 10.1080/17470919.2022.2038262] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
We used event-related potentials (ERPs) to examine how quickly people in general, and certain people in particular, process deservingness-relevant information. Female university students completed individual difference measures, including individual differences in the belief in a just world (BJW), a belief that people get what they deserve. They then read stories in which an outcome was deserved, undeserved, or neither deserved nor undeserved (i.e., "neutral") while their ERPs were recorded with scalp electrodes. We found no overall differentiation between early ERP responses (< 300 ms post stimulus onset) to deserved, undeserved, and neutral outcomes. However, BJW correlated with the difference between early ERP responses to these forms of information (rs from |.44| to |.61|; ps from .018 to < .001). The early nature of our effects (e.g., 96 ms after stimulus onset) suggests individual differences in socially-relevant information processing that begins before conscious evaluation of the stimuli. Potential underlying processes include automatic attention to schema-relevant information and to unexpected (and therefore salient) information and automatic processing of belief-consistent information. Our research underscores the importance of the concept of deservingness in human information processing as well as the utility of ERP technology and robust statistical analyses in investigations of complex social stimuli.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Caroline E Drolet
- Caroline E. Drolet is now at the Neuroscience Institute, Virginia Mason Medical Center, Seattle, WA
| | | |
Collapse
|
28
|
You are excusable! Neural correlates of economic neediness on empathic concern and fairness perception. COGNITIVE, AFFECTIVE & BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE 2022; 22:99-111. [PMID: 34374029 DOI: 10.3758/s13415-021-00934-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
There is ample experimental evidence showing that the proposers' social role is related to individuals' fairness perception in the Ultimatum Game (UG). However, various social roles, e.g., degree of economic neediness, have different influences on fairness perception, yet it has not been well studied. In this study, we adapted the UG paradigm and recorded electroencephalography (EEG) to probe the neural signatures of whether and how the degree of neediness influences fairness perception. Behavioral results showed that responders are prone to accept unfair offers from proposers in need more than those who are not in need. At the brain level, MFN (medial frontal negativity) was more negative-going in response to unfair than fair offers for not-in-need proposers. In contrast, we found a reversed MFN difference response to unfair and fair offers for in-need proposers, showing a strongly pure altruistic phenomenon. Moreover, we found smaller P300 amplitude was induced in the proposer-in-need condition, compared with its counterpart, while a negative correlation between empathy rating and P300 amplitude in the proposer-in-need condition regardless of the offers' fairness. The current results indicate that the degree of neediness might reduce fairness perception by promoting the empathic concern toward the in-need proposers rather than decreasing the empathic concern for the not-in-need proposers.
Collapse
|
29
|
Hu X, Zhang Y, Liu X, Guo Y, Liu C, Mai X. Effects of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation Over the Right Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex on Fairness-Related Decision-Making. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2022; 17:695-702. [PMID: 35084042 PMCID: PMC9340109 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsac004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2021] [Revised: 11/11/2021] [Accepted: 01/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Neuroimaging studies suggest that the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (rDLPFC) is an important brain area involved in fairness-related decision-making. In the present study, we used transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) over the rDLPFC to investigate the effects of changed cortical excitability on fairness norm enforcement in social decision-making. Participants received anodal, cathodal, or sham stimulation before performing a modified ultimatum game (UG) task, in which participants were asked to accept or reject the proposer's offer and self-rate the intensity of their anger at offers on a 7-point scale. The results showed that the rejection rate of unfair offers and anger level were higher in the anodal compared to the sham and cathodal groups, and that the level of anger at unfair offers can predict the rejection rate. Furthermore, the fairness effect of RTs was more prominent in the anodal group than in the sham and cathodal groups. Our findings validate the causal role of the rDLPFC in fairness-related decision-making through tDCS, suggesting that strengthening the rDLPFC increases individuals' reciprocal fairness in social decision-making, both in subjective rating and behaviors.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Xinmu Hu
- Department of Psychology, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, China
| | - Yu Zhang
- Department of Psychology, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, China
| | - Xiaoqing Liu
- Department of Psychology, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, China
| | - Yunfei Guo
- Department of Psychology, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, China
| | - Chao Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
| | - Xiaoqin Mai
- Correspondence should be addressed to Xiaoqin Mai, Department of Psychology, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, China. E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
30
|
Influence of empathic concern on fairness-related decision making: Evidence from ERP. ACTA PSYCHOLOGICA SINICA 2022. [DOI: 10.3724/sp.j.1041.2022.00385] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
|
31
|
Zhang L, Qi G, Long C. The choice levels modulate outcome processing during outcome independent of behavior selection: Evidence from event-related potentials. Int J Psychophysiol 2021; 169:44-54. [PMID: 34499962 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2021.08.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2021] [Revised: 08/10/2021] [Accepted: 08/31/2021] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
Having a choice is a basic demand to influence human behavior. However, how various choice levels modulate outcome processing when the outcome is independent of the choices remains unclear. In this event-related potential (ERP) study, thirty-seven participants were instructed to perform a one-person choice task in which they were required to choose one card from 1 (no-choice level), 2 (medium-choice level), and 8 cards (high-choice level) to win a reward, with a 50% chance. Behavioral results indicated that pleasure and perceived control rating scores were linearly promoted with increased choice levels. ERP results revealed that having choices (medium- and high-choice level) elicited greater original-RewP and PCA-RewP amplitudes than having no choice (no-choice level), suggesting the amplification of the reward prediction error by quickly detecting whether there is a choice or not. Moreover, ERP results revealed that the original-P300 amplitudes were linearly enhanced with increased choice levels, suggesting the increased attentional allocation based on the motivational and emotional significance, due to advanced processing of the value of choice levels. Therefore, these results suggest that choice levels can modulate outcome processing, even when the outcome is independent of the choices, and provide further evidence to support the intrinsic value of having choices.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Liping Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality of the Ministry of Education, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Guomei Qi
- Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality of the Ministry of Education, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Changquan Long
- Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality of the Ministry of Education, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China.
| |
Collapse
|