Dispositional Self-Construal Modulates the Empathy for Others’ Pain: An ERP Study

Abstract

Previous studies have shown that temporal self-construal priming can modulate the empathic neural responses to others’ pain. However, little is known about the influences of the dispositional self-construal on empathic neural responses to others’ pain. The present study aimed to investigate neural correlates that underlie the modulation effect of dispositional self-construal on perception of others’ pain. Event-related potentials were recorded for pictures depicting the hands of strangers in painful or no-painful situations while subjects performed a pain judgment task. The regression analysis on behavioral data showed that the level of interdependent self-construal could positively predict behavioral ratings of perceived pain, but not the self-unpleasantness. The ERP results showed painful stimuli elicited decreased N2 amplitudes and larger P3 amplitudes than those by no-painful stimuli. Moreover, the level of interdependent self-construal (interdependence minus independence scores) could predict the amplitude differences on the P3 component (painful minus neutral stimulus conditions), but not the N2 component: the higher the level of the interdependent self-construal, the larger amplitude differences of P3 to painful stimuli (vs. no-painful stimuli). These findings extended previous studies by showing a clear modulation effect of the dispositional self-construal on empathic neural responses to others’ pain, and that this modulation effect occurred at the late cognitive evaluation stage indexed by the P3 component.

The Effect of VR Avatar Embodiment on Improving Attitudes and Closeness Toward Immigrants

“…Through a moderated mediation analysis, we also found that this moderation solely impacts the indirect effect of outgroup embodiment via empathy. Findings thus extend past literature on how related constructs such as collectivism (Duan et al, 2008), interdependence (Cross et al, 2000;Chen et al, 2020), and social group awareness (Zhao et al, 2013) are conducive to empathic expression. Attaching importance to social identity may heighten one's propensity toward forging bonds and solidarity with others, thus enabling the prosocial benefits of empathy to manifest.…”

“…In a study by Duan et al (2008) cultural value placed on the social collective-predicted greater emotional empathy. Likewise, in a neurological ERP study, priming a view of the self as socially interdependent on other people stimulated stronger neural empathic responses to the pain of others (Chen et al, 2020). Taken together, these studies suggest that a SIO may facilitate the prosocial effects of empathy, but this relationship has yet to be examined in the context of embodiment and intergroup bias.…”

Empathy for pain in individuals with autistic traits during observation of static and dynamic stimuli

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