Does the cowl make the monk? The effect of military and Red Cross uniforms on empathy for pain, sense of agency and moral behaviors

Caspar, Émilie A.; Pech, Guillaume Pierre

doi:10.31234/osf.io/w54nt

Cited by 3 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…Giving orders to an entity that does not have its own individual responsibility is likely to prevent a diffusion of the responsibility phenomenon ( Bandura, 2006 ). This effect was more reliable over the P3 than over the eLPP and the lLPP, which is consistent with former studies ( Galang et al, 2021 ; Pech and Caspar, 2021 ). To investigate further which areas mediate this difference, we performed source reconstruction on our EEG data, which revealed the involvement of insula and ACC, as we had initially hypothesized.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Commanding or Being a Simple Intermediary: How Does It Affect Moral Behavior and Related Brain Mechanisms?

Caspar

Ioumpa

Arnaldo

et al. 2022

eNeuro

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Psychology and neuroscience research have shown that fractioning operations between several individuals along a hierarchical chain allows diffusing responsibility between components of the chain, which has the potential to disinhibit antisocial actions. Here, we present two studies, one using fMRI (Study 1) and one using EEG (Study 2), designed to help understand how commanding or being in an intermediary position impacts the sense of agency and empathy for pain. In the age of military drones, we also explored whether commanding a human or robot agent influences these measures. This was done within a single behavioral paradigm in which participants could freely decide whether or not to send painful shocks to another participant in exchange for money. In Study 1, fMRI reveals that activation in social cognition and empathy-related brain regions was equally low when witnessing a victim receive a painful shock while participants were either commander or simple intermediary transmitting an order, compared to being the agent directly delivering the shock. In Study 2, results indicated that the sense of agency did not differ between commanders and intermediary, no matter if the executing agent was a robot or a human. However, we observed that the neural response over P3 was higher when the executing agent was a robot compared to a human. Source reconstruction of the EEG signal revealed that this effect was mediated by areas including the insula and ACC. Results are discussed regarding the interplay between the sense of agency and empathy for pain for decision-making. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT.In hierarchical situations, one person decides and orders, and another person executes. In the present study, we use MRI and EEG in order to investigate the neuro-cognitive processes altered in hierarchical chains in order to explain how being in the position of commander or in the position of intermediary impacts moral behaviors. Results showed that in the two positions, empathy for the pain of others is altered compared to being the agent directly delivering the shock. The sense of agency does not differ between commanders and intermediaries. These results show how powerful hierarchical situations can facilitate the commission of actions that harm others, as agency and empathy are split across multiple individuals.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Commanding or Being a Simple Intermediary: How Does It Affect Moral Behavior and Related Brain Mechanisms?

Caspar

Ioumpa

Arnaldo

et al. 2022

eNeuro

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show abstract

“…Mendoza and Parks-Stamm (2020) examined the effect of embodying the role of a police officer by wearing a uniform, and found participants in uniform were more likely to shoot unarmed targets on a reaction-time measure (the Shooter Task). Pech and Caspar (2021) investigating the effect of civilian, military and Red Cross uniforms on cognitive and psychological processes. They found that wearing a Red Cross uniform increased empathy for others' pain; civilian clothing led to them administering less shocks themselves; and military uniform increased the sense of participant agency.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring the relationship between uniform and perceived employee happiness and productivity

Moody

2022

JFMM

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PurposeThe purpose of this study is to contribute to understanding of employee's relationships with their uniforms and the perceived impact on their experiences at work. An improved understanding of this relationship may provide benefits for both the employee and the organisation. Recognising an ageing workforce and increasing female representation, differences based on gender and age are of interest.Design/methodology/approachThe study aimed to explore employee views and perceptions of uniform design and potential links to their happiness and productivity at work. An online survey was developed and completed by 2,560 uniform wearers. The data were analysed through descriptive and inferential statistics. Exploratory factor analysis uncovered latent variables from among the large number of survey items. A two-way factorial ANOVA compared perceptions based on gender and age.FindingsThe results suggest participants feel that their uniform has an impact on their happiness and behaviour at work. Differences in responses to their uniform were found based on gender and age. The survey tool enabled consideration of employee views and exploratory factor analysis identified five constructs of uniform design priorities: positive feelings, experience at work, suitability and practicality, tailored to the individual, visibility and brand.Originality/valueThis research is believed to be the first survey exploring the views of UK-based uniform wearers. Key elements of uniform design have been prioritised from the employee perspective to offer an emerging model to understand employee perceptions of uniform design. These findings inform uniform manufacturers and employers in designing and developing uniform to address the needs of employees.

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“…insula, inferior frontal gyrus, inferior parietal lobule) and guilt (i.e. anterior cingulate cortex, temporo-parietal junction, putamen and caudate) 11,12 . Other studies have extended these findings by demonstrating that following orders, as opposed to acting freely, induces a reduced implicit sense of agency and a diminished explicit feeling of responsibility.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

When the brain says “No!”: An MRI study on the neural correlates of resistance to immoral orders

Tricoche,

Rovai,

Caspar

2024

Preprint

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Milgram's studies explored psychological and contextual factors influencing (dis)obedience to immoral orders, but the mechanisms preventing individuals from being coerced into causing pain to others remained largely unknown. Our fMRI study investigated the neural correlates of disobedience to immoral orders, focusing on three socio-cognitive (response conflict, sense of agency – SoA, and theory of mind – ToM) and two socio-affective (empathy and guilt) processes. Our findings revealed that only participants disengaging angular gyrus and median prefrontal areas to mitigate response conflict between self and other and enhance their SoA, were able to focus on their moral judgment, ultimately disobeying experimenter’s instructions to send a shock to a victim. Additionally, we found that an involvement of social brain regions (encompassing ToM, empathy, and guilt areas), especially in response to shock events, favored subsequent disobedience. This study sheds light on the mechanisms that enable individuals to resist immorality under authoritative pressure.

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Does the cowl make the monk? The effect of military and Red Cross uniforms on empathy for pain, sense of agency and moral behaviors

Cited by 3 publications

References 34 publications

Commanding or Being a Simple Intermediary: How Does It Affect Moral Behavior and Related Brain Mechanisms?

Commanding or Being a Simple Intermediary: How Does It Affect Moral Behavior and Related Brain Mechanisms?

Exploring the relationship between uniform and perceived employee happiness and productivity

When the brain says “No!”: An MRI study on the neural correlates of resistance to immoral orders

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