Supremacy of Auditory Versus Visual Input in Somatic Empathy and Perceived Pain Level

Agahi, Sepideh; Wanic, Rebekah A.

doi:10.1016/j.pmn.2019.06.013

Cited by 3 publications

(3 citation statements)

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“…In addition, we measured EEG from the observer and cardiac and skin conductance responses from both members of the dyad. Contrary to our hypothesis, we found that the reduced level of intimacy in mediated compared to direct interactions did not diminish empathic accuracy (Agahi & Wanic, 2020;Jospe et al, 2020;Zaki et al, 2009a). While pain empathy did not modulate mu suppression, theta responses to another's pain were reduced in mediated interactions.…”

Section: Introductioncontrasting

confidence: 99%

“…In contrast to the story-based paradigm, our results imply that visual information (apparent in both the direct interaction and the video calls) is sufficient for empathic accuracy for others’ pain. As our participants did not experience severe pain (expressed by moaning or crying), auditory information might have been less important than for example in empathic responses to the pain of hospital patients (Agahi & Wanic, 2020). As our control analysis showed no condition differences in target expressivity, we can be assured that these did not mask true condition differences in empathic accuracy.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…We measured EEG from the observer and behavioural, cardiac and skin conductance responses from both members of the dyad. We hypothesized that the reduced level of intimacy in mediated compared to direct interactions diminishes empathic accuracy (Agahi & Wanic, 2020; Jospe et al, 2020; Zaki et al, 2009a) and affective empathy (Bogdanova et al, 2022; Ionta et al, 2020). We also expected it to reduce neural and physiological responses to another’s pain and physiological coupling within the dyad (Murata et al, 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Effects of social presence on behavioural, neural and physiological aspects of empathy for pain

Petereit

Weiblen

Kraemer

2022

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Social interactions are rich in cues about others' mental and emotional states, and these cues have been shown to facilitate empathy. As more and more social interactions shift from direct to mediated interactions with reduced social cues, it's possible that empathy is affected. We tested whether behavioural, neural and physiological aspects of empathy for pain are reduced in a video-mediated interaction. To this end, 30 human participants (23 females, 7 males) observed one of 5 targets (all female) undergoing painful electric stimulation, once in a direct interaction and once in a live, video-mediated interaction (within-subject design) while EEG was measured. On a behavioural level, we found that observers were as accurate in judging others' pain via video as in a direct encounter and reported the same level of distress. On the neural and physiological levels, the theta response to others' pain and skin conductance coupling in the dyad were reduced in the mediated condition. Other measures, including mu suppression (a common marker of pain empathy), were not affected by condition. To conclude, a video-mediated interaction did not impair the cognitive aspects of empathy for pain, i.e., understanding the other accurately. However, the reduced theta response and reduced skin conductance coupling suggest that physical proximity with its rich social cues is important for other stimulus-driven physiological responses that may be related to resonance with the other's experience. Our results encourage more research on the role of social presence for different empathy components.

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Section: Introductioncontrasting

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Effects of social presence on behavioural, neural and physiological aspects of empathy for pain

Petereit

Weiblen

Kraemer

2022

Preprint

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Cyberbullying and cyber victimization: examining mediating roles of empathy and resilience

et al. 2022

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Effects of social presence on behavioral, neural, and physiological aspects of empathy for pain

2023

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In mediated interactions (e.g. video calls), less information is available about the other. To investigate how this affects our empathy for one another, we conducted an electroencephalogram study, in which 30 human participants observed 1 of 5 targets undergoing painful electric stimulation, once in a direct interaction and once in a live, video-mediated interaction. We found that observers were as accurate in judging others’ pain and showed as much affective empathy via video as in a direct encounter. While mu suppression, a common neural marker of empathy, was not sensitive to others’ pain, theta responses to others’ pain as well as skin conductance coupling between participants were reduced in the video-mediated condition. We conclude that physical proximity with its rich social cues is important for nuanced physiological resonance with the other’s experience. More studies are warranted to confirm these results and to understand their behavioral significance for remote social interactions.

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Supremacy of Auditory Versus Visual Input in Somatic Empathy and Perceived Pain Level

Cited by 3 publications

References 30 publications

Effects of social presence on behavioural, neural and physiological aspects of empathy for pain

Effects of social presence on behavioural, neural and physiological aspects of empathy for pain

Cyberbullying and cyber victimization: examining mediating roles of empathy and resilience

Effects of social presence on behavioral, neural, and physiological aspects of empathy for pain

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