A Social-Neuroscience Perspective on Empathy

Jean Decety; Philip L. Jackson

doi:10.1111/j.0963-7214.2006.00406.x

journal article Apr 01, 2006

A Social-Neuroscience Perspective on Empathy

Jean Decety Philip L. Jackson

Current Directions in Psychological Science Vol. 15 No. 2 pp. 54-58 · SAGE Publications

View at Publisher Save 10.1111/j.0963-7214.2006.00406.x

Abstract

In recent years, abundant evidence from behavioral and cognitive studies and functional-imaging experiments has indicated that individuals come to understand the emotional and affective states expressed by others with the help of the neural architecture that produces such states in themselves. Such a mechanism gives rise to shared representations, which constitutes one important aspect of empathy, although not the sole one. We suggest that other components, including people's ability to monitor and regulate cognitive and emotional processes to prevent confusion between self and other, are equally necessary parts of a functional model of empathy. We discuss data from recent functional-imaging studies in support of such a model and highlight the role of specific brain regions, notably the insula, the anterior cingulate cortex, and the right temporo-parietal region. Because this model assumes that empathy relies on dissociable information-processing mechanisms, it predicts a variety of structural or functional dysfunctions, depending on which mechanism is disrupted.

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Metrics

533

Citations

17

References

Details

Published: Apr 01, 2006
Vol/Issue: 15(2)
Pages: 54-58
License: View

Authors

J

Jean Decety

University of Chicago, Canada

P

Philip L. Jackson

Université Laval, Québec, Canada

Cite This Article

Jean Decety, Philip L. Jackson (2006). A Social-Neuroscience Perspective on Empathy. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 15(2), 54-58. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0963-7214.2006.00406.x

A Social-Neuroscience Perspective on Empathy

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