brain imaging studies of empathy and compassion- gaelle desbordes
TRANSCRIPT
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 1/41
Brain imaging studies of Empathy
and Compassion
Gaelle DesbordesCCARE Summer Research Institute
July 2013
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 2/41
The neural basis of empathy
Bernhardt & Singer, Annual Review in
Neuroscience 2012
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 3/41
Neural basis of empathy for pain
Bernhardt & Singer, Ann. Rev. Neurosci., 2012
Anterior InsulaAnterior/Middle
Cingulate Cortex
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 4/41
Cue-based experiments
Bernhardt & Singer, Ann. Rev. Neurosci., 2012
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 5/41
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 6/41
Cue-based experiments stimulate the
Mentalizing (Theory of Mind) network
Bernhardt & Singer, Ann. Rev. Neurosci., 2012
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 7/41
Picture-based experiments stimulate
the Mirror-Neuron network
Bernhardt & Singer, Ann. Rev. Neurosci., 2012
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 8/41
Empathy, and corresponding insula activation,
are modulated by individual traits such as
alexithymia
Bernhardt & Singer, Ann. Rev. Neurosci., 2012
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 9/41
Empathy response to another player’s suffering
is modulated by their perceived fairness
Singer et al., Science, 2006; Bernhardt & Singer, Ann. Rev. Neurosci., 2012
Anterior Insula (AI)
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 10/41
Empathy response to another player’s suffering
is modulated by their perceived fairness
Singer et al., Science, 2006; Bernhardt & Singer, Ann. Rev. Neurosci., 2012
Nucleus Accumbens (NAcc)
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 11/41
Empathy response to another player’s
suffering is modulated by
ingroup/outgroup membership
Hein et al., Neuron, 2010; Bernhardt & Singer, Ann. Rev. Neurosci., 2012
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 12/41
Empathy response to another player’s
suffering is modulated by
ingroup/outgroup membership
Hein et al., Neuron, 2010; Bernhardt & Singer, Ann. Rev. Neurosci., 2012
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 13/41
Love hurts: an fMRI study
Cheng, Chen, Li, Chou & Decety, NeuroImage 2010
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 14/41
Empathy for pain in 3 different
perspective-taking conditions
18Cheng et al., NeuroImage, 2010
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 15/41
Empathy for pain in loved-one vs. stranger
engage different brain regions
19Cheng et al., NeuroImage, 2010
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 16/41
Compassion meditation enhances empathic
accuracy and related neural activity
Mascaro, Rilling, Negi & Raison, Social Cognitive & Affective
Neuroscience 2013
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 17/41
The Compassion Attention Longitudinal
Meditation (CALM) study
• healthy subjects, 25-55 years-old
• 8-week intervention, 2 hours/week
• 3 randomized groups:
– Cognitively-Based Compassion Training (CBCT) – Mindful-Attention Training (shamatha meditation)
– Active control
• Homework: meditate 20-30 min every day
21
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 18/41
Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET):
testing “Mentalizing” abilities
22Mascaro et al., SCAN , 2013
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 19/41
23Mascaro et al., SCAN , 2013
After compassion
training, increased
activation in“mentalizing” areas
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 20/41
Functional neural plasticity and associated
changes in positive affect after compassion
training
Klimecki, Leiberg, Lamm & Singer, Cerebral Cortex 2013
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 21/41
26Klimecki et al., Cerebral Cortex , 2013
Socio-Affective Video Task
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 22/41
28Klimecki et al., Cerebral Cortex , 2013
Subjective ratings of
empathy
Regions parametrically
modulated by self-
reported empathy:
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 23/41
Study design
• 18 –35 year-old females
• 1-day (6-hr) course in loving-kindness meditation
• Guided practices of 15 –30 min each
•
Participants kept practicing for a few additional hours, duringevening classes, laboratory assessments (3x45 min), and at
home.
• Control group: Memory training.
29
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 24/41
30Klimecki et al., Cerebral Cortex , 2013
Changes in positive affect, negative affect, and
empathy after Compassion or Memory training
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 25/41
31
Effects of COM and MEM training on brain
response to HE videos
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 26/41
Conclusion: Effects of one-day training
in compassion meditation
1. Increased positive affect, even in response to others’ suffering
2. Stronger activations in a specific neural network including the
mOFC, pallidum, putamen, and VTA/SN—brain regions
previously implicated in positive valuation, love, and
affiliation
32Klimecki et al., Cerebral Cortex , 2013
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 27/41
Differential pattern of functional brain
plasticity after compassion and empathy
training
Klimecki, Leiberg, Ricard & Singer, Social Cognitive &
Affective Neuroscience 2013
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 28/41
Study design:
empathy, followed by compassion, training
vs. memory training
34Klimecki et al., SCAN , 2013
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 29/41
Empathy and compassion engage
distinct brain networks
35Klimecki et al., SCAN , 2013
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 30/41
36
Empathy, compassion, memory training:
different effects on
empathy- and compassion-related brain regions
Klimecki et al., SCAN , 2013
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 31/41
Effects of mindful-attention and compassion
meditation training on amygdala response to
emotional stimuli in an ordinary, non-
meditative state
Desbordes, Negi, Pace, Wallace, Raison & Schwartz, Frontiers
in Human Neuroscience 2012
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 32/41
PRE POST
Amygdala response to emotional
images, PRE/POST 8-week training
p<0.05
PRE POST
PRE POST
Control
PRE POST
PRE POST PRE POST*
*
Desbordes et al., Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 2012 38
Compassion
Meditation
Mindful-Attention
Meditation
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 33/41
Temporo-Parietal Junction (TPJ):
global decrease
Control Compassion
Meditation
PRE POST PRE POST PRE POST
PRE POST PRE POSTPRE POST
**
****
*
p<0.05 p<0.05
39
Mindful-Attention
Meditation
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 34/41
Right Anterior Insula: global decrease
40
PRE POST PRE POST
* p<0.05
PRE POST
Control MAT Compassion
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 35/41
Compassion training alters altruism and
neural responses to suffering
Weng, Fox, Schackman, Stodola, Caldwell, Olson,
Rogers & Davidson, Psychological Science 2013
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 36/41
Study design
• COM: Loving-kindness and compassion training,inspired from Tibetan tradition, similar to CBCT
• REA: Active control: Reappraisal technique (from CBT)
• 2 weeks, 30-min per day (guided practice)
• Healthy 18-45 y.o., N=20 COM, N=21 REA.
• PRE and POST: fMRI task: watch IAPS images (sufferingor neutral) while applying training (COM or REA)
•POST only: play redistribution game with “real” playersover the Internet
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 37/41
Hypotheses
• 2 brain systems for empathy: – Experience sharing (putting yourself in someone else’s
shoes)
– Mentalizing (social inferences and self-referential
processes)• Altruistic responses to others’ suffering can be
strengthened through 2 regulatory pathways: – Decreased personal distress via stronger emotion
regulation (increased PFC, decreased Amyg) – Increased empathic concern (increased Ant Insula and
NAcc)
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 38/41
Redistribution game
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 39/41
Weng et al., Psych Sci, 2013
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 40/41
Weng et al., Psych Sci, 2013
7/27/2019 Brain Imaging Studies of Empathy and Compassion- Gaelle Desbordes
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/brain-imaging-studies-of-empathy-and-compassion-gaelle-desbordes 41/41
Conclusions• Compassion trainees were more altruistic in redistribution game
than reappraisal trainees
• In COM group, greater redistribution was associated with greateractivation in right inferior parietal cortex when watching IAPSimages of suffering (vs. neutral images) while evoking compassion.(No such association in REA group.)
• Similar effect in R DLPFC (with opposite (!) association in REAgroup).
• In COM group, greater redistribution tended to be associated (N/S)with higher DLPFC-NAcc connectivity: maybe increased positiveappraisal of aversive stimuli, e.g. enhancing the reward value of thevictim’s well-being (e.g., caring) and increasing the anticipated
reward of helping the victim.• In REA group, lower redistribution was significantly associated with
higher DLPFC-NAcc connectivity: goal was to decrease personalnegative emotions?