Subscribe
The latest psychology and neuroscience discoveries.
My Account
  • Mental Health
  • Social Psychology
  • Cognitive Science
  • Psychopharmacology
No Result
View All Result
PsyPost
PsyPost
No Result
View All Result
Home Exclusive Cognitive Science

Brain imaging study suggests that interactions with other cultures can reverse racial ingroup biases in empathy

by Beth Ellwood
August 30, 2022
in Cognitive Science, Social Psychology

[Subscribe to PsyPost on YouTube to stay up-to-date on the latest developments in psychology and neuroscience]

Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

A brain imaging study published in the journal Neuropsychologia has found evidence that experiences with other cultures might reverse racial ingroup biases in empathy. The findings revealed that White students who had spent extended time in China showed stronger neural responses to pain expressions on Asian faces compared to White faces.

With brain imaging, scientists have been able to pinpoint neural networks that are particularly active when people feel empathy for others. A growing number of studies are further demonstrating that people exhibit racial ingroup favoritism in this empathic brain activity.

More specifically, our brains tend to respond more strongly to seeing pain in someone from our own race versus a different race. Studies suggest that this favoritism translates to our intentions to help others, suggesting troubling consequences. For example, biases in empathy may have the potential to impact judicial decision-making and the medical treatment of pain.

Study author Yuqing Zhou and her team wondered whether sociocultural experiences might be able to reverse the racial ingroup bias in empathic brain activity. If this favoritism is learned throughout social development, repeated interactions with outgroup members in a new social context might dismantle this bias, fostering instead an outgroup favoritism.

“Racial ingroup favoritism in empathic brain activity has been widely observed and is associated with biased behavior toward same-race and other-race individuals,” explained Zhou, a postdoctoral research at the University of Wuerzburg. “Therefore, it is important to understand how racial ingroup favoritism could be changed through daily sociocultural experiences. This would help with the development of the future intervening approach to reduce racial ingroup favoritism.

To explore their hypothesis, Zhou and her colleagues first recruited a sample of 35 White students from North America and Western Europe who were currently studying in Beijing, China. Importantly, students in the experimental group had spent 6 to 36 weeks in China, while students in the control group had spent only 2 to 4 weeks in China.

During the experiment, the students were shown a series of faces that were either White or Asian and had either neutral expressions or expressions of pain. Participants rated the pain intensity of each face and the extent that each face induced their own painful feelings. Magnetoencephalography (MEG) was used to record participants’ neural responses to the pain vs. neutral expressions — an objective measure of empathy. The students also completed measures of trait empathy, ingroup identification, explicit attitudes toward Asians, and implicit attitudes toward Asians, and indicated how frequently they interacted with Asians.

The results showed that the group of students who had spent only 2 to 4 weeks in China showed a stronger neural response to pain expressions in White versus Asian faces and greater accuracy in detecting pain versus neutral expressions in White versus Asian faces. This was evidence of ingroup favoritism in empathic brain activity.

On the other hand, the students who has spent 6 to 36 weeks in China showed greater neural responses to pain expressions in Asian versus White faces and greater accuracy in detecting pain versus neutral expressions in Asian versus White faces. This suggests the opposite bias — outgroup favoritism in empathic brain activity. Furthermore, the experimental group showed neural activity in the right insula and sensorimotor areas after viewing pain expressions in Asian faces but not White faces.

“I think the major take-home message is ingroup favoritism of empathy could be changed and importantly, even reversed during intergroup interactions in a new social environment,” Zhou told PsyPost. “At the neural level, using magnetoencephalography, we found this change of empathy could be reflected by the sensorimotor responses (reflecting the sensorimotor resonance to other’s pain indicated by previous literature) to ingroup and outgroup’s pain.”

Notably, both groups had comparable scores for racial identification and implicit attitudes toward Asians, suggesting that the results were not due to identity or attitude changes. Instead, the study authors suggest that outgroup favoritism may have emerged from participants learning to better read expressions of pain in outgroup members’ faces after intensive sociocultural interactions.

These findings, the researchers say, suggest it might be possible to reduce racial ingroup biases in empathy through interactions with other cultures in a new environment. While the results will need to be replicated among larger samples, they further suggest that intercultural training and education could be helpful in promoting intergroup reconciliation following conflict.

“The current study compared the empathy responses to ingroup and outgroup between two groups of people (i.e. the short stay vs. the long stay group),” Zhou added. “An important follow-up study would be longitudinal research that tracks the change in one’s empathy responses to ingroup and outgroup members at different time points after his/her arrival to a foreign country (e.g. 1 week, 2 weeks, 1 month, 2 months, half year, etc), and see how the ingroup favoritism in empathy diminish and even reverse in the process of time. Another important question would be which factor contributes most to the diminishing of ingroup favoritism (e.g. the quality or the quantity of the social interaction with outgroup members).”

The study, “Racial outgroup favoritism in neural responses to others’ pain emerges during sociocultural interactions“, was authored by Yuqing Zhou, Chenyu Pang, and Yue Pu, Shihui Han.

ShareTweetSendScanShareSharePin5Send
Previous Post

Major romantic relationship events affect our psychological well-being much less than one would intuitively assume

Next Post

Women are not the gatekeepers of relationship satisfaction, according to new research

STAY CONNECTED

Find these awesome psychology shirts and more at the PsyPost Store!

TRENDING

Social anxiety tends to be elevated among those who suffered emotional maltreatment in childhood

New study identifies perceived mattering as a core psychological component of happy marriages

Scientists use deep learning algorithms to predict political ideology based on facial characteristics

New study hints at the characteristics of the “ideal” female breast

Higher prenatal testosterone exposure is linked to Machiavellianism and psychopathy, study suggests

Diversity of the gut microbiota is associated with the severity of depression

RECENT

Diversity of the gut microbiota is associated with the severity of depression

Higher prenatal testosterone exposure is linked to Machiavellianism and psychopathy, study suggests

New research: Brain implant can objectively measure chronic pain severity

New study hints at the characteristics of the “ideal” female breast

Our brain prefers positive vocal sounds that come from our left

Study highlights the importance of napping for memory consolidation in early childhood

People with advanced biological age are at greater risk of developing depression and anxiety, study finds

Sun avoidance and lack of vitamin D dietary intake linked to heightened anxiety among college women

Currently Playing

Childhood adversity associated with increased emotional response to others’ suffering in adulthood

Childhood adversity associated with increased emotional response to others’ suffering in adulthood

Childhood adversity associated with increased emotional response to others’ suffering in adulthood

Mental Health
New study sheds light on cognitive mechanisms linked to hypnosis

Chronic intake of refined carbohydrates between meals is associated with decreased cognitive performance, study finds

Cognitive Science
Mindfulness might hinder prosocial behavior among individuals with high intelligence

Mindfulness might hinder prosocial behavior among individuals with high intelligence

Social Psychology
Women who have larger breasts tend to have lower levels of satisfaction with their breasts, study finds

Women who have larger breasts tend to have lower levels of satisfaction with their breasts, study finds

Social Psychology
Unwanted celibacy is linked to hostility towards women, sexual objectification of women, and endorsing rape myths

Depressive symptoms tied to malevolent creativity in new study

Depression
Psychosocial stress triggers an oxytocin response in women, study finds

Oxytocin alters amygdala activation in response to angry faces in antisocial personality disorder

Cognitive Science
  • Cognitive Science
  • COVID-19
  • Mental Health
  • Social Psychology
  • Drug Research
  • Conspiracy Theories
  • Meditation
  • Psychology of Religion
  • Aviation Psychology and Human Factors
  • Relationships and Sexual Health
  • Evolutionary Psychology
  • Neuroimaging
  • Psychedelic Drugs
  • Dark Triad
  • Political Psychology

About

PsyPost is a psychology and neuroscience news website dedicated to reporting the latest research on human behavior, cognition, and society. (READ MORE...)

  • Contact us
  • Privacy policy

Subscribe
  • My Account
  • Cognitive Science Research
  • Mental Health Research
  • Social Psychology Research
  • Drug Research
  • Relationship Research
  • About PsyPost
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used.