Schedule of Events | Symposia

Understanding Empathy Toward Dissimilar Others in Daily Social Contexts

Poster Session D - Monday, March 31, 2025, 8:00 – 10:00 am EDT, Back Bay Ballroom/Republic Ballroom

Rui Watanabe^1,2, Hironobu Kuruma²; ¹Turku PET Centre/ University of Turku, ²Tokyo Metropolitan University

Empathy is essential for social interaction, yet extending empathy toward individuals with dissimilar characteristics facing daily challenges can be difficult. This study examined how people without disabilities empathize with individuals with stroke-induced hemiplegia during manual interactions with objects or other people. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging and multi-voxel pattern analysis (MVPA), we investigated the neural and behavioral mechanisms of empathy. Participants observed video stimuli featuring individuals with hemiplegia performing tasks such as grasping a human hand or an object (a plastic bottle) using their hemiplegic or non-hemiplegic hands. Behavioral responses revealed stronger negative empathic feelings (e.g., awkwardness, irritation) toward hemiplegic movements compared to non-hemiplegic ones, regardless of the target. Positive feelings (e.g., relief) were more pronounced during interactions with human hands than objects, particularly when performed by the hemiplegic hand. Classification approaches in MVPA identified regions in the mirror neuron system and mentalizing networks that distinguished empathic responses across hemiplegic and non-hemiplegic hands. Additionally, the dorsal medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC) more accurately classified responses for hemiplegic movements, reflecting the complexity of empathizing with unfamiliar actions. Representational similarity analysis revealed that brain regions associated with affective empathy, including the anterior insula and inferior frontal gyrus, were specifically attuned to feelings of relief across conditions. These findings suggest that empathizing with individuals who face complex challenges engages both affective and cognitive empathy systems, with the dorsal MPFC playing a critical role. This study advances understanding of the neural mechanisms underlying empathy in diverse social contexts.

Topic Area: EMOTION & SOCIAL: Person perception