![]() ![]() Are we expressing qualitatively similar sadness while observing someone experiencing such an emotion, or is our expressed emotion simply a state of negative arousal, caused by feeling uncomfortable around someone who is sad? In the latter case, the term ‘affective arousal’ would be more fitting. However, there is an on-going debate as to whether this ‘shared’ feeling is. This phenomenon is described either as affective resonance or affective sharing. The most primal and automatic component of empathy involves the bottom-up processing of perceived emotions and reacting to others with a similar affect. Neural Mechanisms of Empathy – from Affective Sharing to Understanding Others The traits that are associated with all narcissism subtypes are selfishness, disregarding others, self-centeredness, and low empathy. High levels of extraversion, self-confidence, self-esteem, exhibitionism, and aggression characterize the grandiose type introversion, low self-esteem, anxiety, and high susceptibility to traumas are associated with vulnerable type. The second axis distinguishes between grandiose and vulnerable types of narcissism, often alternatively referred to as overt and covert types, respectively. The characteristics of this axis involve a fixed and inflexible pattern of delusions of self-importance and uniqueness, an excessive need for admiration, and a lack of empathy, diagnosed according to the DSM IV. The clinical type is synonymous with narcissistic personality disorder (NPD). The characteristics of this axis involve high self-esteem, deficits in interpersonal relationships, a high likelihood of career success, and low empathy. The healthy type can be considered as a functional and sometimes advantageous set of personality traits. The first axis divides narcissism into 2 categories with respect to the severity of the symptoms – a healthy type and a clinical (dysfunctional) type. ![]() Currently, there exist 2 separate axes of distinction. Ĭonsidering the wide spectrum of often-conflicting definitions in the literature, narcissism is a difficult concept to precisely define. Currently, the multidimensional conceptual framework of empathy combines all of the aforementioned perspectives and describes empathy as a complex process. From the cognitive perspective, empathy is the ability to imagine and understand the emotions and motives of others and the ability to be consciously aware of their thoughts, intentions, and desires, which is known as mentalizing or having a theory of mind. In the affective domain, empathy is often understood as the ability to share and co-experience the feelings of others. The definition and operationalization of empathy have been subjects of scientific debate over the past decades. This review paper on neural mechanisms of empathy deficits in narcissism aims to inspire and direct future research in this area. This might hinder the ability to affectively share and understand the emotions of others. Based on the acquired data, we propose a theoretical model of imbalanced SN functioning in narcissism in which the dysfunctional AI hub is responsible for constant DMN activation, which, in turn, centers one’s attention on the self. A recent fMRI study suggests that deficit in empathy is due to a dysfunction in the right AI. Given various classifications, a deficit in empathy may be considered a central dysfunctional trait in narcissism. AI might play a role as a crucial hub – a dynamic switch between 2 separate networks of cognitive processing: the central executive network (CEN), which is concerned with effective task execution, and the default mode network (DMN), which is involved with self-reflective processes. The AI and ACC are the main nodes in the salience network (SN), which selects and coordinates the information flow from the intero- and exteroreceptors. The primary brain structures involved in mediating the components of empathy are the anterior insula (AI), the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), and specific regions of the medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC). From a multidimensional perspective, empathy is a process that includes affective sharing and imagining and understanding the emotions of others. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |