共情脑机制的研究现状与展望

Research on the Brain Mechanism of Empathy:Review and Prospect

作为社会交往中的重要因素,共情是指理解并体验他人的情感和知觉感受的能力。目前的研究认为共情依赖于直接的投射机制而非逻辑推理。即观察到他人的情绪状态会涉及一部分处理自我情感的大脑结构的激活,该过程同时还会受到社会认知因素的调节。由于理解和间接体验他人痛觉的能力是维系社会纽带必不可少的,目前研究者越来越多地通过对痛觉共情的研究来揭示关于共情的普遍的神经机制。此外共情的动物模型、镜像神经元系统与共情的产生以及共情的调节等方向也将是研究的重点。

Empathy refers to the ability to understand and experience another person＇s feelings, it is an emotion or a sensory state,which plays an important role in social communication. It is held that empathy relies on shared affective neuronal networks as those brain structures involved in our own emotional perception will be automatically activated when observing others＇ inner state, which can be also modulated by social-cognition factors. The neural mechanism and cognitive process of empathy for pain are focused by researchers. Furthermore, the studies will concentrate on the animal model of empathy, the relationship between mirror neuron system and empathy, as well as the modulation of empathy.