Tuesday, December 11, 2012
Painting the Brain: what can dementia teach us about creativity?
Artistic creativity is a mental process that seems to be uniquely human. Although the ability to create new and unique artwork varies greatly between people, scientific research shows that there are certain areas of the brain whose complex interactions are necessary. Most of these structures are located in the “non-dominant” right hemisphere of the brain, and patients with injuries to this hemisphere often show deficits in their ability to perceive shapes and faces. As Dr. Bruce Miller explains in his paper Portraits of Artists: Emergence of Creativity in Dementia, the neural damage associated with Alzheimer’s disease often disrupts visual processes, and in cases of artists this disruption can have profound effects on the artwork they produce while suffering from AD. Paintings often become less complex and more surrealistic, mirroring the decline in ability to make visual sense of the world. Miller is quick to point out, however, that decreased artistic ability in artists with AD does not necessarily mean decreased creativity, or that the artwork created is necessarily worse by any subjective measure.
Interestingly, Miller also describes an increase in creative desire and ability in some patients suffering from a different type of degeneration, frontotemporal dementia (FTD). When these patients suffer damage to the left anterior temporal lobe, they often experience drastic increases in creativity, sometimes quitting stable jobs to spend their days painting. The reason behind this is likely the roles of both hemispheres. In the absence of a functioning anterior temporal lobe in the left hemisphere, which is normally dominant, the right hemisphere is thought to “take over.” In light of this brain regions involvement in visual perception and creativity, it makes sense that we would see an uptick in the creative impulse.
Dr. Miller’s research has played an important role in the development of a field called neuroaesthetics, which according to Chatterjee, 2010, seeks to characterize “properties of the brain as it engages in … the perception, production, and response to art.” Chaterjee describes how this blossoming field can help us to understand much about both the brain and the creative process. Physically inaccurate representations of the world by highly skilled artists, for example, can help us to identify possible neural shortcuts in the visual pathways. The field also has the potential to help us understand which neural networks underlie our perception of abstract concepts such as beauty, and one day may even shed insight into why we seek out and create artwork in the first place.
Sources:
Miller BL, Hou CE (2004). Portraits of Artists: Emergence of Visual Creativity in Dementia. Arch Neurol 61: 842-844
Chatterjee A (2011). Neuroaesthetics: A Coming of Age Story. J Cognitive Neurosci 23(1): 53-62.
Vote for Me and I'll Give You Empathy
By Clairemarie LoCicero
Just over a month ago, a
bitter battle of ideological differences was played out in this country: the
presidential election. During election season, there was no shortage of
name-calling or inability to see the other side’s point of view. Humans have
robust systems in place that give us a natural ability to empathize, so how can
there be so much animosity between people with different political ideologies? A
talk given by Jean Decety, The Social Neuroscience of Empathy, and research conducted at the University of
Michigan can help answer that question.
Human beings are very well equipped with
mechanisms designed to foster closeness between each other. From birth, we can
perceive sensory and somatovisceral information, which makes us sensitive to
our social environments (Decety, 2012). For example, experiments have shown that
infants show more distress when listening to other newborns’ cries than when
listening to recordings of their own cries (Martin & Clark, 1987). As
infants grow into toddlers, their increased self-awareness becomes closely
linked to more advanced forms of socializing. The development of a theory of
mind, usually by age 5, is particularly important to empathy because it requires
knowing that a person’s distress is a result of his or her subjective experience.
By age 7, similarity becomes an important factor in experiencing empathy (Decety,
2012). In his talk, Decety used attitudes towards obesity as an example of how
ingroup/outgroup bias influences empathy. He pointed out that, often times,
very thin people are likely to hold obese people more responsible for their
weight than people of more average weight. Overall, Decety’s discussion of how
empathy develops indicates that, as we age, our perceived similarity to others
becomes an important determinant of how much empathy we feel towards them.
A study conducted at
the University of Michigan supports the fact that empathy is at least partially
dependent on perceived similarity. The study, conducted by O’Brien and
Ellsworth (2011), tested how people would project their own visceral state on
those who shared similar political views. The researchers gave participants a
story about a hiker, who was either a democrat or a republican, and asked
participants how cold, hungry and thirsty the hiker was. Participants were either
outside (average temperate 6° F) or in the library. Cold participants who identified with the
hiker indicated the hiker was very cold, while participants who were warm did
not follow this trend. The results indicated visceral states influence social
judgments only for similar others. So, people are more likely to feel empathy
for someone who is similar to them than for someone who is not.
It’s not very nice to
have more empathy for a person just because their opinion regarding taxes or
gay rights is similar to yours. But, whether it’s nice or not, it’s unavoidable
because there are “automatic, deeply rooted mechanisms” (O’Brien & Ellsworth,
2012) that cause empathy to be related to similarity. Decety points out that,
from an evolutionary stance, our empathy for a person is dependent on our social
relatedness to them because that improves our odds of surviving and passing on our
genes. The results of the study conducted by O’Brien and Ellsworth indicate
that this principle is relevant in the political sphere as well. Even though
your political opinions do not influence your likelihood of survival, they
serve as an important social identifier which people use to determine how
similar or dissimilar they are to other individuals.
Since our empathy for a person is affected by our perceived
similarity to them, republicans and democrats have a hard time getting along. As
a result, politics is a pretty terrible place to admire the empathic abilities
of humanity. Unfortunately for people who seek political compromise (or live in
Ohio), politics will likely continue to be pervaded by disagreement as a result
of the way we are wired to experience empathy.
O’brien, E. & Ellsworth, P., 2012. More than
skin deep: visceral states are not projected onto dissimilar others. Psychological
Science, OnlineFirst. DOI: 1177/0956797611432179
Decety, J. & Svetlova, M., 2012. Putting
together phylogenetic and ontogenetic perspective on empathy. Developmental
Cognitive Neuroscience, 2, 1-24.
A Healthy Dose of Empathy
A Healthy Dose
of Empathy
Gabriela Clayton
Loyola
University Chicago
December 11, 2012
A
recent Huffington Post article outlined the results of a 2012 research study
done by Michigan State University of doctor-patient empathy and the effects
that are correlated with the conditions of an empathic doctor as opposed to a
non-empathic doctor. The results of the study conclude that patients who
experienced empathic doctors also experienced a higher tolerance of pain.
Though this study is a primary one in which the underlying mechanisms were not
discovered, it opens doors to new research into the effects of doctor-patient
relationships upon the patients’ health status and how it develops. To begin to understand the effects of
receiving empathy, one must first consider the importance of empathy evolutionarily,
and its development from infancy into adulthood. Jean Decety and Margarita Svetlova in their
2011 empathy empirical research, “Putting together phylogenetic and ontogenetic
perspectives on empathy”, outlined many of the underlying roots of empathy
evolutionarily, biochemically, and neurologically. They argue that it is
essential to consider empathy within these frameworks because empathy is
“grounded in multiple interacting systems and processes” (Decety et al). By deciphering where empathy is learned, and
how it is developed and displayed, would bring important insights into the
responses of being shown empathy.
Decety et al. root empathy in the attachment and
interaction between a mother and her offspring. They cite that the evolutionary
roots of empathy are an important component of mammalian evolutionary fitness.
Decety et al. claim that the root of empathy is a mechanism for reproductive
fitness and survival, so it basically evolved as a survival mechanism for the infant,
the mother feels empathic toward the needs of the infant and thus responds
accordingly. Empathic arousal and concern are common traits in most all
mammalian species. Empathic concern evolved during the evolution of fetal
gestation; internalizing reproduction gave rise to new behaviors including
parenting, and attachment (MacLean, 1985). Once mammals began to parent their
offspring they were given increased exposure to emotional signals of others and
thus were able to form adaptations to deal with this new environmental stimulus
(Decety et al.). The ability to perceive and respond to distress, fear, pain
and hunger are important in ensuring the survival of the genetic legacy of
mammalian species.
Empathy is first imparted upon the young from the mother.
The mother is neurologically and biochemically programmed to attend to and take
pleasure from attending to the needs of her young. Numan and Sheehan’s 1997
study about the neuroanatomy of mammalian maternal behavior indicates that
during late stages of pregnancy rising estrogen and prolactin levels and waning
progesterone levels act on mechanisms in the brain to either decrease fear and
aversion, or increase attraction and approach behaviors in response to infant
related stimuli. In addition, oxytocin (an amino acid peptide) is known to facilitate
attachment behaviors by decreasing natural avoidance behavior (by decreasing
fear and anxiety, and increasing tolerance to stressful stimuli) and thus
facilitating approach behavior (Carter, 1998). Carter et al. in their 2008
study has also demonstrated that oxytocin facilitates maternal behavior in that
the levels of oxytocin increase within the mother while she is near her infant,
decrease when she is separated from her infant (in fact cortisol, the stress
hormone, levels increases during separation) and oxytocin increases again once
she is reunited with her infant. This is congruent with the research indicating
that brain processes parental care is a rewarding experience. The evidence for this comes from a 2005 study
where it was observed that in fMRI scans of during the process of mother rats feeding her pups the addiction
and reward brain centers showed greater activation than when given the stimulus
of cocaine (Ferris et al., 2005). So mothers are preprogrammed to attend to the
needs of her young to increase evolutionary fitness, but what is more is that
in attending to the needs of her young she receives greater reward and
addiction than when given highly addictive and rewarding stimulants; thus the
act of empathy is evolutionarily rewarding in more ways than one.
From the beginning of life the infant observes the
behavior of the mother and through this observation the infant begins to build
schemas about the world and about behavior.
It has been demonstrated that infants as young as 8 months can display
empathic responses to signs of distress (Roth-Hanania et al., 2011). Roth-Hanania
et al. in their study conclude that “young
infants’ understanding of the internal states of others also includes their
ability to comprehend others’ emotional states – at least that of distress –
and to respond to them with emotional attunement”. This may be due to the
mother granting the infant the same emotional attunement when they display
signs of distress. Empathic behavior in humans develops more in the second year
of life when the child is better attune to awareness of the experiences and
emotions of others and the regulatory abilities of their own emotions (Decety
et al.) The empathy shown by the mother is passed along into the behavior of
the child, whom is already predisposed to the ability of empathy through
evolutionary progress, as the child gains cognitive awareness the empathic
reasoning, understanding, and responses increases.
From an early age humans are exposed to empathic responses to
their distressing needs, this may elicit a positive reaction to empathic
responses during times of vulnerability during later years in life. Humans are
predisposed evolutionarily to altruistically aid their kin, but also humans
have the unique ability to act altruistically in the favor of non-kin (Decety
et al.). This altruistic act in the favor of non-kin has proven to a degree to
be necessary in the hospital environment. During the time of vulnerability
where a patient’s health is degrading the patient may feel as helpless as they
had as an infant or child, albeit unconsciously. The inability to maintain
equilibrium with their health is positively correlated with high stress levels,
which by nature is positively correlated with elevated levels of cortisol
(Marmot et al., 2005). Empathy has shown to enhance oxytocin levels, which reduce
the secretion of hormones like cortisol (Decety et al.). By reducing cortical
levels and increasing oxytocin levels stress, fear, and anxiety is reduced.
However, there is little to none research done on the effects of empathic
responses have upon the person that they are aimed at, it could be hypothesized
that is induces increased oxytocin levels. This can be inferred from the
response of patients from the empathic actions of the doctors in the Michigan
State University doctor-patient empathy study. In all, empathy displayed by the
doctor may help to ease the pain of patients because all humans are
evolutionarily exposed to empathy from the beginning of life and this exposure
may predispose us to positive reactions later in life from experiencing empathic
responses from others.
References
Decety,
Jean, and Maragrita Svetlova. "Putting Together Phylogenetic and
Ontogenetic
Perspectives on Empathy." Developmental
Cognitive Neuroscience 2 (2011): 1-24. Print.
Carter,
C.S., 1998. Neuroendocrine perspective on social attachment and love.
Psychoneuroendocrinology 23, 779–818.
Carter,
C.S., Grippo, A.J., Pournajafi-Nazarloo, H., Ruscio,M.G., Porges, S.W., 2008.
Oxytocin,
vasopressin and sociality. Progress
Brain Research 170, 331–336.
Chan, Amanda L. "Doctor Empathy Could
Decrease Stress, Pain Sensitivity In Patients:
Study." Huffington Post. AOL Lifestyle,
4 Dec. 2012. Web.
MacLean,
P.D., 1985. Brain evolution relating to family, play, and the separation call.
Archives
of General Psychiatry 42, 405–417
Marmot, M. G., and Richard G. Wilkinson. Social Determinants of Health.
Oxford: Oxford UP,
2006.
Print.
Numan,
M., Sheehan, T.P., 1997. Neuroanatomical circuit for mammalian maternal
behavior.
Annals of the New York Academy of
Sciences 807, 101–125
Ronit Roth-Hanania,
Maayan Davidov, Carolyn Zahn-Waxler, Empathy development from 8 to
16 months: Early signs of concern for others, Infant Behavior and Development,
Volume 34, Issue 3, June 2011, Pages 447-458.
Monkeying Around... on Morphine
Last week, Dr. Stephan Steidl presented at
Loyola University Chicago concerning the reward system and drug use. His talk
focused on morphine and its effects to dopamine neurons and locomotion in mice.
The mesolimbic dopamine pathway and nucleus accumbens (NAc) have been
identified as critical substrates reinforcing the effects of morphine. Mice
that have their M5 muscarinic receptor knocked out show reduced locomotion
under the effects of morphine when compared to wild-type mice. I believe that
his finding show huge potential in further understanding the science behind
addictions and furthering research into treatment options in severe cases. His
study provided evidence that M5 receptors and critical to morphine-induced locomotion
by mediating the cholinergic input to the VTA in the release of dopamine. Cholinergic
neurons of the pedunculopontine tegmental nucleus (PPT) and laterodorsal
tegmental nucleus (LDT) provide a major source of excitatory cholinergic and
glutamatergic input to the VTA. The lesioning of the LDT provided a decrease of
self-administration in rats and decrease of cholinergic neurons. Rats
experience an increase in latency of self-administration after lesioning; also,
longer interfusion intervals are observed after initiating self-administration.
Both M5 receptor deficiency and lesioning of the PPT showed to decrease opiate
usage, but researchers and doctors cannot just cut parts of brains of addicts
to help them abstain from drug use. Also, the effects that this would have in dopamine
function from naturally rewarding activities was not discussed, however I am
sure it would impede the well-being of people. Up to now, the best scientific
method in approaching addiction has been the administration of pharmaceuticals,
so let us further our findings.
Bu etc. have done
another study this past year examining morphine dependence and withdrawal
intervention in rhesus monkeys. This study focuses on examining proteins
affected by morphine usage, primarily those associated with withdrawal symptoms
and ways we can help further alleviate them. Forty-six proteins were
differentially expressed in six classes between morphine usage and
pharmacological treatment: metabolism and mitochondrial function, synaptic
transmission, cytoskeletal proteins, oxidative stress, signal transduction and
protein synthesis and degradation. The study uses pharmacotherapeutic
approaches for opiate withdrawal, such as methadone and clonidine. Methadone prevents
cravings and severe withdrawal symptoms while clonidine can lessen signs of
withdrawal and soothe the negative phases. Both medications significantly
decrease morphine-induced withdrawal symptoms and provide to be extremely
effective.
The protein modifications observed from
both methadone and clonidine indicate that they exert similar neurochemical
effects on the NAc in morphine dependent monkeys. Expression of α-synuclein and
β-synuclein were upregulated with morphine usage, which can lead to synaptic
degeneration and cell death. It negatively regulates dopaminergic
neurotransmission by slowing synaptic vesicle refilling. Both drugs decrease levels
of both proteins and therefore help alleviate withdrawal symptoms and any further
brain dysfunction. Actin regulatory proteins were affected and can be connected
to differences in behavior, learning, memory, and synaptic plasticity.
Calmodulin also plays a critical role in the development of morphine dependence
and tolerance. Many other protein regulations were affected by morphine usage,
withdrawal, and pharmacological treatments. These findings demonstrate that
fast transcriptional and post-transcriptional responses occur in the NAc with
response to pharmacological treatments. Both studies may further enhance
current treatments for drug addiction and better understand the reward pathway
and proteins regulating its effects.
Biomarker for Depression
A study done at the University of Cambridge may have discovered a biomarker for depression and anxiety. The short form of the 5-HTTLPR gene, which encodes for a serotonin transporter, in conjunction with exposure to early childhood adversities (CA) is being thought of as a predictor of depression susceptibility. 238 adolescences between the ages of 15-18 were sampled. They composed of people that were homozygous for the long gene, homozygous for the short gene, and heterozygotes. This sample was also seperated by whether they did or did not experience CA before the age of 6. All of the participants were interviewed, filled out self-report surveys, and were assesed according to the DSM-IV for anxiety, depression and dysthemia. The particpants then took the Probability Reversal Task (PRT), where they were shown two stimuli and they had to choose the correct one based on feedback. They were instructed that sometimes the correct stimuli would be wrong but they should always respond with the stimuli that is correct most often. The participants also had an Affective Go/No-Go Task (AGN) were they were instructed to respond to the emotionally positive words and the neutral and negative words served as distractors. Finally there was a Paired Associates Learning Task that served to asses to their visou-spatial memory.
Participants that had high scores on the self reported depression and anxiety scale correlated with the homozygous allele for the short version of the 5-HTTLPR and CA before the age of 6. Other combinations of the gene alleles with or without CA show a lower score on the depression and anxiety scale which suggest that the homozygous short allele with CA has a differential effect. This group showed an attentional bias to the neutral stimuli in the AGN task, as well as increased attention to negative stimuli in the PRT. The increased sensitivity to negative feedback caused these participants to change their responses more often than the other groups, even when the task to keep the same answer. The answer switching resulted in more errors than the other groups as well. These results also displayed that their is an attentional bias towards the neutral and negative emotional stimuli which could explain why these participants are more susceptible to depression. The study found the the participants with the homozygous short allele and CA did have an emotional disorder within a year after testing.
Previous research has associated people with the short version of the gene and CA to have a maladjusted cognitive processing of emotion. The lack of ability to correctly interpret others' emotions is seen as a biomarker for low resilience to mental disorders. Therefore, if a person is homozygous for the 5-HTTLPR short alleles they will be more susceptible to develop a mental disorder if they are in a negative environment like childhood adversities. The team of researchers at the University of Cambridge is working on a less expensive method to screen for the short version of 5-HTTLPR, so that children in negative environments can be tested. A biomarker for mental disorders along with the knowledge of which networks in the brain are activated for people with depression and anxiety might lead to a whole new look on such disorders. If this gene can accurately screen for susceptibility then a prevention program can be implemented to decrease the development of mental disorders. Perhaps depression will even have biological criteria in a future DSM. This study just scratched the surface by suggesting the 5-HTTLPR gene as biomarker for depression and anxiety. More research needs to be conducted in order to better correlate the gene with environment. There is a whole realm of possibilities that is still out there for a disorder that we think we know so much about.
source
news article:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/11/121128182949.htm
study:
Owens M, Goodyer IM, Wilkinson P, Bhardwaj A, Abbott R, et al. (2012) 5-HTTLPR and Early Childhood Adversities Moderate Cognitive and Emotional Processing in Adolescence. PLoS ONE 7(11): e48482. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0048482
news article:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/11/121128182949.htm
study:
Owens M, Goodyer IM, Wilkinson P, Bhardwaj A, Abbott R, et al. (2012) 5-HTTLPR and Early Childhood Adversities Moderate Cognitive and Emotional Processing in Adolescence. PLoS ONE 7(11): e48482. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0048482
What Makes Us Human: Empathy's Evolutionary Benefits
Alyssa Norcross
What Makes Us Human: Empathy's Evolutionary Benefits
It
is a commonly known antidote that one should ‘not mess with mama bear’. Mothers
are known for vehemently protecting their young in any situation. Throughout
the animal kingdom this is evident but it is also shown through alloparental
care. Birds, mice, lions, elephants and hyenas have all been none to share
care. Alloparental care includes food distribution, resource sharing and
protection. However, no other species goes as far as humans in regards to
helping behavior and altruism. No other species is observed helping complete
strangers by donating money to homeless or shaving their heads to raise money
for childhood cancer. What sets us apart is our ability to feel empathy. Humans
are not only able to feel concern for one another but our own emotions match
those of others we witness experiencing an emotion.
In
Jean Decety’s article, Putting Together
Phylogenetic and Ontogenetic Perspectives on Empathy, he discusses the deep
developmental and evolutionary process of human empathy. Decety argues that
empathy was of evolutionary advantage for many reasons. Empathy in adults was
beneficial for children because it encouraged parents to attend to their cries
and needs. Hearing the wails of ones child, a parent with empathy not only
understands but also shares the emotions of their child. There is no greater
motivator for a parent to help if they themselves feel distress too. The trend
of empathy as a motivator extends beyond family to strangers because it allows
humans to put oneself in someone else’s shoes and feel for them. This
encourages members of a group to not only help relatives but strangers which
would increase overall reproductive success. A parent’s empathic response to
their child eventually allows the child to rely and become securely attached to
their parent. A study done by Sroufe (2000), revealed that children with secure
attachment to an adult are more responsive to the needs of others in the future
(Decety and Svetlova, 2012). The study showed that having empathic parents
benefited the child’s wellbeing but also their empathic responses to others. Empathy
is also an evolutionary advantage in the way in which it serves as a warning
call to others. If you see someone else in pain or distress you are more likely
to avoid the situation that caused him or her pain.
However
reproductively successful the emotion of empathy has been for humans it has
peculiar limitations on situation and person involved. Through Functional
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) researchers have found that specific brain
regions are linked to empathic responses. During these fMRI scans it was found
that magnitude of those responses differ in different situations. For example,
the responses are of larger magnitude when a participant is shown a family
member experiencing a painful stimulus in comparison to a stranger experiencing
the same stimulus. This situational-response magnitude was explored in-group
membership and out-group membership and similar results were discovered. Fans
of a soccer team were shown fans of the same team they support (in-group)
experiencing pain and shown fans of an opposing team also experiencing pain.
The participants reported higher levels of stimulation in regions of the brain
associated with empathic responses when witnessing the in-groups experiencing
pain (Decety and Svetlova, 2012).
Further
research into this situational-response magnitude of empathy could lead to
understanding and perhaps treatment of problems related to too much or too
little empathy. In Decety’s article researchers found that medical
professionals, in comparison to a control group of non-medical professionals,
responded differently to short video clips of hands and feet being pricked by a
needle or touched by a Q-tip. In the control group the brain regions associated
with empathy were stimulated when viewing the needle prick where as in the
medical professionals the brains regions associated with executive function,
decision-making, and self-regulation were stimulated (Decety and Svetlova,
2012). The stimulation of these brain regions would prove to be more beneficial
in their line of work. If while performing surgery a physician became
overwhelmed with empathy for their patient, physician error would certainly
increase. In a recent study by Silani and colleagues (2008), the affect of
alexithymia on empathic responses was explored. Alexithymia is a phenomenon
where individuals have difficulty “identifying and describing feelings and in
distinguishing feelings from bodily sensations” (Bernhardt and Singer, 2012). This
phenomenon is found in less than 10 percent of the population but it has
elevated proportions in individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder. The study
found that the more trouble an individual had understanding their own emotions
the less activation they showed in brain regions linked with empathizing for
other people experiencing pain in front of them (Bernhardt and Singer, 2012). If
further research could be done to explore the biological predisposition and
environmental adaptations of empathic responses those who suffer from
limitations related to empathy may be able to better understand and take a
proactive approach to minimizing its effects.
Bernhardt, B.C., & Singer, T. (2012). The Neural Basis of Empathy. Annual Review of Neuroscience, 35, 1-23.
Decety,
J., Svetlova, M. (January 24, 2012). Putting together phylogenetic and
ontogenetic perspectives on empathy.
Doctors Learn about Empathy
Dr. Decety, of the University of Chicago, had shared with
our class the importance of empathy in human evolution and adaptation. Rather than just a feeling or a trait
belonging to kind-hearted people, Dr. Decety had researched and even suggested
that empathy may have been useful to early human survival. Specifically, the trait of empathy may have
allowed humans to aid one another in times of struggle or need. As a key ingredient for relationships,
empathy is important for brothers, sisters, fathers, mothers, friends, mentors,
teachers and even doctors. So really,
how crucial is empathy really? The
answer seems to be very, at least in medicine where patient-physician
relationship is at the core.
Empathy is considered an important part of receiving great
healthcare with associations in fewer medical errors, more satisfied patients,
better outcomes and fewer malpractice claims.
It makes sense to relate how empathy was important in early human survival
to the role of everyday physicians treating the sick. If we already know the importance of
physicians showing greater empathy, what do we do about those doctors that
don't know too much about it? Apparently
there is treatment available for these doctors too!
According to Dr. Helen Riess, director of Empathy and
Relational Science Program in the department psychiatry at Massachusetts
General Hospital, those who are empathetic have heart rates, skin electrical conductance
and brain activities that mirror the people who are going through the emotional
experience. Understanding this research
and the importance of empathy in medicine, Dr. Riess created training modules
for doctors that would teach them how to recognize nonverbal cues and facial
expressions in patients. Also these
training modules would help the doctors in how to manage their own reactions to
encounters that involved much emotion.
Empathy training involves practicing with patients,
receiving evaluations from patients over a time period to gauge change, showing
doctors where a combination of lacking empathy and misunderstandings with
patients can lead to increased frustrations and negative consequences. Doctors who received this training learned to
maintain better eye contact with their patients, interrupted their patients less
and were better able to keep their composure when dealing with disgruntled
patients. Through this training, many
physicians have even shared their newfound appreciation and passion for
medicine. At the basis of this important
research is neuroscience. With
neurophysiological data, professionals such as Dr. Decety and Dr. Riess are
better understanding the crucial roles of empathy in bettering medicine and
society.
For more information on the mentioned researchers and sources:
Dr. Chen "http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/06/21/can-doctors-learn-empathy/"
Dr. Decety "http://psychology.uchicago.edu/people/faculty/jdecety.shtml"
Dr. Riess "http://www.massgeneral.org/psychiatry/services/empathy_bios.aspx"
"http://www.bostonglobe.com/lifestyle/health-wellness/2012/05/27/force-interview-helen-riess-doctor-patient-empathy/wKrnttwPk5ZoTGFOEyYjNM/story.html"
JAMA "http://jama.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=186692"
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