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4 - Neurobiology of Prosociality

Investigating the Link between Empathy and Prosocial Behavior in the Brain

from Part I - Development of Prosociality

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 May 2023

By
Claus Lamm  and
Paul A. G. Forbes
Edited by
Tina Malti  and
Maayan Davidov
Tina Malti
Affiliation:
University of Toronto
Maayan Davidov
Affiliation:
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
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Summary

A neurobiological perspective can inform us about the proximate mechanisms of prosocial behavior. Brain regions involved in empathic processing have been implicated in prosocial behaviors. However, prosocial behavior is dependent on regions beyond those involved in empathy. We outline recent meta-analyses that have converged on the finding that regions implicated in reward processing also play key roles in prosocial behaviors as do ventromedial and dorsolateral regions of the prefrontal cortex. We describe instances in which empathic processing is affected – in psychiatric conditions or following psychopharmacological interventions – and what consequences this can have for the neural correlates of prosocial behavior. We emphasize the need to have clear definitions of concepts like “empathy” and “prosocial behavior,” as these will ultimately inform the behavioral tasks used to measure the neural underpinnings of these phenomena. Finally, we discuss how advancements in neuroscientific techniques could further our understanding of the neurocognitive basis of prosocial behavior.

Keywords

prosocial behaviorneuroimagingempathyreward processing
Type
Chapter
Information
The Cambridge Handbook of Prosociality
Development, Mechanisms, Promotion
 , pp. 61 - 84
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

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