학술논문
Empathic processing in individuals with high psychopathic traits during pain judgment tasks: An ERP study / 고통 판단 과제에서 나타나는 정신병질 특성집단의 공감 처리: 사건관련전위연구
Document Type
Dissertation/ Thesis
Author
Source
Subject
Language
English
Abstract
본 연구는 정서적 관점 수용(나 자신 vs. 타인)을 적용하여 정신병질 특성집단과 통제집단의 공감 처리를 탐구하였다. 본 실험에서는 20명의 정신병질 특성 피험자와 20명의 통제집단 피험자를 대상으로 고통 판단 과제를 진행하였다. 과제를 수행하는 동안, 고통 상황과 비고통 상황을 묘사한 시각 자극에 대해 나타나는 정서 처리를 평가하기 위해 LPP(Late Positive Potential)를 측정하였다. 타인의 관점으로 고통 판단 과제를 수행했을 경우, 통제집단은 초기(500~700ms)와 후기(700~1,100ms) LPP 단계에서 모두 고통 자극에서 비고통 자극보다 LPP 진폭이 유의미하게 컸지만, 정신병질 특성집단은 자극 간 LPP 진폭 차이가 유의미하지 않았다. 나의 관점으로 고통 판단 과제를 수행했을 경우, 초기 LPP 단계에서는 유의미한 집단 주효과가 없었다. 하지만 후기 LPP 단계에서 정신병질 특성집단은 전전두엽과 전두엽 지역에서 자극 유형과 관계없이 감소한 LPP 진폭을 보였다. 이러한 결과는, 타인의 고통에 대해서는 정신병질 특성집단이 공감 처리에 어려움을 보인다는 점을 시사한다.
This study investigated the empathic processing of individuals with psychopathic traits and healthy controls in response to pain applying affective perspective-taking (Self vs. Other). Twenty subjects with high psychopathic traits and twenty control subjects performed pain judgment tasks in the study. During the tasks, late positive potentials (LPPs) of the participants were measured to assess emotional processing in reaction to visual stimuli depicting painful or non-painful situations. Adopting the other-perspective, the control group exhibited a greater LPP amplitude to Pain stimuli than No-pain stimuli in both early (500-700ms) and late (700-1,100ms) LPP time windows, whereas the psychopathic trait group displayed non-significant amplitude differences between Pain and No-pain stimuli. In the self-perspective condition, no main effect of Group was observed in the early stage of LPP. However, in the late stage of LPP, the psychopathic trait group showed reduced amplitudes, regardless of stimulus types, in prefrontal and frontal regions compared to the control group. These results imply that regarding others’ distress, individuals with high psychopathic traits have difficulties in empathic processing.
This study investigated the empathic processing of individuals with psychopathic traits and healthy controls in response to pain applying affective perspective-taking (Self vs. Other). Twenty subjects with high psychopathic traits and twenty control subjects performed pain judgment tasks in the study. During the tasks, late positive potentials (LPPs) of the participants were measured to assess emotional processing in reaction to visual stimuli depicting painful or non-painful situations. Adopting the other-perspective, the control group exhibited a greater LPP amplitude to Pain stimuli than No-pain stimuli in both early (500-700ms) and late (700-1,100ms) LPP time windows, whereas the psychopathic trait group displayed non-significant amplitude differences between Pain and No-pain stimuli. In the self-perspective condition, no main effect of Group was observed in the early stage of LPP. However, in the late stage of LPP, the psychopathic trait group showed reduced amplitudes, regardless of stimulus types, in prefrontal and frontal regions compared to the control group. These results imply that regarding others’ distress, individuals with high psychopathic traits have difficulties in empathic processing.