Is Self-Other distinction malleable? Egocentric and altercentric biases in empathy are modulated by priming attachment style and similarity mindsets

Two behavioral experiment

Henryk Bukowski's Quick Files

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Socio-cognitive training impacts emotional and perceptual self-salience but not self-other distinction

• Effect of a socio-cognitive training on self-other distinction and self-salience was tested • Ss trained to imitate, inhibit imitation, or inhibit control stimuli in 2 experiments • Unlike the original study, training did not influence self-other distinction • Imitation-inhibition training increased self-salience in empathy and shape matchin

Penser et agir socialement sous l’émotion : une question de genre ?

Acte 1 : « Avons-nous, hommes et femmes, un même sens morale ? ». Freud affirmait que les femmes avaient une maturité morale inférieure. Kohlberg décrivait plus tard un modèle théorique du raisonnement moral appuyé par des études empiriques où y figurait la femme comme bloquée à un stade de développement inférieur à celui de l’homme car toujours sous l’emprise de ses émotions. La vision prédominante, héritée de Planton et Kant, était alors que le sens moral est de l’ordre de la raison. Acte 2 : « Le sens moral… produit de la raison ou de l’émotion ? ». Avec l’arrivée des neurosciences, il est apparu que cette vision où la raison seule permet un meilleur sens moral est erronée. Il a été démontré qu’en fait nos émotions sont un élément crucial qui nous permet d’agir et de penser de manière morale. Par ailleurs, même quand nous pensons être sous l’égide de la raison, nos émotions sont toujours là, même à un niveau inconscient, pour nous guider. C’est pourquoi émotion et raison sont intimement liées, pour le pire ou le meilleur acte moral. Acte 3 : « Penser et agir socialement sous l’émotion : une question de genre ? ». En pensant répondre à une question simple, il s’avère que la réponse devient plus complexe à mesure que nous cherchons à y répondre. De l’anatomie du cerveau, de son activité cérébrale, à l’influence de la culture, des stéréotypes, ou encore de la parentalité, les données sont contradictoires. La vision d’hier n’est plus celle d’aujourd’hui, cette dernière appelle à la nuance et à la modestie car la conclusion est : « Nous ne savons pas ! »

What influences perspective taking ? A dynamic and multidimensional approach

Perspective-taking (PT) performance is widely considered and assessed as a static and one-dimensional ability. This thesis provides evidence across 4 studies that PT performance fluctuates and is underpinned by two dimensions: (1) the ability to handle conflicts between our egocentric perspective and another person’s perspective and (2) the relative priority given to the processing of the egocentric perspective over another person’s perspective. We have highlighted the effects of task instructions, emotions, and motivation on PT performance. We also found that each of the two dimensions underlying PT can be specifically affected or associated with factors such as guilt, shame, narcissism, and self-reported PT habits. Finally, we found that individuals strongly vary independently on both dimensions so that some people are more or less efficient at perspectives conflict handling and others are altercentric (i.e. prioritizing the other person’s perspective) or egocentric perspective-takers. Overall, while investigating what influences PT performance, we demonstrated the theoretical relevance and usefulness of studying PT as a dynamic and multidimensional ability.(PSYE - Sciences psychologiques et de l) -- UCL, 201

Narcissists are not more egocentric: evidence from a performance-based perspective-taking measure

Abstract Narcissists are typically described as egocentric, meaning they behave and think without considering what others might think or feel, which led authors to claim that narcissists’ interpersonal difficulties stem from reduced perspective-taking abilities; a claim supported by self-reported measures of perspective taking. This study examined perspective-taking performance via a visual perspective-taking task along with the Narcissistic Personality Inventory (NPI; Raskin & Terry, 1988) and the Narcisistic Admiration and Rivalry Questionnaire (NARQ; Back et al., 2013). The task was designed to measure the ability to handle conflicting viewpoints and the attentional priority given to the egocentric perspective (i.e., self-centered) versus the altercentric perspective (i.e., another person’s). We found (N=99) and replicated (N=149) that individuals scoring high on narcissism were not more egocentric than individuals scoring low on narcissism; they actually prioritized less their egocentric viewpoint. The narcissists’ higher perspective-taking performance is interpreted and tested in terms of social competency through leadership, social comparisons to get ahead of others, and a deep need of others to self-regulate. When assessing social skills in relation to narcissism, it is essential to use performed-based measures rather than solely rely on self-reports

Can emotions influence level-1 visual perspective taking?

Emotions and perspective-taking are ubiquitous in our daily social interactions, but little is known about the relation between the two. This study examined whether and how emotions can influence even the most basic forms of perspective-taking. Experiment 1 showed that guilt made participants more other-centered in a simple visual perspective-taking task while anger tended to make them more self-centered. These two emotions had, however, no effect on the ability to handle conflicting perspectives. Since the guilt induction method used in Experiment 1 also induced feelings of self-incompetence and shame, Experiment 2 aimed at isolating the effects of these concomitant feelings. Self-incompetence/shame reduced participants' ability to handle conflicting perspectives but did not influence attention allocation. In sum, these results highlight that emotions can affect even the simplest form of perspective-taking and that such influence can be brought about by the modulation of different cognitive mechanisms