Brainwaves of Compassion: The Science Behind Empathy

Audience: Middle and High School Students

“The highest form of knowledge is empathy.” - Bill Bullard. Image by Marcus Winkler, from Unsplash

What is empathy from a neuroscience perspective?

Have you ever seen someone stub their toe or get a surprise splash of cold water and immediately felt a twinge of pain yourself? Or maybe you’ve watched a friend’s face fall when they received bad news and felt a knot in your stomach along with them. That strange, mirrored experience is called empathy, the ability to sense what someone else is feeling and imagine their perspective, or as the age old saying goes,“to walk in another person’s shoes.” In the field of neuroscience, empathy is viewed not just as an emotion but a scientific process that the brain coordinates using networks of neurons and special chemicals that help us to deeply connect with others and form lasting friendships, communities, and even societies. 

Can empathy be measured or tested scientifically?

Odd as it may seem, neuroscientists actually have a variety of techniques that they utilize to “measure” empathy. For example, many researchers make use of brain imaging techniques such as function MRI scans to detect which areas of the brain light up and become active when someone watches another person experience things like laughter, pain, or joy. In the field of psychology, certain behavioral tests exist that have tracked peoples’ ability to guess another individual’s emotions. One example includes the famous “Reading the Mind in the Eyes” test, where individuals are tested on their ability to accurately identify a person’s emotions based on a photo of just their eye region. Numerous studies have reported empathy scores averaged to 70% accuracy, showing that while far from perfect, the ability is undeniable. Moreover, while empathy levels are distributed among categories such as gender, they are notably trainable. 

Which neural circuits and brain regions are key to empathy?

The ability to empathize with someone else is reliant on specific neural systems that work in tandem to let you experience another person’s emotions. These activated circuits are collectively known as the “empathy circuit” which involves regions that help us to mirror others’ actions, imagine their thoughts, and even feel a trace of their pain. For instance, the urge to yawn when someone else does is driven by mirror neurons, located in the premotor cortex of the frontal lobe and extending to the parietal lobe of the brain. These neurons fire both when you perform an action yourself and when you observe someone else doing it, allowing you to internally simulate another person’s actions or emotions. Found at the very front of the brain, the prefrontal cortex is another structure in this circuit, involved in higher-order thinking, decision-making, and social reasoning. It regulates our moral decisions as well as the process of “perspective-taking,” which allows you to imagine how someone else thinks or feels. Finally, the anterior insula and anterior cingulate cortex, which work together to process emotional and physical pain. 

How do genetics and environment shape our capacity for empathy?

Genes that affect hormone production, such as the production of oxytocin (the love hormone) make certain individuals naturally more sensitive to emotion. However, the environment can also largely influence the way that children grow up and therefore respond to different emotions. Children growing up in supportive, loving households usually develop stronger empathetic skills because they experience it firsthand. Conversely, research on children in disadvantaged neighborhoods exposed to chronic violence shows that they demonstrated lower scores on emotion recognition tasks and reduced brain activity in regions involving empathy. Together, this shows how genetics may set the stage for developing empathy, while the environment can weaken and strengthen those initial impulses. 

Why have we evolved to display empathy and how is it important for social behavior and mental health? 

The evolutionary advantage of empathy lied in the need to cooperate in groups, share resources, and protect families. Today, empathy lays the foundation for forming deep friendships and social networks. People who are empathetic are better able to understand and respond to others’ emotions, which encourage trust and dependence. Research shows that experiencing this emotion has demonstrated benefits on mental health. It has been shown to lower stress levels, improve moods, and reduce loneliness. In addition, people with high empathetic skills tend to have larger social networks and more meaningful social connections, which further reinforce emotional well-being and resilience during challenging situations. 

Conclusion

In today’s world of social media, empathy is especially interesting to study, especially because our connections and interactions are increasingly digital. On one hand, online platforms can sometimes weaken our regard for others: anonymity and physical distance make it easier to ignore feelings, misunderstand intentions, or even behave cruelly. On the other hand, social media can strengthen empathy by exposing us to diverse stories, perspectives, and experiences across other communities and cultures. Looking forward, advances in brain imaging and virtual reality may allow neuroscientists to study empathy in real-time digital interactions. Yet for now, practicing empathy is not only possible but vital for individual relationships and human progress as a whole. By choosing to act with compassion and awareness, we strengthen both ourselves and the world around us, shaping a future where people feel seen, heard, and valued.

Bibliography

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Jankowiak-Siuda, K., Rymarczyk, K., & Grabowska, A. (2011). How we empathize with others: a neurobiological perspective. Medical science monitor : international medical journal of experimental and clinical research, 17(1), RA18–RA24. https://doi.org/10.12659/msm.881324

Singer, T., & Lamm, C. (2009). The social neuroscience of empathy. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1156(1), 81–96.

Zaki, J. (2020). The War for Kindness: Building Empathy in a Fractured World. Crown Publishing.