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Behavioral empathy failures and suicidal behavior.

ABSTRACT: Impaired decision-making has recently gained recognition as a component of the suicidal diathesis. Yet, although precipitants and particularly deterrents to suicidal behavior are often interpersonal, little is known about social decision-making in suicidal individuals. This study employed a novel version of the Ultimatum Game to investigate how empathy moderates responses to social conflict in 149 older adults, comprising groups of suicide attempters (n = 49), suicide ideators (n = 32), non-suicidal depressed controls (n = 33), and a non-psychiatric control group (n = 35). Participants acted as responder to a series of single-shot financial offers that varied in fairness. Some offers were paired with social context information on the proposer, designed to evoke either empathy or punishment. Offer acceptance was sensitive to Fairness and Social Context, such that participants accepted more offers in the empathy condition and fewer offers in the punishment condition. A Group * Context interaction was observed, wherein the suicide attempters adjusted their acceptance rates less in the empathy condition than the non-psychiatric controls. Thus, older adults with a history of suicide attempt were less influenced by empathy scenarios, indicating that a failure to integrate others' emotions into decisions may undermine social deterrents to suicide.

SUBMITTER: Zhang K

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6497579 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Behavioral empathy failures and suicidal behavior.

Zhang Ke K Szanto Katalin K Clark Luke L Dombrovski Alexandre Y AY

Behaviour research and therapy 20181102

Impaired decision-making has recently gained recognition as a component of the suicidal diathesis. Yet, although precipitants and particularly deterrents to suicidal behavior are often interpersonal, little is known about social decision-making in suicidal individuals. This study employed a novel version of the Ultimatum Game to investigate how empathy moderates responses to social conflict in 149 older adults, comprising groups of suicide attempters (n = 49), suicide ideators (n = 32), non-suic ...[more]

PMID: 30477905

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Project description:Construct definitions of empathy have sought to distinguish between different dimensions of empathetic capacity that are significantly associated with psychological distress or wellbeing. Research has provided substantial evidence differentiating affective and cognitive empathy; however, more recent research has cited the importance of a third domain represented by empathetic behaviors and compassionate intent to comfort others. Examining developmental and maturational stage during the rapid transitional period of early adolescence is needed to model developmental trajectories, mechanisms of change and mental health outcomes. This study aims to assess relationships between pubertal developmental stage, dimensions of empathy, and depression, anxiety and externalizing behaviors among early adolescents. A cross-sectional survey among young adolescents ages 9–12 years was conducted in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The relationships between pubertal developmental stage, affective, cognitive, and behavioral empathy scores and internalizing and externalizing symptoms were evaluated using hierarchical regression modeling. Structural equation modeling was used to test a theoretical model of structural paths between these variables. A sample of 579 very young adolescents (270 boys and 309 girls) aged 9–12 years participated in the study. Pubertal development scale scores were associated with affective, cognitive, and behavioral empathy. Adolescents who had greater behavioral empathy scores reported lower internalizing and externalizing symptoms. Adolescents who had transitioned further through puberty and had higher cognitive empathy scores and reported higher internalizing symptoms. These findings support the importance of pubertal developmental stage in assessing risk and protective paths to mental health during adolescence. While empathetic capacity is widely perceived to be a positive trait, dimensional analysis of empathy among early adolescents indicates that behavioral skills and compassionate acts may be particularly protective and promote positive mental health outcomes.

Dataset Information

Behavioral empathy failures and suicidal behavior.

Publications

Behavioral empathy failures and suicidal behavior.

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