Gaining while giving: An fMRI study of the rewards of family assistance among White and Latino youth
Open accessAbstract
Family assistance is an important aspect of family relationships for adolescents across many cultures and contexts. Motivations to help family members may be driven by both cultural factors and early family experiences. Here, we used functional magnetic resonance imaging to examine (1) cultural differences in neural reward activity among White and Latino youth during online experiences of family assistance and (2) how prior family experiences related to neural reward activity when helping the family. Participants were scanned as they made decisions to contribute money to their family and themselves. Latino and White participants showed similar behavioral levels of helping but distinct patterns of neural activity within the mesolimbic reward system. Whereas Latino participants showed more reward activity when contributing to their family, White participants showed more reward activity when gaining cash for themselves. In addition, participants who felt more identified with their family and who derived greater fulfillment from helping their family two years prior to the scan showed increased reward system activation when contributing to their family. These results suggest that family assistance may be guided, in part, by the personal rewards one attains from that assistance, and that this sense of reward may be modulated by cultural influences and prior family experiences.
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Adolescents who report a greater sense of meaning from helping their family on a daily basis show heightened activation in the ventral striatum when making personal sacrifices for their family.
“Moreover, adolescents who report a greater sense of meaning from helping their family on a daily basis show heightened activation in the ventral striatum when making personal sacrifices for their family (26)”
From Neural sensitivity to eudaimonic and hedonic rewards differentially predict adolescent depressive symptoms over time (2014) · cites this paper as [26]
Adolescents and adults show heightened activation in the ventral striatum to eudaimonic rewards, such as prosocial decisions to help family, friends, or charities.
“Adolescents and adults also show heightened activation in the ventral striatum to eudaimonic rewards, such as prosocial decisions to help family, friends, or charities (22–27).”
From Neural sensitivity to eudaimonic and hedonic rewards differentially predict adolescent depressive symptoms over time (2014) · cites this paper as [26]
Adolescents who help their family more and report a greater sense of meaning and happiness from that support show heightened activation in the ventral striatum when making eudaimonic decisions for their family.
“We have previously found that adolescents who help their family more and report a greater sense of meaning and happiness from that support show heightened activation in the ventral striatum when making eudaimonic decisions for their family (26).”
From Neural sensitivity to eudaimonic and hedonic rewards differentially predict adolescent depressive symptoms over time (2014) · cites this paper as [26]
Adolescents who report feeling happier on days when they support their family show greater ventral striatum activation when providing monetary support to their family during an fMRI scan.
“we have shown that adolescents who report feeling happier on days when they support their family show greater ventral striatum activation when providing monetary support to their family during an fMRI scan (Telzer et al., 2010, Telzer et al., 2011)”
From Dopaminergic reward sensitivity can promote adolescent health: a new perspective on the mechanism of ventral striatum activation (2016) · cites this paper as Telzer et al., 2010
Rewards take on different meanings for groups who value certain behaviors.
“Rewards will take on different meanings for groups who value certain behaviors.”
From Dopaminergic reward sensitivity can promote adolescent health: a new perspective on the mechanism of ventral striatum activation (2016) · cites this paper as Telzer et al., 2010
In White and Latino youth performing a task involving personal sacrifices for their family, Latino participants showed more ventral striatum activation when contributing to their family, while White participants showed more ventral striatum activation when gaining personal rewards for themselves.
“Whereas Latino participants showed more ventral striatum activation when contributing to their family, White participants showed more ventral striatum activation when gaining personal rewards for themselves.”
From Dopaminergic reward sensitivity can promote adolescent health: a new perspective on the mechanism of ventral striatum activation (2016) · cites this paper as Telzer et al., 2010
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- Authors
- Telzer, E. H., Masten, C. L., Berkman, E. T., Lieberman, M. D., & Fuligni, A. J.
- Affiliations
- University of California, Los Angeles (US)
- Corresponding author
- Telzer, Eva H.
- Venue
- Social Neuroscience
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2010-10-14
- Volume
- 5
- Issue
- 5-6
- Pages
- 508-518
- ISSN
- 1747-0919 (ISSN-L)
- 1747-0927
- PMC
- PMC3079017
- OpenAlex
- W2130911485
- Cited by
- 189
- References
- 37
- Citations by year
- 2026: 8 · 2025: 11 · 2024: 12 · 2023: 8 · 2022: 20 · 2021: 8 · 2020: 43 · 2019: 10 · 2018: 11 · 2017: 14 · 2016: 12 · 2015: 8 · 2014: 9 · 2013: 6 · 2012: 6
- FWCI
- 2.72
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Social Neuroscience (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institute on Drug Abuse (F31DA024904)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Cultural Differences and Values
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Intergenerational Family Dynamics and Caregiving
- Keywords
- family assistance, helping behavior, mesolimbic reward system, cultural differences, Latino youth, white youth, family identification
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Age Factors, Family, Female, Helping Behavior, Hispanic or Latino, Humans, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Male, Surveys and Questionnaires, Reward, White People
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