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Vicarious responses to pain in anterior cingulate cortex: Is empathy a multisensory issue?

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Morrison, India, Lloyd, Donna, Di Pellegrino, Giuseppe, Roberts, Neil·2004·Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience
DOI 10.3758/cabn.4.2.270
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Abstract

Results obtained with functional magnetic resonance imaging show that both feeling a moderately painful pinprick stimulus to the fingertips and witnessing another person's hand undergo similar stimulation are associated with common activity in a pain-related area in the right dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (ACC). Common activity in response to noxious tactile and visual stimulation was restricted to the right inferior Brodmann's area 24b. These results suggest a shared neural substrate for felt and seen pain for aversive ecological events happening to strangers and in the absence of overt symbolic cues. In contrast to ACC 24b, the primary somatosensory cortex showed significant activations in response to both noxious and innocuous tactile, but not visual, stimuli. The different response patterns in the two areas are consistent with the ACC's role in coding the motivational-affective dimension of pain, which is associated with the preparation of behavioral responses to aversive events.

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  • Evidence links anterior cingulate cortex activity to threat detection and anticipation.

    “Among its many possible functional roles, evidence links ACC activity to threat detection and anticipation (Singer et al. 2004; Morrison et al. 2004; Andrzejewski et al. 2019).”

    From Neuroanatomical correlates of peripersonal space: bridging the gap between perception, action, emotion and social cognition (2024) · cites this paper as Morrison et al. 2004

  • Bodily resonance can afford a unique, first-person understanding of the experiences of others and is central to a number of social processes including intention understanding, empathy, and emotion recognition.

    “Evidence now suggests that this bodily resonance (see Glossary) can afford us a unique, first-person understanding of the experiences of others and is central to a number of social processes [7] including intention understanding [19], empathy [20], and emotion recognition [21].”

    From Changing bodies changes minds: Owning another body affects social cognition (2015) · cites this paper as [20]

  • Studies on empathy for pain have found that activation observed in AI/FI and ACC to pain in oneself is also seen when observing pain in someone else.

    “For example, studies on empathy for pain have found that the activation observed in anterior insula/fronto-insular cortex (AI/FI) and the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) to pain in oneself is also seen when observing pain in someone else10,12.”

    From Empathic neural responses are modulated by the perceived fairness of others (2006) · cites this paper as [12]

  • Recent imaging studies provide evidence for common activation elicited when experiencing disgust, touch or pain in oneself, and when perceiving the same feelings in others.

    “Recent imaging studies provide evidence for common activation elicited when experiencing disgust8, touch9 or pain10-12 in oneself, and when perceiving the same feelings in others.”

    From Empathic neural responses are modulated by the perceived fairness of others (2006) · cites this paper as [12]

  • Most fMRI studies to date suggest that witnessing another's pain does not recruit areas that are typically involved in coding the sensory aspects of one's own pain, such as the somatosensory cortex (SI/SII and posterior insula) for thermal or mechanical pain.

    “Most fMRI studies to date suggest that witnessing another's pain does not recruit areas that are typically involved in coding the sensory aspects of one's own pain - such as the somatosensory cortex (SI/SII and posterior insula) for thermal or mechanical pain (e.g., [3], [4], [6], [8]).”

    From What are you feeling? Using functional magnetic resonance imaging to assess the modulation of sensory and affective responses during empathy for pain (2007) · cites this paper as [6]

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Research works printed but not linked: 1

  1. Schnitzler, A., Seitz, R. J., & Freund, H.-J. (2000). The somato- sensory system. In A. W. Toga & J. C. Mazziotta (Eds.), Brain map- ping: The systems (pp. 291-329). San Diego: Academic Press.

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Authors
Morrison, I., Lloyd, D., Di Pellegrino, G., & Roberts, N.
Affiliations
  • Bangor University (GB)
  • University of Liverpool (GB)
Corresponding author
Morrison, India
ORCID
Venue
Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Published
2004-06
Volume
4
Issue
2
Pages
270-278
ISSN
  • 1530-7026 (ISSN-L)
  • 1531-135X
DOI
10.3758/cabn.4.2.270
OpenAlex
W2023967132
Cited by
490
References
77
Citations by year
2026: 4 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 16 · 2023: 13 · 2022: 11 · 2021: 19 · 2020: 15 · 2019: 9 · 2018: 16 · 2017: 23 · 2016: 18 · 2015: 19 · 2014: 23 · 2013: 33 · 2012: 28
FWCI
44.42
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
Locations
  • Cognitive Affective & Behavioral Neuroscience (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Archivio istituzionale della ricerca (Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna) (submittedVersion)
  • Research Explorer (The University of Manchester) (submittedVersion)
  • INFM-OAR (INFN Catania) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Action Observation and Synchronization
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Pain Mechanisms and Treatments
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine › Pain Management and Treatment
Keywords
vicarious pain, empathy, dorsal anterior cingulate cortex, primary somatosensory cortex, shared neural substrates, multisensory integration
MeSH terms
Adult, Cues, Empathy, Female, Gyrus Cinguli, Humans, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Male, Pain, Somatosensory Cortex, Touch, Visual Perception

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