We are less likely to 'feel the pain' of people from other races, a study suggests

[Ed Barrow]

Scientists have long known that when people witness the pain of another person they often vicariously feel physical discomfort themselves. But the new evidence suggests the power of the effect depends on whether the person is the same colour as them. And the more signs of racial prejudice a person shows, the less empathy they are likely to have with other races' pain.

The new evidence shows how racism feeds on itself – the lack of empathy causing greater dehumanising of others which in turn leads to more racism. In the study, with people of Italian and African descent, participants were asked to watch and pay attention to short films depicting needles penetrating a person's hand. A brain scanner then recorded how many pain neurons were firing in their brain.

Researchers found there was significantly less if the person being watched was from the different race. It did not matter whether the watcher was black or white the effect was the same but it did matter if they held racial prejudices. The more racist a person, the less empathy they felt.


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/7771834/We-are-less-likely-to-feel-the-pain-of-people-from-other-races-a-study-suggests.html

[Captain Hilts]

1. Same for ALL demographics. Thin for fat and fat for thin. Those who speak different languages, etc

[dipsydoodle]

2. I don't agree

but maybe that's just me.

[pipi_k]

3. If all I'm seeing is a hand...

then it doesn't matter what color it is. I guess I'm just not going to feel the same empathy I would if I saw the face attached to the hand...again, doesn't matter what color it is.

When I saw the suffering of the people after the earthquake in Haiti, it didn't matter that that people were of a different race. They were human beings.

I cried.

[provis99]

4. I think the argument is

that you would cry more if the Haiti victims were the same race as yourself. The study doesn't say we have no empathy for people of other races, just less empathy than for people of our own.

[uponit7771]

5. Human nature

[Dappleganger]

6. This is why travel is so important.

And if you cannot travel, bring the world inside your home.

Our exchange student from Taiwan arrives in July. :)