Kids Come Wired to Feel Empathy

Children between the ages of 7 and 12 appear to be naturally inclined to feel empathy for others in pain, according to researchers who used functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging scans to study responses in children.
Their responses were similar to those found in studies of adults. The fMRI scans detected that children also show responses to seeing someone in pain in the same areas of their brains. The research also found that additional areas of the brain, those connected with moral reasoning, are activated when youngsters see a person intentionally hurt by another individual.
“This study is the first to examine in young children both the neural response to pain in others and the impact of someone causing pain to someone else,” said Jean Decety, Professor in Psychology and Psychiatry, who reported the findings in the journal article, “Who Caused the Pain? An fMRI Investigation of Empathy and Intentionality in Children.”                     Read more...

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