Data_Sheet_2_Empathic disequilibrium as a new framework for understanding individual differences in psychopathology.docx

IntroductionEmpathy is part of basic social cognition and is central to everyday interactions. Indeed, emotional and cognitive empathy deficits are related to various psychopathologies, yet the links reported have been inconsistent. Thus, the mechanism underlying these inconsistent links is poorly understood. At least a partial answer may lie in that the dependency between cognitive and emotional empathy has been overlooked. Here, we examined the (dis)equilibrium between emotional and cognitive empathy and how it relates to individual differences in clinical traits. We further examined a possible mediator of these links—emotional reactivity. MethodsParticipants (N = 425) from the general population reported on their empathy, emotional reactivity, autistic traits, psychopathic tendencies, and symptoms of depression and anxiety. ResultsBeyond empathy, both extremes of empathic disequilibrium were associated with various features of clinical conditions; Higher emotional relative to cognitive empathy was related to the social domain of autism and anxiety, while higher cognitive relative to emotional empathy was related to the non-social domain of autism, depression symptoms, and psychopathic tendencies. The associations with autistic traits, anxiety, and psychopathic tendencies were mediated by emotional reactivity. DiscussionOur findings suggest a new framework for understanding how individual variability in empathy is expressed in various psychopathologies.引言：共情（empathy）属于基础社会认知范畴，是日常社交互动的核心要素。事实上，情绪共情（emotional empathy）与认知共情（cognitive empathy）的缺损与多种精神病理学表现相关，但已报道的关联并不一致，因此学界对这些不一致关联背后的机制尚不清楚。至少部分原因可能在于，认知共情与情绪共情之间的依赖关系长期被忽视。本研究旨在考察情绪共情与认知共情之间的（非）均衡状态，以及其与临床特质的个体差异之间的关联，并进一步探讨这些关联的潜在中介变量——情绪反应性（emotional reactivity）。 方法：本研究招募了425名来自普通人群的参与者，让其完成关于自身共情、情绪反应性、孤独症特质、精神病态倾向以及抑郁与焦虑症状的相关自评报告。 结果：除共情本身的水平外，共情失衡的两种极端状态均与多种临床病症特征相关：相较于认知共情，情绪共情水平更高与孤独症的社交维度及焦虑症状相关；而相较于情绪共情，认知共情水平更高则与孤独症的非社交维度、抑郁症状以及精神病态倾向相关。此外，孤独症特质、焦虑症状与精神病态倾向之间的关联可通过情绪反应性起到中介作用。 讨论：本研究结果为理解共情的个体差异如何在各类精神病理学表现中体现提供了全新的理论框架。