Extraordinary Altruism and Transcending the Self

Molly J Crockett; Patricia L Lockwood

doi:10.1016/j.tics.2018.09.003

Extraordinary Altruism and Transcending the Self

Trends Cogn Sci. 2018 Dec;22(12):1071-1073. doi: 10.1016/j.tics.2018.09.003. Epub 2018 Sep 28.

Authors

Molly J Crockett¹, Patricia L Lockwood²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA. Electronic address: molly.crockett@yale.edu.
² Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX2 6HG, UK.

PMID: 30274837
DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2018.09.003

Abstract

Longstanding psychological theories posit a link between empathy and altruism. A new study of anonymous kidney donors finds these 'extraordinary altruists' show an increased overlap in neural responses to pain for self and others. These findings, alongside other recent studies of altruism, shed new light on the nature of selflessness.

Keywords: empathy; exceptional altruism; left anterior insula; selflessness.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Altruism*
Ego*
Empathy*
Humans

Grants and funding

MR/P014097/1/MRC_/Medical Research Council/United Kingdom