Neuro-physiological mechanisms and evolutionary sense of the empathy

Abstract

It was that the empathy is an evolutionary acquisition, a useful cognitive tool, that is typical not only for human beings but for other social mammals as well. The assumption is substantiated by some results of anthropologic, neurophysiologic and genetic examinations of some species of social mammals as well as by some extensively developed hypotheses, e.g. “human self-domestication” hypothesis and empathizing–systemizing theory.

Empathy is a conscious understanding of the other person’ emotional and mental state based on the subject’s available set of mental representations and their results — so-called “theory of mind”. To evolve empathy and to develop the extensive theory of mind the period of juvenalization, i.e. preserving of the mental flexibility and plasticity must be long enough. A reduction of intraspecific aggression based on a certain neurophysiologic profile is another necessary precondition. These are the postulates of “human self-domestication” theory. Another hypothesis underlying the theory of human cognitive evolution theory is empathizing–systemizing hypothesis. It links the differences in a persons’ ability to understand mind theories of other persons with the level of the brain masculinization. An extreme level of high systematizing and low empathizing that accompanies autism spectrum disorders is usually attributed to hyper-masculinization of the brain in the time of prenatal development. A number of neurophysiological mechanisms that provide prosocial behavior are described by now. Among “social” hormones there are oxytocin, serotonin, vasopressin.

So the formation of so-called homo co operative or homo social, who is most adapted to efficient social interactions, may be one of the evolutionary vectors. An individual who is “ideal” for co-operation, must have a strong empathy, a developed mind theory, lower brain masculinity, a high level of endogenous oxytocin, a well-developed mirror neuron system or systems, willingness to take risks in order to establish useful links that is reinforced by high level of serotonin (the latter, in particular, provides for aversion from aggression and damaging other people), well-developed cognitive abilities, proclivity for creative solution of social problems.