An investigation of empathy in male and female fans of aggressive music

2019 ◽  
pp. 102986491986016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aimy Slade ◽  
Kirk N. Olsen ◽  
William Forde Thompson
Keyword(s):  
Media Violence ◽  
Empathic Concern ◽  
Lower State ◽  
Personal Distress ◽  
Public Concern ◽  
Violent Media ◽  
Metal Music ◽  
Jazz Music ◽  
Death Metal

Concerns have been raised that persistent exposure to violent media can lead to negative outcomes such as reduced empathy for the plight of others. The present study investigated whether fans of aggressive heavy or death metal music show reduced empathic reactions to aggression, relative to fans of non-aggressive music. 108 participants who self-identified as fans of heavy or death metal, classical or jazz music ( n=36 per group) were presented with vignettes that described a primary character’s reaction (the ‘aggressor’) in response to a secondary character’s irritating action (the ‘instigator’). The aggressor’s reaction was either non-aggressive, mildly aggressive or strongly aggressive. After each vignette, participants provided ratings of state empathic concern (other-oriented empathy) and personal distress (self-oriented distress). They also completed measures of trait empathy, passion for music and its psychosocial functions. Fans of heavy or death metal exhibited lower trait empathic concern compared with classical and jazz fans. However, only male heavy or death metal fans exhibited lower state empathic concern than male classical and jazz fans. Finally, social bonding was a stronger motivation for heavy or death metal fans to listen to music than for classical fans. Results are discussed in light of research and public concern regarding the effects of long-term exposure to media violence.

scholarly journals Implicit violent imagery processing among fans and non-fans of music with violent themes

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 181580 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yanan Sun ◽  
Xuejing Lu ◽  
Mark Williams ◽  
William Forde Thompson
Keyword(s):  
Popular Music ◽  
Binocular Rivalry ◽  
Negativity Bias ◽  
Conscious Awareness ◽  
Violent Media ◽  
Metal Music ◽  
Extreme Metal ◽  
Imagery Processing ◽  
The Impact

It is suggested that long-term exposure to violent media may decrease sensitivity to depictions of violence. However, it is unknown whether persistent exposure to music with violent themes affects implicit violent imagery processing. Using a binocular rivalry paradigm, we investigated whether the presence of violent music influences conscious awareness of violent imagery among fans and non-fans of such music. Thirty-two fans and 48 non-fans participated in the study. Violent and neutral pictures were simultaneously presented one to each eye, and participants indicated which picture they perceived (i.e. violent percept, neutral percept or blend of two) via key presses, while they heard Western popular music with lyrics that expressed happiness or Western extreme metal music with lyrics that expressed violence. We found both fans and non-fans of violent music exhibited a general negativity bias for violent imagery over neutral imagery regardless of the music genres. For non-fans, this bias was stronger while listening to music that expressed violence than while listening to music that expressed happiness. For fans of violent music, however, the bias was the same while listening to music that expressed either violence or happiness. We discussed these results in view of current debates on the impact of violent media.

Long-term relations between violent media use and violent behavior by delinquents, criminals, and high-risk adolescents

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rowell Huesmann ◽  
Paul Boxer ◽  
Tom Johnson ◽  
Wendy Garrard ◽  
Maureen O'Brien
Keyword(s):  
High Risk ◽  
Media Use ◽  
Violent Behavior ◽  
Violent Media

scholarly journals Understanding the Links between Inferring Mental States, Empathy, and Burnout in Medical Contexts

Healthcare ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 158
Author(s):  
Naira Delgado ◽  
Helena Bonache ◽  
Moisés Betancort ◽  
Yurena Morera ◽  
Lasana T. Harris
Keyword(s):  
Adverse Effects ◽  
Patient Care ◽  
Emotional Exhaustion ◽  
Mental State ◽  
Perspective Taking ◽  
Healthcare Professionals ◽  
Mental States ◽  
Empathic Concern ◽  
Personal Accomplishment ◽  
Personal Distress

It is generally accepted that empathy should be the basis of patient care. However, this ideal may be unrealistic if healthcare professionals suffer adverse effects when engaging in empathy. The aim of this study is to explore the effect of inferring mental states and different components of empathy (perspective-taking; empathic concern; personal distress) in burnout dimensions (emotional exhaustion; depersonalization; personal accomplishment). A total of 184 healthcare professionals participated in the study (23% male, Mage = 44.60; SD = 10.46). We measured participants’ empathy, the inference of mental states of patients, and burnout. Correlation analyses showed that inferring mental states was positively associated with perspective-taking and with empathic concern, but uncorrelated with personal distress. Furthermore, emotional exhaustion was related to greater levels of personal distress and greater levels of inferences of mental states. Depersonalization was associated with greater levels of personal distress and lower levels of empathic concern. Personal accomplishment was associated with the inference of mental states in patients, lower levels of personal distress, and perspective-taking. These results provide a better understanding of how different components of empathy and mental state inferences may preserve or promote healthcare professionals’ burnout.

Media against communication: media/violence and conditionalities of Muslim silencing in Northern India

2021 ◽  
pp. 016344372199453
Author(s):  
Britta Ohm
Keyword(s):  
Political Communication ◽  
Physical Violence ◽  
Media Violence ◽  
New Delhi ◽  
Northern India ◽  
Media And Communication ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Indian Cities

Understanding the relationship between media and communication as increasingly conflictive under conditions of de-democratization in India, this essay proposes a focus on violence-induced conditionalities of political communication among the affected. I introduce the term ‘media/violence’ as I look at two spaces in North Indian cities that have been turned into ‘Muslim ghettos’ over the past two decades: Jamia Nagar in New Delhi and Juhapura in Ahmedabad (Gujarat). Based on intermittent fieldwork between 2015 and 2020 (partly online), I argue that differences both in the quality of the violence as well as in the interaction between mediated and physical violence executed on the two spaces conditioned long-term options of collective communication (and their absence). The analysis helps us understand how massive political and legal protests could eventually erupt in Jamia Nagar (Shaheen Bagh) in late 2019, while the very reason for protest appears to have eluded residents of Juhapura.

Empathic abilities and their mediators in Tunisian psychiatry trainees

2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (6) ◽  
pp. 317-330
Author(s):  
Bochra Nourhene Saguem ◽  
Zeineb Bouzaâbia ◽  
Amel Braham ◽  
Selma Ben Nasr
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Emotion Regulation ◽  
Perspective Taking ◽  
Self Efficacy ◽  
Empathic Concern ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Reactivity Index ◽  
Professional Activity ◽  
Personal Distress ◽  
Content Type

Purpose The purpose of this paper was to assess empathy dimensions in Tunisian psychiatry trainees and to evaluate their relationship with relevant professional and extra-professional factors. Design/methodology/approach An online questionnaire survey was administered to the psychiatry trainees affiliated in the four faculties of medicine of Tunisia (n = 120). It comprised, in addition to sociodemographic and professional variables, the interpersonal reactivity index, a multidimensional instrument that evaluates perspective taking, empathic concern, personal distress and fantasy. Other self-report measures were used to assess emotion regulation, social support and self-efficacy. Data were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences. Findings The response rate was 71%. Descriptive statistics showed that personal distress’ scores were lower than the other empathy dimensions’ scores. Perspective taking scores were negatively correlated with emotion regulation difficulties. Personal distress scores were positively correlated with emotion regulation difficulties. Hierarchical regression analysis revealed that being an only child significantly contributed to perspective taking and having an extra-professional activity significantly contributed to less personal distress. Perceived stress, social support and having a master’s degree were significant predictors for empathic concern. Self-efficacy was a significant predictor of perspective taking, with emotion regulation difficulties mediating this relationship. Practical implications Interventions dedicated to improve psychiatry trainees’ empathy should focus not only on clinical practice and medical education but also on emotional support and recovery activities. Originality/value A unique feature of this study is the investigation of the potential impacts of emotion regulation difficulties and perceived self-efficacy on empathic abilities of psychiatry trainees.

scholarly journals Religiosity and Psychotic Ideation in Stable Schizophrenia: A Role for Empathic Perspective-Taking

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 53
Author(s):  
Rosó Duñó ◽  
Joan Carles Oliva ◽  
Adolf Tobeña ◽  
Diego Palao ◽  
Javier Labad
Keyword(s):  
Perspective Taking ◽  
Empathic Concern ◽  
Reactivity Index ◽  
Psychotic Symptoms ◽  
Regression Analyses ◽  
Personal Distress ◽  
Interpersonal Reactivity Index ◽  
The Relationship

The relationship between religiosity and different components of empathy was explored in schizophrenia patients. A total of 81 stable schizophrenia patients and 95 controls from the nearby community completed self-reported questionnaires assessing religiosity and empathy (through the Interpersonal Reactivity Index, IRI). Patients with schizophrenia showed higher religiousness than controls and they presented less perspective-taking and empathic concern but increased personal distress in IRI scores. Regression analyses unveiled an association between religiosity and perspective-taking in schizophrenics after adjusting for age, gender, and psychotic symptoms. In conclusion, religiosity in patients with schizophrenia may be linked to variations in perspective- taking as a component of empathy.

The Role of Culture in Affective Empathy: Cultural and Bicultural Differences

2010 ◽  
Vol 10 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 309-326 ◽  
Author(s):  
Winnie Chung ◽  
Sherilynn Chan ◽  
Tracy G. Cassels
Keyword(s):  
Emotional Health ◽  
East Asian ◽  
Cultural Influences ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Empathic Concern ◽  
Reactivity Index ◽  
Affective Empathy ◽  
Personal Distress ◽  
Social Emotional

AbstractEmpathy is essential for healthy relationships and overall well-being. Affective empathy is the emotional response to others’ distress and can take two forms: personal distress or empathic concern. In Western cultures, high empathic concern and low personal distress have been implicated in increased prosocial behaviour (e.g., Eisenberg et al., 1989) and better emotion management and peer relations (e.g., Eisenberg and Fabes, 1998). Various factors have been examined with respect to affective empathy, but the role of culture has received little attention. Previous work suggests that children from East Asian cultures compared to those from Western cultures experience greater personal distress and less empathic concern (e.g., Trommsdorff, 1995), but no work has specifically examined these differences in adolescents or individuals who identify as ‘bicultural’. The current research examines cultural differences in affective empathy using the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (Davis, 1980) in an adolescent and young adult sample (n=190) and examines how empathy relates to social-emotional health in bicultural individuals. Consistent with research on children, East Asian adolescents reported greater personal distress and less empathic concern than their Western counterparts. The bicultural individuals’ scores fell in between the East Asian and Western groups, but revealed significant differences from their ‘uni-cultural’ peers, demonstrating shared influences of community and family. Importantly, however, the relationship between affective empathy and social-emotional health in bicultural individuals was the same as for Western individuals. The current results provide an important first step in understanding the different cultural influences on empathic responding in a previously understudied population ‐ bicultural individuals.

Vigilante feminism as a form of musical protest in extreme metal music

2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 263-273 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joan Jocson-Singh
Keyword(s):  
Fairy Tale ◽  
American Studies ◽  
Ethnographic Research ◽  
Liminal Space ◽  
Short Article ◽  
Metal Music ◽  
Music Scene ◽  
Death Metal ◽  
Extreme Metal

Drawing on my 2016 ethnographic research on women in New York’s extreme metal music scene, this short article discusses the emerging concept of vigilante feminism; a term first coined by American Studies professor Laura D’Amore in her 2017 study, Vigilante Feminism: Revising Trauma, Abduction, and Assault in American Fairy Tale Revisions. Through interviews with the death metal band Castrator, the role of the female musician and fan in the extreme metal music (EMM) scene is explored. Using the lens of vigilante feminism as a form of musical protest, I analyse lyrical content, performativity and the ways in which female musicians navigate the traditionally masculine-coded subculture. I argue that for some female death metal musicians, vigilante feminism acts as a form of empowerment which enables them to coexist in a liminal space so often dominated by their male counterparts.

scholarly journals Negative arousability and relationship satisfaction: The mediating role of empathy

2019 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 73-90
Author(s):  
Ariadna B. Łada ◽  
Maria Kaźmierczak
Keyword(s):  
Relationship Satisfaction ◽  
Emotional Regulation ◽  
Short Form ◽  
Empathic Concern ◽  
Personal Distress ◽  
Emotional Empathy ◽  
Mediating Role ◽  
The Relationship

Temperamental traits and empathy are both associated with emotional regulation; they thus shape both the quality of an individual’s life and the functioning of his or her social relationships. However, the mediating effects of emotional empathy in the relationship between temperamental characteristics and relationship satisfaction have not been closely analyzed and therefore require further study. This study examined the effects of temperamental arousability – global negative arousability and its components (fear, sadness, discomfort, frustration) – on emotional empathy and, consequently, on relationship satisfaction. One hundred and fifty young adults (104 women, 46 men) aged 20 to 35 participated in the study. The participants had been in romantic relationships for at least six months. The study used a sociodemographic survey and a set of questionnaires which included the Adult Temperament Questionnaire – Short Form, the Empathic Sensitiveness Scale and the RELAT Questionnaire. The results showed that empathic concern fully mediated the relationship between global negative arousability and relationship satisfaction. Furthermore, the effects of fear and sadness on relationship satisfaction were fully mediated by empathic concern and personal distress. Additionally, personal distress fully mediated the relationship between discomfort and relationship satisfaction. Neither empathic concern nor personal distress were mediators in the relationship between frustration and relationship satisfaction. It can therefore be concluded that although partners who exhibit higher global negative arousability report lower relationship satisfaction, they might become more satisfied when being more compassionate and caring towards others.

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