Is our empathy influenced by our genes?

How do genes affect empathy??

The results of a new study suggest that empathy is not only a result of education and experience, but is also partially influenced by genes. This is an important step to understand the small but important role of genetics in empathy.

Scientists from the internationally recognized University of Cambridge and the University of Paris Diderot found in their current research that empathy is partially influenced by our genes. The experts published the results of their study in the journal "Translational Psychiatry".

Autism affects feelings and behavior of affected persons. Researchers now found that empathy is partially influenced by genetics. (Image: Photographee.eu/fotolia.com)

What is empathy??

Empathy consists of two parts: the ability to recognize another person's thoughts and feelings, and the ability to respond to another person's thoughts and feelings with an appropriate feeling. The first part is referred to as cognitive empathy and the second part as affective empathy, explain the physicians. Fifteen years ago, a team of Cambridge University researchers developed the Empathy Quotient (EQ), a brief self-assessment of empathy. EQ measures both parts of empathy.

Women are more sensitive than men

Previous research has already shown that some people are more empathetic than others, and that on average, women are more sensitive than men. It has also been shown that autistic people are on average worse off in EQ, because they have problems with cognitive empathy, although their affective empathy may be intact, the authors explain.

Physicians analyzed data from more than 46,000 subjects

For the current study, the researchers analyzed data from more than 46,000 participants. These subjects did an EQ test online and additionally provided a saliva sample for genetic analysis. The investigation revealed three very important results:

First, it showed that our empathy is partly due to genetics.

Second, the study found that women are on average more empathetic than men. However, this difference is not DNA-related because there were no differences in the genes that contribute to empathy in both men and women. This implies that the gender difference in empathy is the result of other non-genetic biological factors, such as prenatal hormone influences or non-biological factors such as socialization, which differ between the sexes.

Third, the experts noted that genetic variants associated with less empathy are also associated with a higher risk of autism.

One tenth of empathy differences are genetic

These findings are an important step to understand the small but important role of genetics in empathy. About one tenth of the individual empathy differences in the population are genetically determined. It will be very important in the future to understand the non-genetic factors that make up the remaining 90 percent, say the scientists.

Further research is needed

"This new study shows a role for genes in empathy, but we have not yet identified the specific genes that are involved. Our next step is to collect larger samples to reproduce these results and determine the exact biological pathways associated with individual differences in empathy, "said Professor Thomas Bourgeron of Paris Diderot University in a press release.

Society needs to better support people with autism

"The realization that only a fraction of why we differ in terms of empathy is due to genetic factors helps us to understand people with autism who have difficulty imagining someone else's thoughts and feelings," says Professor Simon Baron-Cohen. Society should support people with disabilities with new teaching methods or appropriate adjustments to promote inclusion. There are several important challenges in this area and only a fraction of the genes associated with autism have been identified. In addition, all people differ with autism. Autistic people have different strengths and difficulties. This must be taken into account when dealing with affected people. (As)