Emozioni sociali. Le basi neurofisiologiche dell’empatia e del comportamento di aiuto

Giorgia Silani

Abstract


Riassunto: L’amore non è solo quello delle favole, quello dei poeti e degli artisti. Amore è un concetto che ha molte sfumature, da quello filiale/genitoriale, a quello amicale o semplicemente quello da essere umano a essere umano, sconosciuti, ma pur sempre accomunati dallo stesso destino. Il nostro apparato biologico sembra geneticamente predisposto a facilitare l’instaurarsi di relazioni affettive soddisfacenti e protettive nei riguardi della nostra salute psichica e fisica. In questo articolo, presenterò una revisione della letteratura scientifica relativa alla comprensione delle basi neurofisiologiche di alcuni di questi processi. In particolare tratterò i concetti di empatia, assunzione di prospettiva, distinzione sé-altro e affronterò il modo in cui essi si collegano con la motivazione all’aiuto.

Parole chiave: Amore; Empatia; Neurofisiologia; Comportamento d’aiuto; Relazioni emotive.

 

 

Social Emotions. The Neurophysiologic Bases of Empathy and Helping Behavior

Abstract: Love is not just a tale of poets and artists. Love is a concept that has many shades, from parental love to friendship to love between human beings who may not even know each other, yet share the same fate. Our biological system seems genetically predisposed to facilitate the establishment of satisfying emotional relationships, protective of our mental and physical health. In this article, I present a review of the literature on the neurophysiologic basis of some of these processes. In particular, I cover the concepts of empathy, perspective taking, the self-other distinction and consider how these motivate altruistic behavior.

Keywords: Love; Empathy; Neurophysiology; Helping Behavior; Emotional Relationships.


Parole chiave


Amore; Empatia; Neurofisiologia; Comportamento d’aiuto; Relazioni emotive.

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Riferimenti bibliografici


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DOI: https://doi.org/10.4453/rifp.2013.0031

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