Evidence map›Paper›PMID 32876854›Full record

SynthesisNeuropsychology review2021

Is the Putative Mirror Neuron System Associated with Empathy? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Soukayna Bekkali, George J Youssef, Peter H Donaldson, Natalia Albein-Urios, Christian Hyde, Peter G Enticott

Abstract readMeta-AnalysisSystematic Review
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Neuropsychology review, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 40 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
40citing papers in PubMed, 4 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

40 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. Pooled it
  4. Pooled it
  5. Article
  6. Article
  7. Article
  8. Article
  9. Review
  10. Article
  11. Article
  12. Article
  13. Article
  14. Review
  15. Review
  16. Article
  17. Review
  18. Article
  19. Article
  20. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Soukayna BekkaliCognitive Neuroscience Unit (CNU), School of Psychology, Faculty of Health, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Hwy, Burwood, Melbourne, VIC, 3125, Australia. soukayna.bekkali@deakin.edu.au.ORCID 0000-0002-8055-0365
George J YoussefCognitive Neuroscience Unit (CNU), School of Psychology, Faculty of Health, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Hwy, Burwood, Melbourne, VIC, 3125, Australia.
Peter H DonaldsonCognitive Neuroscience Unit (CNU), School of Psychology, Faculty of Health, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Hwy, Burwood, Melbourne, VIC, 3125, Australia.
Natalia Albein-UriosCognitive Neuroscience Unit (CNU), School of Psychology, Faculty of Health, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Hwy, Burwood, Melbourne, VIC, 3125, Australia.
Christian HydeCognitive Neuroscience Unit (CNU), School of Psychology, Faculty of Health, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Hwy, Burwood, Melbourne, VIC, 3125, Australia.
Peter G EnticottCognitive Neuroscience Unit (CNU), School of Psychology, Faculty of Health, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Hwy, Burwood, Melbourne, VIC, 3125, Australia.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Theoretical perspectives suggest that the mirror neuron system (MNS) is an important neurobiological contributor to empathy, yet empirical support is mixed. Here, we adopt a summary model for empathy, consisting of motor, emotional, and cognitive components of empathy. This review provides an overview of existing empirical studies investigating the relationship between putative MNS activity and empathy in healthy populations. 52 studies were identified that investigated the association between the MNS and at least one domain of empathy, representing data from 1044 participants. Our results suggest that emotional and cognitive empathy are moderately correlated with MNS activity, however, these domains were mixed and varied across techniques used to acquire MNS activity (TMS, EEG, and fMRI). Few studies investigated motor empathy, and of those, no significant relationships were revealed. Overall, results provide preliminary evidence for a relationship between MNS activity and empathy. However, our findings highlight methodological variability in study design as an important factor in understanding this relationship. We discuss limitations regarding these methodological variations and important implications for clinical and community translations, as well as suggestions for future research.

Indexed as

Mirror NeuronsEmotionsEmpathyHumansMagnetic Resonance ImagingEmpathyMeta-analysisMirror neuronsSimulationSystematic review

Identifiers

PMID32876854

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.