Pushing the Empathy Button

Monkey see…monkey do…

When you look at these pictures, do you feel like yawning? There is a scientific explanation for that. Looking at this image may be triggering unconscious empathetic reflexes resulting from the firing of your mirror neurons.

Located in the frontal lobe, the premotor cortex guides movement and controls the proximal and trunk muscles of the body. This part of the brain also contains mirror neurons, which are the brain cells used in the planning, selection and execution of actions.

Studies conducted by neuroscientist Christian Keysers of the University of Groningen, Netherlands identified a set of neurons in the premotor cortex that were activated when subjects heard volunteers performing a particular action, such as ripping paper or munching on potato chips. The same neurons lit up when the subject performed the same actions.

Another study from UCLA by neuroscientist Lisa Aziz-Zadeh revealed that multi-tasking "mirror" neurons also responded to the written word. She discovered that merely reading a phrase like: "biting the peach" triggered the same neurons in other subjects watching a video of someone biting into a peach.

Since the neurons in our brains automatically mimic activities perceived on the outside, it behooves us to remain vigilant, making conscious choices regarding our environment.

This supports the idea that what we focus on—expands. Our mind tends to mirror what we see, hear and read, so what are you listening to, watching and reading? We're ready for nap. You?