I Feel what You Feel if You Are Similar to Me

• Published in: PloS one Vol. 4; no. 3; p. e4930
• Main Authors: Serino, Andrea, Giovagnoli, Giulia, Làdavas, Elisabetta
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 18.03.2009; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Brain; Callicebus; Cognition & reasoning; Empathy; Face; Fingers; Humans; Influence; Interpersonal Relations; Kinesics; Minority & ethnic groups; Neuroscience/Behavioral Neuroscience; Neuroscience/Cognitive Neuroscience; Neuroscience/Psychology; Neuroscience/Sensory Systems; NMR; Nuclear magnetic resonance; Pain; Pattern recognition; Perception; Personality; Personality traits; Political parties; Politics; Semantics; Social aspects; Social behavior; Social factors; Social interactions; Tactile discrimination; Tactile perception; Touch; Trends; Italy

Social interactions are influenced by the perception of others as similar or dissimilar to the self. Such judgements could depend on physical and semantic characteristics, such as membership in an ethnic or political group. In the present study we tested whether social representations of the self an...