Brain Connections Drive The Decision To Punish Others

Punishing others for unfair behavior is associated with functional brain connections; the stronger the connections, the lesser are the chance to punish someone.

Punishing others for unfair behavior is associated with functional brain connections; the stronger the connections, the lesser are the chance to punish someone as per a study ‘Wired to punish? Electroencephalographic study of the resting-state neuronal oscillations underlying third-party punishment’ at the National Research University Higher School of Economics, published in the journal Neuroscience.

The study team conducted a neuroimaging experiment using electroencephalography (EEG for recording brain activity) to study the networks of various brain structures involved in punishment decision-making.

Harsh Punishment During Childhood Linked to Adult Antisocial Behavior
Punishing your kids physically or emotionally, or a combination of the two has been linked to antisocial behaviors in kids when they grow up, finds a new study.

‘Punishing others for unfair behavior is less when the functional connections between two brain areas – dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) and temporoparietal junction (TPJ) are stronger. However further studies may be required to validate this hypothesis.’

The key areas that were found to be involved are the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) and temporoparietal junction (TPJ).

Brain Connections and Punishment Areas

Among these areas, the team reports that TPJ evaluates the level of guilt and deliberateness of the violation, while the DLPFC receives this signal on guilt assessment and transforms it into a specific decision on punishment.

Schools Use Corporal Punishment More on Black or Disabled Children
Corporal punishment, typically striking a child with a wooden paddle, continues to be a widespread practice in disciplining children from pre-K through high school.

Hence interactions between these regions are important for deciding on punishment. And the team speculates that the initial connectivity between these areas in a specific human brain impacts a person’s readiness to impose punishment.

A stronger connectivity between these two areas resulted in a lower level of punishment. It was also found that the functional condition of TPJ in a resting state impacts a person’s readiness to punish others for injustice.

A Compassionate Approach can Lead to More 'Help' and Less 'Punishment'
Compassion and intentionally cultivating it through training may lead us to do more to help the wronged than to punish the wrongdoer.

It is assumed that a more ‘sensitive’ TPJ means that unfair behavior causes a stronger guilt evaluation signal, which is followed by a stricter decision on punishment. However, the team reports that further studies may be required to validate this hypothesis.

Source-Medindia

How Spanking can Result in Social Development Issues in Kids
Spanking or hitting the kids on the buttocks as a form of punishment can Lower their Social Development, finds a new study.