2. Compassion, Mindfulness, and Well-Being February 27, 2009 Dacher Keltner University of California, Berkeley keltner@berkeley.edu www.greatergoodscience.org

3. Greater Good Science Center Stimulus Package Science. The neuroscience of compassion. Cross-racial friendship catalyzes academics Dissemination. Greater Good, Half Full Conversation. This speaker series

4. A Roadmap A War on Compassion The Evolution and Neuroscience of Compassion BREAK: 10:30 to 10:45 Compassion, empathy, gratitude and other pro-social sentiments LUNCH: 12:00 TO 1:00 (on your own – see lunch map in course packet)

5. The Road Continues… Jon Kabat-Zinn: 1:00 to 2:00 BREAK 2:00 to 2:15 Compassion breakdowns, deficits, and disorders BREAK: 3:15 to 3:30 Practical Steps toward cultivating compassion NIRVANA: 4:45

6. Goals New Ideas and Lenses New Tools, Practices, and Resources Evidence and Notions for the Meaningful Life

7. Some Definitions Compassion: Concern to enhance the welfare of another who suffers or is in need Empathy: mirroring or understanding of other’s emotion. Mimicry: Imitation of others’ emotion, behavior Love of Humanity: A belief in the goodness, connectedness of others Pity: Feeling of concern for someone felt to be inferior to self

8. The War on Compassion Freudian Mind: The very emphasis of the commandment: Thou shalt not kill, makes it certain that we are descended from an endlessly long chain of generations of murderers, whose love of murder was in their blood as it is perhaps also in ours. Sigmund Freud Libertarianism: If any civilization is to survive, it is the morality of altruism that men have to reject. Ayn Rand Political Theory: Of mankind we may say in general they are fickle, hypocritical, and greedy of gain. Machiavelli

9. The War on Compassion (con’t) Evolutionary Survival Of The Fittest: The natural world is “grossly immoral”. Natural selection “can honestly be described as a process for maximizing short sighted selfishness” George Williams Moral Theory: Sympathy as a good natured emotion is always blind and weak. Immanuel Kant

10. Compassion as Opponent (In Western Thought) Compassion belittles recipients Compassion entails a loss of freedom Compassion is inherently subjective, unreliable as an ethical principle Compassion as enemy to achievement

11. The Bad is Stronger than the Good? The Design of Homo Economicus Negative Contamination Self-Interest as Default? Altruism = selfish genes or Freudian Fantasy Attachment and Anxiety

12. The Ultimatum Game

13. Compassion Deficits in US Children

14. Compassion & Trust Deficits in US Adults 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 Norway China Germany Taiwan India USA Mexico Ghana South Africa Philippines Brazil Trust in fellow citizens

15. The Evolution of Compassion: Survival of The Kindest Evolution of our Ultrasociality Hunter gatherers Archeology Primate predecessors

16. Dimensions to our Ultrasociality Care-taking Flattened Hierarchies Conflict and Reconciliation Fragile Monogamy

17. Darwin: Survival of the Kindest Darwin argued that sympathy “will have been increased through natural selection; for those communities, which included the greatest number of the most sympathetic members, would flourish best, and rear the greatest number of offspring” (Darwin, 1871/2004, p.130).

18. Take care or die

19. The Compassionate Brain Pain, other’s pain: Anterior Cingulate

20. The Compassionate Brain Empathy: Prefrontal cortex, Temporal Parietal Junction

21. The Compassionate Brain Maternal Love: Lateral Orbitofrontal cortex

22. The Compassionate Brain Romantic Love: Reduced Amygdala, Ventral Striatum

23. The Compassionate Brain Compassion: Amygdala, Prefrontal cortex

33. Epoch change in RSA Self-reported compassion.33* Self reported pride -.30* Self-other similarity.29*

34. Vagal Superstars Increased positive emotion More resilient response to bereavement More sympathetic prosocial children Trusted more in interactions with strangers

35. Oxytocin and Pro-Sociality Faithful and frisky voles Oxytocin levels predict attachment behaviors Oxytocin predicts care-taking in mammals Kissing leads to rises in oxytocin for men, not women

41. Affiliation CuesSexual Cues Contr. for Sexual CuesContr. for Affiliation Cues __________________________________________________ Oxytocin Reactivity.50**.11 Oxytocin Recovery.15.12 __________________________________________________

42. Oxytocin and Trust

43. The Compassionate Nervous System Brain: Amygdala, Anterior cingulate, Pre-frontal cortex, Lateral Orbitofrontal cortex Vagus Nerve Immune system Oxytocin, Dopamine Genes –Dopamine DR4 predicts self-reported altruism –AVPR1A (vasopressin) predicts generosity in ultimatum game

44. Emergence of Pro-social Emotion Reliable Identification Contagious Compassion Shift Costs and Benefits of Giving It Pays to Be Good

45. It’s not in the face

48. Touch and the Spread of Goodness

50. Contagious Compassion Neonate distress reactions Emotional, Physiological Convergence in Friends Compassion inspires elevation Gratitude spreads through networks Positive Emotion spreads through communities Collective Joys

51. Reversing Cost-Benefit Analyses: Compassion promotes Common Humanity with those in need Increase the Gains of Giving –Cooperation activates reward regions of the brain (Rilling et al) –Giving produces more enduring pleasure than receiving Increase sense of common humanity –Expanded circle: Peter Singer –Compassion correlates with policy attitudes that enhance young, sick, elderly

52. Beta correlations between trait affect and similarity ratings

53. Vagal Superstars in a Trust Tournament 50 participants played in internet trust game Give between 1 and 20 raffle tickets to 12 different individuals Viewed individuals for 20 seconds on video Gift tripled in value, value to be returned later

54. It Pays to Be Good Vagal Tone Trust Resources Received T = 4.69, p <.01 T = 17.01, p <.001 T = 4.19, p <.01 (T = 1,59, ns)

55. Compassion as an Adaptation Shaped by Natural Selection Health of offspring Sexual Selection Social Selection

56. Compassion as an Adaptation

57. From Genes and Brains to a Culture of Compassion Compassion selected for in Evolution It is built into our brains and bodies –Predicts health –Predicts longevity It becomes codified into rituals and practices It forms the heart of ethical systems

58. Compassion as a Master Emotion? Karen Armstrong: Unites religions Martha Nussbaum: A Moral Emotion Kindness a Universal Virtue From Experience to Sentiment to Way of Life Enabler and outcome of many pro-social experiences, from art to altruism

59. Buddhism Nirvana and the eightfold path If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion. His Holiness the Dalai Lama

60. Confucianism and Jen A person of jen, Confucius observes, “wishing to establish his own character, also establishes the character of others.” A person of jen “brings the good things of others to completion and does not bring the bad things of others to completion.”

61. IMAGINE The great secret of morals is love, or a going out of our own nature, and an identification of ourselves with the beautiful which exists in thought, action or person, not our own. A man, to be greatly good, must imagine intensely and comprehensively; he must put himself in the place of another and of many others; the pains and pleasures of his species must become his own. The great instrument of moral good is the imagination (Shelley).

62. Walt Whitman, Leaves of Grass Swiftly arose and spread around me the peace and joy and knowledge that pass all the art and argument of the earth; And I know that the hand of God is the elderhand of my own, And I know that the spirit of God is the eldest brother of my own, And that all the men ever born are also my brothers… and the women my sisters and lovers, And that a kelson of creation is love.

63. Singer: Evolving Circle of Care Bequeath(ed) humans with a sense of empathy – an ability to treat other people’s interests as comparable to one’s own. Unfortunately, by default we apply it only to a very serious narrow circle of friends and family. People outside that circle were treated as subhuman and can be exploited with impunity. But over history the circle has expanded… from village to the clan to the tribe to the nation to other races to other sexes… and to other species.

64. Altruism Compassion is a motive of altruism; distress/anxiety predicts more egoistic action

65. Altruism Compassion predicts altruism in children Greater helping, altruism in rural areas

66. Compassionate Love Compassionate care-giving produces secure attachments in children Compassion for partner’s weaknesses, needs predicts long-term satisfaction Compassionate sacrifice (to enhance partner’s welfare) predicts stable marriages; anxious sacrifices (to avoid problems) predicts dissatisfaction

67. Compassionate Love

68. Caregiving Volunteerism = Uncompensated assistance given to those in need 31% of US in any year Guided by compassion, empathic concern Care-givers who care 14 hours/week reduced chance of dying by 36% over 7-year period (Stephanie Brown)

69. Empathy and Mirroring as Roots of Connection Emotional mimicry produces rapport, closeness between colleagues at work, teachers/students Friends’ laughs synchronize Friends’ blushes trigger more blushing Strangers’ fidgeting bouts mimic Friends’ emotions converge over time

70. Forgiveness Fred Luskin’s Forgiveness project Forgiveness and Health Compassion promotes less punitive attitudes, greater forgiveness in criminal judgments Everyday reconciliation

71. Gratitude/Appreciation/ Reverence “Count your blessings”: 5 blessings 1x/week leads to increased happiness and health (Lyubomirsky) Appreciation for loved ones uniquely relates to social well-being “Thank you” = 11% increase in tips

72. Cooperation A Human Universal (Henrich) 15 cultures play ultimatum game: 39% average offer, cooperation increases with interdependence (zero sum world) Cooperators fare better than competitors

73. Cooperation

74. Pro-Social Emotions as the Path To Well-being Happiness found in connection, not materialism 3 to 1 and 5 to 1 ratios in life and marriage Pro-social emotion Strong Bonds Social Well-being

75. Cultural breakdowns in compassion Our busy culture

76. Cultural breakdowns in compassion Videogames Narcissism, self-esteem The Economic mindset Power asymmetries

77. Compassion/Empathy Deficits as a Transdiagnostic Deficit From symptoms to basic processes across diagnoses Anhedonia in depression, schizophrenia Irritability in depression, mania, antisocial disorder

78. Empathy deficits: Autism Spectrum Parallel Play and Tim Page Deficits in pretense, teasing, voice modulation, irony, social relationships Egocentrism: Difficulty understanding other independent of self Mind in Eyes (Baron-Cohen)

79. Emotional disorders as deficits in self-compassion Self-compassion –See failures kindly –See self as part of larger humanity –Hold pains in mindful attentiveness Self-compassion predicts –Reduced anxiety –Reduced depression –Reduced rumination –Reduced neurotic perfectionism

80. Depression and compassion deficits Depression associated with reduced activation in the left frontal lobes Depression associated with anhedonia, lack of engagement with others Images of the good self trigger shame, anxiety in depressives

81. Antisocial behavior and compassion Sociopaths –Raised in violent families –Reduced physiological reaction to others’ suffering –Reduced interconnectivity in frontal lobes

82. Frontal Lobe Patients Orbitofrontal patients –Fail to read others’ embarrassment –Empathy difficulties –Antisocial behavior

83. Frontal Temporal Dementia Organic degradation of frontal lobes Onset in mid 50s Accompanied by apathy, failure to connect, difficulties empathizing Produces antisocial behavior

84. Compassion Excesses Mania Physiological linkage in marriage Williams Syndrome

85. Cultivation: Possible? A good idea? Stability of basic personality structure Ironic effects of trying to be happy

86. The meaning of cultivation Skill cultivation (Lyubomirsky) Train the eye Change your language Change your frame, metaphor Modest acts: gratitude, appreciation Change your physical environment Change your culture Change your nervous system

87. Cultivating Compassion and Social Well-being: GIVE Dunn, 2008: A random sample of people endorsed belief that spending money on self enhances well-being more than giving it away

88. Cultivating Compassion and Social Well-being: GIVE Giving $20 improves happiness more than spending $20 on self

89. Mindfulness & Meditation (Kabat-Zinn, Wallace) Core Principles –Breathingreduced cariovascular arousal –Awareness of sensationsFrontal control of limbic –Awareness of mind –Loving Kindnessshift in asymmetry Empirical Evidence –Monks –Kabat-Zinn, Davidson (2004): software engineers –Fredrickson, 2008: boosts in happiness over 2 months –mindful people happier, more optimistic

90. Awe and the Sacred Transcendent experiences of beauty give people a sense of common humanity Experiences of awe trigger activation in the vagus nerve Experiences of awe trigger sacrifice, altruism

91. Making Compassion a meme, a sticky idea Oliners and rescuers Reading compassionate words “hug” makes people more altruistic, less prejudiced toward outgroups

92. Inspiring elevation Elevation: Others’ compassion inspires compassion It activates vagus nerve response It produces altruistic behavior

93. Play

94. Touch Reward Reinforce Reciprocity Signal Safety Soothe Power

95. Touch Interventions Increases weight of premature babies Reduces depression in patients with alzheimers Increases likelihood children will speak in class Preventative medicine

96. Art Rasas in the Natyashastra Aesthetically pleasing Compassion in viewing the suffering of Others The Evolution of the chills Triggers activation in the –left Orbitofrontal cortex

97. A Compassionate, Cooperative Future Pinker and the rise of cooperation, compassion Wright and the rise of nonzero relations Cooperation fares better than competition The wisdom of the tit-for-tat (Axelrod, 1984) –Cooperates, forgives, not envious, readable, strong

100. THANK YOU! www.GreaterGoodScience.org