Objective
"Why do humans behave pro-socially to such an extent that it supports the life of other individuals? Similarly, why do certain people harm others by hurting and sometimes killing? Finally, how can we promote pro-sociality and limit harmful actions? The philosopher and economist Adam Smith considered that what motivates us to help a person is that we can “place ourselves in his situation, we conceive ourselves enduring all the same torments"", thus, holding empathy as the driving force of prosociality.
Human neuroimaging studies show that two brain structures, the anterior insula (AI) and the rostral cingulate cortex (rCC), are involved in empathy. Yet, it remains unknown whether these structures are involved in consequent behaviors, i.e. helping or hurting others. With this fellowship, I intend to fill this gap: I propose an approach to causally test Adam Smith's theory, which will produce findings of tangible societal benefits by informing populations worldwide whether prosocial programs can limit fighting and bullying, and by providing novel pharmacological targets for the treatment anti-social disorders.
Because human neuroimaging is severely limited in its ability to establish causal links between brain activity and behavior, we will use a rat model to study empathy-driven prosociality. Considering that a suited rodent model is completely lacking in the field, we will develop a paradigm where actor rats choose between two levers; while both yield the same reward, one requires more effort to be activated. Once preference for the easy lever has been quantified, it will be paired with an electric shock delivered to another rat. The impact of social distress on the actor's choice will provide a way to study prosocial and aggressive behavior. In a second time, we will deactivate the rCC and AI in order to causally explore the role of each structure in prosociality. Finally, we will use calcium-imaging to map and characterize the neural networks involved."
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- natural sciences biological sciences neurobiology
- medical and health sciences clinical medicine psychiatry
- natural sciences chemical sciences inorganic chemistry alkaline earth metals
- humanities languages and literature literature studies literary genres essays
- natural sciences computer and information sciences artificial intelligence computational intelligence
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Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.1.3. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
MAIN PROGRAMME
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H2020-EU.1.3.2. - Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
MSCA-IF-EF-ST - Standard EF
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2016
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
1011 JV AMSTERDAM
Netherlands
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.