AUTHOR=Zheng Li , Zhang Fangxiao , Wei Chunli , Xu Jialin , Wang Qianfeng , Zhu Lei , Roberts Ian D. , Guo Xiuyan TITLE=Decreased Empathic Responses to the ‘Lucky Guy’ in Love: The Effect of Intrasexual Competition JOURNAL=Frontiers in Psychology VOLUME=7 YEAR=2016 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00660 DOI=10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00660 ISSN=1664-1078 ABSTRACT=

People have a greater desire to date highly attractive partners, which induces intrasexual competition between same-sex individuals. The present study used functional magnetic resonance imaging to explore whether and how intrasexual competition modulates pain empathy for a same-sex rival and the underlying neural mechanism. Participants were scanned while processing the pain of a same-sex ‘lucky guy’ who had an attractive partner and one with a plain partner. The results revealed that participants reported lower pain intensity for the lucky guy. Neurally, reduced pain-related activations in anterior insula and anterior mid-cingulate cortex and increased activations in right superior frontal gyrus (SFG) and medial prefrontal gyrus (MPFC) were found for the lucky guy compared to the one with a plain partner. Right SFG and MPFC activations could predict participants’ subsequent pain intensity ratings for the lucky guy. These findings suggest intrasexual competition can modulate normal empathic responses.