STRIDE stands for Subsecond Testing: Release and Investigation of Dopamine in Empathy
Research Question: How does the neurotransmitter dopamine relate to empathy processes?
Why this is important:
As society progresses further into the twenty first century, there has been a surge in research on neuroscience examining cognition and the root of mental disorders. This has led to substantial media attention and increased societal awareness to issues related to several mental disorders. Two of the most prevalent and highly reported in our society are autism and antisocial personality disorder (APD).
One common deficit observed in these disorders (and others like them) is the inability to recognize the mental states of others - in other words, a lack of empathy. While the effects of empathy deficit are well documented, they are extremely difficult to treat due to a lack of research involving their underlying neurobiological origins. This research study will significantly advance the search for effective treatments for disorders involving empathy deficits by using innovative technology, such as fast-scan cyclic voltammetry, in order to discover a relationship between empathy deficit and the ventral striatum (VS), the region of the brain associated with dopamine and reward-based learning.
Research Question: How does the neurotransmitter dopamine relate to empathy processes?
Why this is important:
As society progresses further into the twenty first century, there has been a surge in research on neuroscience examining cognition and the root of mental disorders. This has led to substantial media attention and increased societal awareness to issues related to several mental disorders. Two of the most prevalent and highly reported in our society are autism and antisocial personality disorder (APD).
One common deficit observed in these disorders (and others like them) is the inability to recognize the mental states of others - in other words, a lack of empathy. While the effects of empathy deficit are well documented, they are extremely difficult to treat due to a lack of research involving their underlying neurobiological origins. This research study will significantly advance the search for effective treatments for disorders involving empathy deficits by using innovative technology, such as fast-scan cyclic voltammetry, in order to discover a relationship between empathy deficit and the ventral striatum (VS), the region of the brain associated with dopamine and reward-based learning.