The Biased Mirror: A Functional Approach to Intergroup Motor Resonance

Similar neural circuits are activated during action and during the observation of action, and such motor resonance is said to support action understanding and could potentially facilitate affect sharing, communication, cooperation and interpersonal coordination. Here I describe a line of research that uses suppression of electroencephalographic mu-oscillations as an indicator of motor resonance to look at motor resonance in an intergroup context. In study 1 I find that group categorization and intergroup biases can restrict motor resonance to the ethnic ingroup, potentially making it unavailable during cross-group interactions. In study 2 I investigate a reduction in affect sharing as a potential consequence of group biases in motor resonance. Using EEG prefrontal asymmetry patterns as an indicator of negative affect and avoidance tendencies, I show that participants do not share the sadness of outgroup members. Finally, I present two studies that test the boundary conditions of the ingroup bias in motor resonance. Study 3 shows that when motivational relevance of the outgroup is increased, because participants are in an inclusive, perspective taking mindset, group biases in motor resonance disappear. Similarly, study 4 shows that when the situation is highly motivationally relevant, such as when the behavior poses a potential threat; people will show motor resonance in response to anyone independent of group membership. iii Acknowledgments The past four years as a graduate student and working on this dissertation were truly an invaluable experience for me that I will always treasure. I’d like to express my deepest gratitude to the people who have guided and accompanied me on this journey. First, I’d like to thank Michael Inzlicht. I am so very grateful for his constant positivity, support and advice. His guidance, encouragement and criticism instilled in me the knowledge and confidence that I needed to become the researcher I am today. At the same time, he gave me the freedom and trust I needed to grow, to discover my own interests, and to ask the questions I needed to answer. I have been incredibly fortunate to have an advisor who inspired me to strive to be a better researcher and person. I hope that one day I will have as much of a profound influence on the lives of my own students. These are some pretty big footprints to follow. I also would like to thank Elizabeth Page-Gould, because she has brought me joy and encouragement even when times were difficult, and she has been a bottomless well of knowledge and inspiration. Moreover, I thank Jason Plaks, for his support and for his thought-provoking questions that sparked new perspectives and ideas. Also, invaluable for the success of this thesis were my lab mates Alexa Tullett, Shona Tritt, Rimma Teper, Sonia Kang, and Jacob Hirsh. In the lab and during lab meetings, they provided support, company and fueled my interest and motivation for my research, and outside of the lab they offered their friendship and reminded me that there is more to life than the dissertation. I’ll be forever grateful for the opportunities, support and training I received from the SPA community. The faculty and graduate students that constitute this incredible group provided a iv true sense of home and family in the department. Special thanks go to my cohort Stephanie Spielmann, Jessica Remedios, Judith Gere and Jeff Yen for setting the bar so high, and for laughing with me about the struggles we shared. I’d also like to thank my friends and colleagues Ruth Ditlmann and Teresa Tavassoli. Together we took on the challenge to pursue graduate education in different countries far away from home and without them it wouldn’t have been possible. I’m also grateful for the support and friendship of Gertraud Stadler. Working with her solidified my interest in becoming an academic, and her enthusiasm and personality continue to inspire me. I can’t express my gratitude to Peter Aulich, for his love, his unwavering belief in me, and for all the joy and happy moments we shared. He has been my solid foundation, always being there, cheering me up and giving me the strength I needed. Finally I’d like to thank my mother, Barbara Gutsell for being such a strong, caring, and inspiring woman. Her love and encouragement has given me the courage to follow my dreams.