www.psypost.org Open in urlscan Pro
141.193.213.21  Public Scan

URL: https://www.psypost.org/female-submissives-reduced-empathy-others-suffering-study-finds/
Submission: On November 28 via manual from BR — Scanned from SG

Form analysis 5 forms found in the DOM

GET https://www.psypost.org/

<form action="https://www.psypost.org/" method="get" class="jeg_search_form" target="_top"> <input name="s" class="jeg_search_input" placeholder="Search..." type="text" value="" autocomplete="off"> <button aria-label="Search Button" type="submit"
    class="jeg_search_button btn"><i class="fa fa-search"></i></button></form>

GET https://www.psypost.org/

<form action="https://www.psypost.org/" method="get" class="jeg_search_form" target="_top"> <input name="s" class="jeg_search_input" placeholder="Search..." type="text" value="" autocomplete="off"> <button aria-label="Search Button" type="submit"
    class="jeg_search_button btn"><i class="fa fa-search"></i></button></form>

POST #

<form action="#" data-type="login" method="post" accept-charset="utf-8">
  <h3>Welcome Back!</h3>
  <p>Login to your account below</p>
  <div class="form-message"></div>
  <p class="input_field"> <input type="text" name="username" placeholder="Username" value=""></p>
  <p class="input_field"> <input type="password" name="password" placeholder="Password" value=""></p>
  <p class="input_field remember_me"> <input type="checkbox" id="remember_me" name="remember_me" value="true"> <label for="remember_me">Remember Me</label></p>
  <p class="submit"> <input type="hidden" name="action" value="login_handler"> <input type="hidden" name="jnews_nonce" value="1ff3366c3d"> <input type="submit" name="jeg_login_button" class="button" value="Log In" data-process="Processing . . ."
      data-string="Log In"></p>
  <div class="bottom_links clearfix"> <a href="#jeg_forgotform" class="jeg_popuplink forgot">Forgotten Password?</a></div>
</form>

POST #

<form action="#" data-type="forgot" method="post" accept-charset="utf-8">
  <h3>Retrieve your password</h3>
  <p>Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.</p>
  <div class="form-message"></div>
  <p class="input_field"> <input type="text" name="user_login" placeholder="Your email or username" value=""></p>
  <div class="g-recaptcha" data-sitekey=""></div>
  <p class="submit"> <input type="hidden" name="action" value="forget_password_handler"> <input type="hidden" name="jnews_nonce" value="1ff3366c3d"> <input type="submit" name="jeg_login_button" class="button" value="Reset Password"
      data-process="Processing . . ." data-string="Reset Password"></p>
  <div class="bottom_links clearfix"> <a href="#jeg_loginform" aria-label="" class="jeg_popuplink"><i class="fa fa-lock"></i> Log In</a></div>
</form>

POST #

<form action="#" method="post" accept-charset="utf-8">
  <h3>Add New Playlist</h3>
  <div class="form-message"></div>
  <div class="form-group">
    <p class="input_field"> <input type="text" name="title" placeholder="Playlist Name" value=""></p>
    <p class="input_field"> <select name="visibility">
        <option disabled="" selected="selected" value="">- Select Visibility -</option>
        <option value="public">Public</option>
        <option value="private">Private</option>
      </select></p>
    <div class="submit"> <input type="hidden" name="type" value="create_playlist"> <input type="hidden" name="action" value="playlist_handler"> <input type="hidden" name="post_id" value=""> <input type="hidden" name="jnews-playlist-nonce"
        value="f3c9817329"> <input type="submit" name="jeg_save_button" class="button" value="Save" data-process="Processing . . ." data-string="Save"></div>
  </div>
</form>

Text Content

Subscribe
The latest psychology and neuroscience discoveries.
My Account
 * Mental Health
 * Social Psychology
 * Cognitive Science
 * Psychopharmacology
 * Neuroscience
 * About


No Result
View All Result
PsyPost



PsyPost
No Result
View All Result


Home Exclusive Social Psychology


FEMALE SUBMISSIVES HAVE REDUCED EMPATHY TO OTHERS’ SUFFERING, STUDY ON BDSM
FINDS

by Eric W. Dolan
February 27, 2017
in Social Psychology


(Photo credit: Andrey Kiselev)



Share on TwitterShare on Facebook

Female “subs” show reduced empathic responses to others’ suffering, according to
preliminary research on BDSM practitioners.

“Our behavioral and neuroimaging findings cast new light on the relationship
between BDSM activities and empathy by yielding evidence that BDSM experience
might moderate empathic tendencies an empathic neural responses,” the
researchers wrote in their study, which was published in the journal
Neuropsychologia.

Two experiments conducted in the study indicated that women who adopted a
submissive role (subs) also tended to be less empathetic.

The first experiment of 365 Chinese adults found female subs showed decreased
empathic ability compared with a control group of non-practitioners. But there
was no difference between female “switches” — meaning women who switch between
dominant and submissive roles — and the control group. Likewise, there was no
difference in empathic ability between male practitioners and the control group.

Both male and female practitioners, however, reported diminished feelings of
subjective pain intensity when viewing facial expressions indicating pain.

“These findings are consistent with previous findings suggesting that the
reduction in empathic responses to others’ suffering was associated with
frequent exposure to pain-inflicting situations,” the researchers explained.



In the second experiment, the researchers monitored the brain activity of 64
Chinese women using an EEG while the women viewed images of painful and neutral
facial expressions. This experiment found a “reliable reduction in empathic
brain responses to perceived pain in others in the female submissive group.”

The authors of the study cautioned that researchers are still in the beginning
stages of understanding how BDSM impacts empathy.

“Future research should aim to further clarify whether and how variety in
practices and interpersonal relationships during BDSM practices shape
individuals’ perceptions of others’ feelings.”



The study, “Empathy in female submissive BDSM practitioners“, was authored by
Siyang Luo and Xiao Zhang.

Recommended for you
Recommended by

10 Interesting Facts About Earth's Oceans

TweetSendScanShareSendPin1ShareShareShare





RELATED

Political Psychology


NEW STUDY UNCOVERS PSYCHOLOGICAL ROOTS OF SUPPORT FOR PARTISAN VIOLENCE IN THE
UNITED STATES

November 27, 2024

Dehumanization of opponents and a "need for chaos" emerged as key drivers of
support for partisan violence, underscoring that psychological factors are more
influential predictors than ideological beliefs.

Read moreDetails
Social Psychology


MASCULINE HONOR, SOCIAL IDENTITY, AND THE SICILIAN MAFIA: NEW INSIGHTS FROM
RESEARCH

November 26, 2024

A recent study found that masculine honor predicts justification of
Mafia-aligned behaviors, strengthened by territorial identity and weakened by
national identity.

Read moreDetails
Social Psychology


OBESITY’S EFFECTS ON RELATIONSHIPS AND HEALTH APPEAR TO BE REDUCED IN AREAS WITH
HIGHER PREVALENCE

November 25, 2024

Individuals with obesity face fewer social and health challenges in regions with
high obesity prevalence, likely due to reduced weight bias, though economic
disparities persist regardless of regional obesity rates.

Read moreDetails
Psychopathy


SECONDARY PSYCHOPATHIC TRAITS LINKED TO FASTER EXPANSION OF VISUAL ATTENTION

November 25, 2024

Researchers found that individuals with higher levels of antisociality are
quicker to expand their attentional focus, a sign of reduced control over
attention. This sheds light on the cognitive mechanisms behind psychopathy’s
behavioral patterns.

Read moreDetails
Divorce


ARE WOMEN BETTER AT FORECASTING RELATIONSHIP OUTCOMES? NEW STUDY PROVIDES
INTRIGUING INSIGHTS

November 24, 2024

New research challenges long-standing assumptions about gender differences in
predicting relationship breakups.

Read moreDetails
Neuroimaging


LONELY INDIVIDUALS TEND TO THINK AND TALK IN AN UNUSUAL WAY, STUDY FINDS

November 24, 2024

Lonely individuals show atypical neural and linguistic responses to celebrities,
diverging from group norms. Their unique perceptions reflect a lack of shared
reality, reinforcing feelings of isolation and highlighting deviations in social
cognition linked to loneliness.

Read moreDetails
Parenting


SEPARATED FATHERS STRUGGLE TO MAINTAIN CONTACT WITH CHILDREN, ESPECIALLY
DAUGHTERS, STUDY FINDS

November 24, 2024

A new study examines how Italian families use face-to-face, phone, and digital
contact after parental separation, uncovering a persistent gender gap. Mothers
maintain much closer relationships with their children than fathers,
particularly with daughters.

Read moreDetails
Mental Health


SEXUAL AND GENDER MINORITIES FACE GREATER SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC HARDSHIPS,
RESEARCH FINDS

November 22, 2024

Sexual and gender minorities face significantly higher rates of social risk
factors like isolation, stress, and economic hardship. These disparities
highlight the need for policies addressing systemic inequities to improve health
and socioeconomic well-being.

Read moreDetails






SUBSCRIBE

Go Ad-Free! Click here to subscribe to PsyPost and support independent science
journalism!


STAY CONNECTED




RECENT


NEW STUDY UNCOVERS PSYCHOLOGICAL ROOTS OF SUPPORT FOR PARTISAN VIOLENCE IN THE
UNITED STATES


QUICK BURSTS OF STAIR CLIMBING ENHANCE ENERGY AND MENTAL PERFORMANCE


LARGEST BRAIN CONNECTIVITY STUDY OF YOUTH DEPRESSION REVEALS KEY NETWORK
DISRUPTIONS


MASCULINE HONOR, SOCIAL IDENTITY, AND THE SICILIAN MAFIA: NEW INSIGHTS FROM
RESEARCH


HANGXIETY 101: THE BRAIN CHEMISTRY BEHIND POST-DRINKING DREAD


GUT-BRAIN CONNECTION: PROINFLAMMATORY BACTERIA LINKED TO HIPPOCAMPAL CHANGES IN
DEPRESSION


APOE4 GENE MAY INFLUENCE BRAIN BARRIER FUNCTION IN EARLY STAGES OF ALZHEIMER’S
DISEASE


HIGH-POTENCY CANNABIS USE LEAVES A DISTINCT MARK ON DNA





         
       



 * Contact us
 * Privacy policy
 * Terms and Conditions

[Do not sell my information]





WELCOME BACK!

Login to your account below







Remember Me



Forgotten Password?


RETRIEVE YOUR PASSWORD

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.









Log In


ADD NEW PLAYLIST



- Select Visibility -PublicPrivate



Subscribe
 * My Account
 * Cognitive Science Research
 * Mental Health Research
 * Social Psychology Research
 * Drug Research
 * Relationship Research
 * About PsyPost
 * Contact
 * Privacy Policy