Abstract
Revenge during intergroup conflict is a human universal, but its neurobiological underpinnings remain unclear. We address this by integrating functional MRI and measurements of endogenous oxytocin in participants who view an ingroup and an outgroup member's suffering that is caused mutually (Revenge group) or by a computer (Control group). We show that intergroup conflict encountered by the Revenge group is associated with an increased level of oxytocin in saliva compared to that in the Control group. Furthermore, the medial prefrontal activity in response to ingroup pain in the Revenge group but not in the Control group mediates the association between endogenous oxytocin and the propensity to give painful electric shocks to outgroup members, regardless of whether they were directly involved in the conflict. Our findings highlight an important neurobiological correlate of revenge propensity, which may be implicated in conflict contagion across individuals in the context of intergroup conflict.
Highlights
Revenge, which refers to taking actions of harming someone in retaliation for an injury (Elshout et al, 2015; Jackson et al, 2019), is a global phenomenon and a causal factor in many homicides and transgenerational conflicts (Kopsaj, 2016; Jackson et al, 2019)
The indirect effect size was 0.25, with a 95% confidence interval that did not include zero (0.08–0.46). These results indicate that the mPFC activity in response to ingroup pain caused by an outgroup mediates the association between endogenous OT measured after initially witnessing intergroup conflict and tendencies to retaliate upon outgroup members, regardless of whether they directly
Revenge behavior during intergroup conflict engages multiple psychological processes from perceiving ingroup suffering to making aggressive decisions toward outgroups
Summary
Revenge, which refers to taking actions of harming someone in retaliation for an injury (Elshout et al, 2015; Jackson et al, 2019), is a global phenomenon and a causal factor in many homicides and transgenerational conflicts (Kopsaj, 2016; Jackson et al, 2019). Revenge often occurs between families or clans when an outgroup member brings harm to an ingroup member which, in turn, induces retaliation upon outgroup members (Ericksen and Horton, 1992). According to early social psychological theories (Allport et al, 1954; Brewer, 1999), a desire to help the ingroup (‘ingroup love’) and/or an aggressive motivation to hurt the outgroup (‘outgroup hate’) may drive participation in intergroup conflict by taking revenge. Building upon previous findings (Halevy et al, 2008; De Dreu, 2010; De Dreu et al, 2010; Halevy et al, 2012), we suggest that there may be a neurobiological mechanism that links perceived ingroup pain caused by an outgroup and the propensity to seek revenge upon an outgroup during intergroup conflict. The present work examined the hormonal (i.e., oxytocin) and neural responses to ingroup suffering caused by an outgroup that predict revenge propensity against outgroups
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