The neuroscience of prosocial behaviour towards in- and outgroup members

Abstract

Our decade is characterised by global challenges such as environmental changes and a worldwide pandemic. Meeting these challenges requires prosociality and cooperation that transcends borders and ethnicities. Prosocial behaviour between different groups has been investigated in social psychology for a long time, and, more recently, in social neuroscience research as well. This chapter reviews the motivation behind prosocial behaviours towards individuals of one's own social group (ingroup members) and individuals of a different social group (outgroup member) from a neuroscience perspective. It discusses commonalities and differences in the neural circuitries that are associated with prosocial motivation towards ingroup and outgroup individuals, link these results to psychological theories and proposes potential interventions to foster prosocial behaviour towards outgroup members.