title: Are there sex differences in ERPs related to processing empathy-evoking pictures?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study aimed to investigate sex differences in the temporal dynamics of experiencing empathy by using electrophysiological measurements.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty-five females and 27 males viewed 414 pictures of the International affective picture system varying in emotional valence (positive, negative and neutral) and presence of humans (human and scenes). EEG event related potentials (ERPs) were obtained and correlations were computed with self-reported empathy.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Compared to males, females showed increased anterior N2 and parietal LPP amplitudes to humans contrasted with scenes (independent of emotional valence) and to negative contrasted with neutral emotions (independent of human presence). Independent of sex the N1 and anterior N2 were specifically increased for positive human emotions and the parietal LPP for negative human emotions. Across sexes, the N2 and LPP human emotion effects and LPP human effects were associated with self-reported affective empathy, but not with cognitive empathy.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study provides electrophysiological evidence that women prioritize the processing of socially relevant and negative emotional information, but that women did not show enhanced brain potentials to pictures with positive or negative emotions in humans.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Behavioural and Social Sciences, Department of Clinical and Developmental Neuropsychology, University of Groningen, Grote Kruisstraat 2/1,9712 TS Groningen, The Netherlands. y.groen@rug.nl
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Groen
authors.forename: A A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Wijers
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Tucha
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Althaus
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001143:Arousal / Q000502:physiology; D001931:Brain Mapping; D004569:Electroencephalography; D004644:Emotions / Q000502:physiology*; D004645:Empathy / Q000502:physiology*; D005071:Evoked Potentials / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual; D010775:Photic Stimulation / Q000379:methods; D057566:Self Report; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D055815:Young Adult