Social cognition in aggressive offenders: Impaired empathy, but intact theory of mind

TLDR

Aggressive violent behaviour poses a major societal burden and has been linked to social understanding deficits, though evidence is inconsistent and specific deficits remain unclear. The study examined affective empathy and cognitive Theory of Mind in aggressive individuals. Twenty-nine aggressive men and 32 controls completed the EmpaToM video task distinguishing empathy and Theory of Mind, along with aggression and alexithymia questionnaires. Aggressive participants displayed reduced empathic responses linked to aggression severity, while Theory of Mind remained intact, and mediation analysis showed alexithymia accounted for the empathy deficit, underscoring the need to differentiate socio‑affective and socio‑cognitive deficits in aggression.

Abstract

Abstract Aggressive, violent behaviour is a major burden and challenge for society. It has been linked to deficits in social understanding, but the evidence is inconsistent and the specifics of such deficits are unclear. Here, we investigated affective (empathy) and cognitive (Theory of Mind) routes to understanding other people in aggressive individuals. Twenty-nine men with a history of legally relevant aggressive behaviour (i.e. serious assault) and 32 control participants were tested using a social video task (EmpaToM) that differentiates empathy and Theory of Mind and completed questionnaires on aggression and alexithymia. Aggressive participants showed reduced empathic responses to emotional videos of others’ suffering, which correlated with aggression severity. Theory of Mind performance, in contrast, was intact. A mediation analysis revealed that reduced empathy in aggressive men was mediated by alexithymia. These findings stress the importance of distinguishing between socio-affective and socio-cognitive deficits for understanding aggressive behaviour and thereby contribute to the development of more efficient treatments.