Social hierarchy effect on the evaluation of other's suffering

Abstract

Pain becomes a socially constructed experience when it is expressed to others. Several psychosocial factors can affect how one interprets another's pain. One of the elements that has been little studied is the position of an individual in the social hierarchy, a concept that is nevertheless central to social interactions. The main goal of this study was therefore to see how the hierarchical position of individuals influenced their evaluation of the pain of others. To do so, the perception of the hierarchical position of each participant was experimentally manipulated. Then, they were asked to judge the intensity of pain expressed in video clips of facial expressions of pain. Despite the effectiveness of the manipulation, analyses showed no effect of hierarchical position on reported pain intensity scores. This study is the first behavioral study to examine the relationship between hierarchical position and the assessment of others' pain.