Cook: You mention "theory of mind" and crying. Can you tell me more about the connection between the two?
Trimble: Theory of mind refers to an area of social cognition which has developed hugely in humans, although similar abilities in much more limited forms have been shown in chimpanzees. The ability to feel compassion, the embodiment of which relates to our capacity for empathy, is triggered by what the neurologist Antonio Damasio refers to as emotionally competent stimuli. The responses are automatic, unconscious and bound in with our personal memories. Seeing facial expressions of sadness trigger the neuronal circuits related to theory of mind and empathy, which to some extent overlap, and involve, in part, those brain areas that give us our visceral, emotional feelings noted above. The tear, as part of the expression of suffering, became an emblem embroidering the expression. The tear, mythological linked with purity with a pearl shape has provided an image which, over time, has come by itself to symbolise sadness, grief, but also joy in music, poetry and the visual arts.

Cook: What lesson do you think this holds for us?
Trimble: Tears are a natural response to not only suffering, but also to feeling compassion for someone who is shedding tears. There has been much reluctance, especially on behalf of men, to admit to crying, and to crying in public. Yet Greek heroes such as Agamemnon and Achilles cried, and 2012 has seen many public tears, from the winners and losers in the Olympic games, to President Obama who cried after his re-election victory. We should not be afraid of our emotions, especially those related to compassion, since our ability to feel empathy and with that to cry tears, is the foundation of a morality and culture which is exclusively human.

Are you a scientist who specializes in neuroscience, cognitive science, or psychology? And have you read a recent peer-reviewed paper that you would like to write about? Please send suggestions to Mind Matters editor Gareth Cook, a Pulitzer prize-winning journalist at the Boston Globe. He can be reached at garethideas AT gmail.com or Twitter @garethideas.

10 Comments

1. 1. Carneades-IgnosticMorgan 11:48 AM 1/29/13

   This young man of sixty-five cries!
   I'm interested in empathy- our evolved moral sense.
   Were there a way to implant a moral sense in the psychopaths and such!
   

   Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this

2. 2. Derick D 12:23 PM 1/29/13

   
   Empathy and morality are clearly at the root of our social and moral selves, yet both are oddly absent from the theoretical underpinnings of the one social system that most directly influences our lives at every level - our economic system.

   Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this

3. 3. sunnystrobe in reply to Carneades-IgnosticMorgan 12:38 PM 1/30/13

   That would be a waste of effort; nothing but crocodile tears- as psychopaths are born with non-empathetic wiring systems!

   Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this

4. 4. Dr.d 05:47 PM 1/30/13

   The preceding comment, which somehow disappeared before I could find the exact quote, was as follows:
   Dr; Trimble: "All this (theory of mind interpretations) before the development of our elegant propositional language." Parenthesis supplied. The inherited language faculty, however primitive as could be imagined at about the age Piaget argued a toddler can conclude he is not an extension of his crib and tell the difference between self and the crib, i.e., self-conscious state. This 'proto-language' evolves with the child and is 'sine qua non' for any empathy between self and others and is an uniquely human feature especially when the subject can consciously trump the strong subconscious driving force of human species self preservation (biopsychosocial or 'bps' imperative) in behalf of altruistic behaviors history records. There is lots of good 'theory of mind' work on mirror neurons, fMRI synchrony between self and other, etc. that Dr. Trimble should look at before voicing his pronouncements. In case the preceding comment was lost, the reader may see Vol. III <http://delaSierra-Sheffer.net> where I interpret this empathic interspecies communication ability as utilizing same processing as in attaining an introspective self-conscious state where a 'proto-language' plays a role.' Sorry the more detaild explanation is lost. Dr.d

   Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this

5. 5. TonyTrenton 07:28 AM 1/31/13

   The main purpose of crying is to relieve stress.

   Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this

6. 6. annabanna 06:42 PM 1/31/13

   It is ridiculous to continue to find ways to make humans special. We aren't special because as humans, we cry tears. Other animals feel empathy too. Human beings are extraordinary, but we have got to stop finding new and inventive ways to pat ourselves on the back. So what, we cry tears and those primates don’t. What humanity needs is some good old fashioned humility.

   Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this

7. 7. CEngelbrecht 11:53 AM 2/10/13

   There was a recent interesting discussion about the morphological reason for human tears:
   http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/AAT/message/60247
   
   It doesn't concern itself as much with the psychic purpose of emotional tears (e.g. exclamation of empathy), but more the morphological purpose of it being possibly to prevent hypoxic damage of the eye balls in a non-air environment (the psychic exuding of tears being more an exaptation in such case). It was a new angle that I thought was interesting.

   Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this

8. 8. rwolfe7 10:43 PM 2/12/13

   Humans differ from animals due to higher cognitive levels. This higher order of thinking is what enables humans to act beyond their animal ancestors. This factor is why humans are able to feel and express emotion. The crying that humans express is due to a natural reflex to an overwhelming amount of stress. Animals do not feel this stress because they live lives that are simple and easily maintained. Humans have the ability to cry due to the advancement in the limbic system of their brains. The neural anatomy that humans are equipped with allow the emotional flow to connect with other beings and this also brings the vulnerability that causes crying to happen so often these days.

   Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this

9. 9. RussellK 10:29 PM 3/19/13

   This article is... actually.... beautiful.

   Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this

10. 10. katesisco 07:42 PM 4/8/13

    There is an interesting experiment done which was reported of late dealing with small (6 mo) tots. Puppets were used with the tots viewing. Things went as expected until the puppets that were disfavored.... http://www.disinfo.com/2013/04/babies-prefer-individuals-who-harm-those-who-arent-like-them/
    So where does our humanity start? When we teach ourselves the benefits of reciprocity.
    
    I happen to believe that there is another urge as strong as food and sex; we insist on fairness. What else is a media campaign than to sway our ideas of fairness? What makes a perfect slave? Why do all civilizations make an effort --generally as minimal as possible--to show reciprocity?
    
    

    Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this