s releases to publicize research that is still in progress. The study in question may not have submitted for publication in peer-reviewed journal yet -- let alone accepted for publication. That’s crucial to understand, because preliminary findings can be deceptive. In some cases, a study heralded in a press release never gets published at all.
And then there are the everyday mix-ups -- misunderstandings that arise between the researcher and the person writing the press release.
Put it all together, and it's no surprise that many press releases contain errors -- sometimes really big errors.
False claims about empathy and the teenage brain
Consider the coverage that an fMRI study got a few years ago. Researchers asked volunteers to think about what they would do in certain hypothetical situations, e.g.,
“What would you do if you were at the cinema and had trouble seeing the screen? Would you move to another seat?”
As subjects answered these questions, their brain activity was recorded. Intriguingly, the pattern of brain activity differed for adolescent and adult subjects (Blakemore et al 2007).
The full details were published in 2007. But six months before the study was published, a press release was circulated about the results.
Headlines went up around the web: “Teenage brains lack empathy.”
The popular stories claimed that, compared with adults, teenagers “underuse” the medial prefrontal cortex, a part of the brain associated with empathy, guilt and social decision making.
One version of the story, posted on WebMD.com and CBSnews.com, began with this way : “It may be a "me first" world in the typical teen brain. Brain scans show that teen's brains may still be developing when it comes to sensitivity to other people's feelings.”
Another version began with this claim “If you ever sense teenagers are not taking your feelings into account, it's probably because they're just incapable of doing so.”
Well, first of all, it’s a big leap to assume that because teens and adults process information differently, one group is more empathic than another. And I’m skeptical about the idea that teenagers are somehow less sensitive to the pain of others.
So that’s what bothered me when I first saw the popular headlines. But when I actually read the study, I discovered these surprising facts (Blakemore et al 2007).
1. The study didn’t really have anything to do with empathy. It was about asking people to anticipate their intentions. Just to be sure, I checked with the principal investigator. She confirms that the hypothetical scenarios presented in the study were “devoid of emotional content.”
2. There was no difference in the way that teens and adults answered the questions. In terms of behavior, both groups performed the same way.
3. Contrary to the popular story that teens “underuse” the medial frontal cortex, the study actually established the opposite pattern .
Teenagers showed more activity in the medial prefrontal cortex, not less.
That’s right. The teens used the medial prefrontal cortex--the part of the brain associated with empathy and social decision making-- more than adults did.
Why? That’s not clear. Possibly, it reflects efficiency. In general, adult brains have more streamlined neural networks, making them faster and more efficient processors of information. Teen brains might have to work harder to get the same answers. They may need more oxygen or energy to power their neural circuits (Burnett and Blakemore 2009).
Life experiences might play a role, too. I’ve had a lot of experience making decisions about where to sit at the cinema. Ask me a hypothetical question about it, and I don’t have to deliberate to give you an answer about what I would do. For teens, answering such questions might require more conscious thought (Burnett and Blakemore 2009).
Or maybe teenagers—who are notoriously self-conscious and concerned about how others respond to them—are more likely to view changing seats in a theater as a social problem.
But whatever the explanation, the fact remains: The widely-reported story about teen brains “lacking emp