Compassion for Your Future Self
A little kindness goes a long way
We all think of the future, but how do we do it?
Neuroscience has long assumed that the prefrontal cortex (PFC) controls our ability to think long-term. It’s the region that dictates our ability to foster relationships and use critical thinking. It manages functions like decision-making, reasoning, judgment, and emotional regulation. Self-control is an amalgam of these functions.
Research from the Universities of Zurich and Dusseldorf points to another part of the brain that may influence long-term decision-making, the temporoparietal junction (rTPJ). This region controls empathetic thought and selflessness. Empathy is our ability to understand the feeling and motivations of others.
Empathy and the Future Self
Alexander Soutschek, the lead researcher for the experiment, believes there is a link between self-control and empathy. He focuses on manipulating the rTPJ and its effects on both character traits.
To understand Soutschek’s assumption, we must look at empathy and goal-setting. When we empathize with someone, we slip into their mind. Our goal is to gain a better understanding of their perspective.
When we create goals, we’re doing the same thing. We’re trying to empathize with our future selves. We assume that our actions will make us happier.
Digging ourselves out of debt means we will have less stress, less worry, and more cash later in life. Yet, we’ll have to forego indulging in extra coffees or meals out in the present. We risk people seeing us as ‘cheap’ or ‘penny-pinchers.’ In making these decisions, we imagine what life could be like, and it feels good, so we make the trade-off. That’s empathy.
The TPJ itself is often thought of as the foundation for the Theory-of-Mind. It’s the ability to understand another person’s mental state. The right portion, scientists believe, is closely linked with selflessness.
How the rTPJ Affects Empathy
Soutschek designed experiments measuring activity in areas of the brain typically responsive when we make empathetic choices and long-term decisions. During each test, the rTPJ was “turned on and off”. They used a non-invasive technique called transcranial magnetic stimulation. This result gave the researchers a unique view of how the rTPJ responds to various questions.
The first question was run-of-the-mill, ‘do you want a smaller, immediate payout or a larger one in the future.’ To establish a payout baseline, they fluctuated in size and the timeline of the future payout.
The second question triggered feelings of empathy. Participants chose between a small reward and a moderate reward for themselves. If they took the lower reward, it meant a more substantial award for another participant.
Together these questions encapsulate the basis of self-control and empathy. The only difference for groups was whether the researchers tampered with their rTPJ. The group with a disrupted rTPJ was more likely to take immediately beneficial outcomes. And they were less likely to split their prize. If the other participant was a stranger, this effect was especially pronounced.
In the next experiment, the researchers sought to determine how the rTPJ might affect empathy. Participants had to take the perspective of a stranger. A picture showed a man in a room filled with red circles. The participants had to figure out which red circles the man could see by assuming his field of vision. With their rTPJ interrupted, they couldn’t imagine the man’s perspective. It was difficult for them to get out of their head.
Further Research on the TPJ
The results of Soutscheks team were similar to past work on empathy, future self, and the TPJ. It’s believed a better connected rTPJ increases the likelihood of prosocial behaviors, which relates to skills of executive function — individuals who exhibit lower empathy score higher for impulsivity — the opposite of self-control.
Keeping our future selves in mind may even keep our savings in check. In this research, Stanford University tested a “future self-continuity.” They wanted to explore how individuals related to their future selves. Participants were asked to identify how they felt about the overlap between their current and future selves. They used the Venn diagrams below for this exercise.
If they saw themselves as separate, they were more likely to choose immediate rewards. A more significant overlap increased the likelihood of selecting delayed rewards.
Their final study assessed individuals from the Bay area. The researchers found a correlation between wealth and the overlap between present and future selves.
While the above research is promising, it doesn’t paint the whole picture. Empathy seems useful, but making a sacrifice for our future self requires that we understand the reason behind it. The sacrifice is especially crucial — positive gains demand negative trade-offs.
That’s where altruism, our willingness to give to others, comes in.
Why Do We Sacrifice?
A University of Zurich research examined altruism’s driving factors. They found that the larger your rTPJ, the more likely you behave altruistically. Second, concerns about fairness affect how much we give.
In this experiment, individuals were more generous if their choice would decrease inequality. When inequality increased, participants were less likely to give. Helping ourselves should fall under the same belief. Our future selves are only as well equipped as we are.
Empathy and altruism, when focused on our well-being, are intimately linked. To give selflessly, we need genuine concern for another’s well-being. In this case, the ‘other’ is our future self.
The Takeaway
In an interview, Soutschek summarized his teams’ research, “from a neural perspective, the temporoparietal junction may represent the future self like another person. This means that the same brain mechanisms may be necessary to be patient for a future gain and for being able to share with another person.”
Focusing on your future self adds an invaluable support structure to goal attainment. It reminds you of the potential gains and the burden you place on your future self by failing to make changes.
Altruism takes this a step further. If we understand why we want to develop new habits or make life-altering decisions, we’ll have an easier time making the trade-off. Not only that, but we learn more about ourselves and our motivations.
I know better than anyone why I go to the gym each week. It would bore any of my friends to hear all my reasons why and I doubt I would want to share them. What matters is that they provide my ‘why,’ bolster my goals, make my workouts more enjoyable, and remind me to focus on the future benefits.
Each of us can harness these methods to help achieve our goals. We only need to take the time to empathize with ourselves.
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