People as third-party observers, without direct self-interest, may punish norm violators to maintain social norms. However, third-party judgment and the follow-up punishment might be susceptible to the way we frame (i.e., verbally describe) a norm violation. We conducted a behavioral and a neuroimaging experiment to investigate the above phenomenon, which we call the "third-party framing effect". In these experiments, participants observed an anonymous perpetrator deciding whether to keep her/his economic benefit while exposing a victim to a risk of physical pain (described as "harming others" in one condition and "not helping others" in the other condition), then they had a chance to punish that perpetrator at their own cost. Our results showed that the participants were more willing to execute third-party punishment under the harm frame compared to the help frame, manifesting a framing effect. Self-reported anger toward perpetrators mediated the relationship between empathy toward victims and the framing effect. Meanwhile, activation of the insula mediated the relationship between mid-cingulate cortex activation and the framing effect; the functional connectivity between these regions significantly predicted the size of the framing effect. These findings shed light on the psychological and neural mechanisms of the third-party framing effect.
Empathy ; Female ; Gyrus Cinguli ; Humans ; Neuroimaging ; Pain ; Punishment/psychology*

Objective:To compare the prevalence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in women with or without polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), and to evaluate association between PCOS and NAFLD.Methods:A cross-sectional study was performed including 122 PCOS patients (PCOS group) and 107 age, and body mass index (BMI)-matched women (control group). Anthropometric parameters, liver enzyme, lipid profile, glucose and insulin levels, sex hormones and hepatic ultrasonography were measured in all subjects. The clinical features, laboratory parameters and prevalence of NAFLD were compared between PCOS group and control group. The related factors were evaluated between PCOS and NAFLD, finally the role of insulin resistance (IR) and hyperandrogenism (HA) was analysed.Results:Women with PCOS had a significantly higher prevalence of NAFLD than those without PCOS (62.6% vs. 76.2%, P=0.025). Logistic regression found that HOMA-IR and FAI were associated with NAFLD in PCOS women ( OR=1.686, 95% CI=1.279-2.223; OR=1.167, 95% CI=1.039-1.311), however, there was no significant correlation between FAI and NAFLD after adjustment for HOMA-IR ( P>0.05). Conclusion:NAFLD is more prevalent in women with PCOS than in those without. Insulin resistance and HA drive risk of NAFLD in young female with PCOS. IR may be an independent risk factor for NAFLD, and the association between HA and NAFLD is not independent but is mediated by IR.

Objective:To compare the prevalence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in women with or without polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), and to evaluate association between PCOS and NAFLD.Methods:A cross-sectional study was performed including 122 PCOS patients (PCOS group) and 107 age, and body mass index (BMI)-matched women (control group). Anthropometric parameters, liver enzyme, lipid profile, glucose and insulin levels, sex hormones and hepatic ultrasonography were measured in all subjects. The clinical features, laboratory parameters and prevalence of NAFLD were compared between PCOS group and control group. The related factors were evaluated between PCOS and NAFLD, finally the role of insulin resistance (IR) and hyperandrogenism (HA) was analysed.Results:Women with PCOS had a significantly higher prevalence of NAFLD than those without PCOS (62.6% vs. 76.2%, P=0.025). Logistic regression found that HOMA-IR and FAI were associated with NAFLD in PCOS women ( OR=1.686, 95% CI=1.279-2.223; OR=1.167, 95% CI=1.039-1.311), however, there was no significant correlation between FAI and NAFLD after adjustment for HOMA-IR ( P>0.05). Conclusion:NAFLD is more prevalent in women with PCOS than in those without. Insulin resistance and HA drive risk of NAFLD in young female with PCOS. IR may be an independent risk factor for NAFLD, and the association between HA and NAFLD is not independent but is mediated by IR.