Poor people are quicker than middle-class or rich individuals to recognize the suffering of others and to show compassion, according to a new study.

It included more than 300 young adults who were divided into groups that took part in three experiments designed to assess their levels of empathy and compassion.

The findings challenge previous research that concluded lower-class people are more likely to react with anxiety and hostility when faced with adversity, said the researchers at the University of California, Berkeley.

"These latest results indicate that there’s a culture of compassion and cooperation among lower-class individuals that may be born out of threats to their well-being," study author and social psychologist Jennifer Stellar said in a university news release.

"It’s not that the upper classes are cold-hearted. They may just not be as adept at recognizing the cues and signals of suffering because they haven’t had to deal with as many obstacles in their lives," she explained.

The findings, published online Dec. 12 in the journal Emotion, suggest a scientific basis for emotional differences between the rich and poor that are depicted in such Charles Dickens classics as "A Christmas Carol" and "A Tale of Two Cities."

The results also indicate that people from lower socioeconomic backgrounds may do better in cooperative settings than those who are wealthy.

"Upper-class individuals appear to be more self-focused, they’ve grown up with more freedom and autonomy," Stellar said. "They may do better in an individualist, competitive environment."

一项新研究发现，穷人比中产阶级或富人更易察觉到他人受的苦难，表现出同情心。

该研究涵盖了300多名年轻人，他们被分成几个小组，参加了三个试验，目的是评估他们的同感能力和同情心。

加利福尼亚大学伯克利分校的研究人员称，先前的研究得出结论说，下层社会的人在面临逆境时更容易出现焦虑和敌意。以上的研究发现向先前的研究结果发出了挑战。

该研究的作者、社会心理学家珍妮弗•斯黛拉在大学的一篇新闻通稿中说：“这些最新的研究结果显示，下层社会的民众中有同情和合作的文化，这可能是为应对自身幸福受到的威胁而产生的。”

她解释说：“并不是上层社会的人冷酷无情。他们也许只是没能那么快地察觉到他人的苦难，因为他们在自己的生活中从不需要去应对这么多的阻碍。”

这些研究结果12月12日发表在《情感》杂志的网刊上，研究为查尔斯•狄更斯的经典小说《圣诞颂歌》和《双城记》中描绘的富人和穷人间的情感差异提供了科学依据。

研究结果还表明，在需要合作的环境中，社会经济背景较差的人可能会比富人表现得更好。

斯黛拉说：“上层社会的人看起来更专注于自身，他们成长过程中有更多自由和自主权，在个人主义的竞争性环境中他们可能会表现得更好。”