Punks lack empathy – Queen fans have loads

Do you enjoy the songs of Queen more than the Sex Pistols? We can empathise…

Fans of punk have been found to be less empathetic than those who enjoy Queen in a Cambridge University study

o you feel more of a connection with Jeff Buckley than Metallica, or enjoy the songs of Queen more than the Sex Pistols? If so, you may be more empathetic than your metal-loving sister or punk-worshipping neighbour, according to the results of a new study by Cambridge University.

The study took 4,000 people and subjected them to a series of tests, with the end result separating the participants into two distinct groups: ’empathisers’ and ‘systemisers’. Those classified as empathisers were considered more responsive to the emotions of those around them, while a systemiser would base their decisions on rules and patterns. As part of the test, each of the 4,000 participants was asked to give a rating to 26 different genres of music. The results saw that people who liked Jeff Buckley and Queen were more likely to be empathisers, while those who preferred Metallica and Sex Pistols tended to be systemisers.

David Greenberg headed the study and had this to say: “Although people’s music choices fluctuate over time, we’ve discovered a person’s empathy levels and thinking style predicts what kind of music they like.In fact, their cognitive style – whether they’re strong on empathy or strong on systems – can be a better predictor of what music they like than their personality.”

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