Moral elevation, or elevation, is a specific emotional state triggered by witnessing displays of
profound virtue and moral beauty. This study set out to characterize the physiology
underlying elevation with measurements of heart rate (HR), respiratory sinus arrhythmia
(RSA), and medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) activity. During elevation, HR and RSA
increased. These findings illustrate that elevation involves an uncommon combination of
both sympathetic and parasympathetic activation, which is present in circumstances where …