A bad night’s sleep could make us less empathetic and more likely to focus on negatives, according to a leading neuroscientist.
Russell Foster, a professor of circadian neuroscience at the University of Oxford and the director of the Sleep and Circadian Neuroscience Institute, explained the link between sleep and empathy at the 2025 Hay Festival of Literature and Arts, which has partnered with The Independent for the second year running.
