Empathy & Compassion

Empathy

• We cannot solve violence in our society with high fences and razor wire. If we are
to fight violence effectively and uplift our communities for a sustainable future,
we will have to reach into the hearts of learners and develop that vital quality
called 'empathy'.

• Main objective of humane education is development and nurturing of EMPATHY.

• Empathy means: I identify the way you feel.

• Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another being.
 Empathy

• Simon Baron-Cohen, the Professor of Developmental Psychopathology at

University of Cambridge, England in his book, “The Science of Evil: On Empathy
and the Origins of Cruelty”, offers a new theory on what causes people to behave
with extreme cruelty.

• He suggests that ‘evil’ can be explained as a complete lack of empathy. He also

looks at social and environmental factors that can reduce empathy, including
neglect and abuse.
 Empathy

Baron-Cohen points out:

• As a scientist I want to understand what causes people to treat others as if they

were mere objects

• Challenge is to explain how people are capable of causing extreme hurt, by

moving the debate into the realm of science

• Let's start by substituting the concept of 'evil', with the term 'empathy erosion', a
condition that arises when we objectify others. This has the effect of devaluing
them, and erosion of empathy is a state of mind that can be found in any culture.
 Empathy

Baron-Cohen points out:

• Empathy is like 'a dimmer switch' on a light - with a range from low to medium to high.

• When empathy is dimmed, it causes us to think only of our own interests.

• When we are solely in the 'I' mode, our empathy is switched off.

• Baron-Cohen has developed a scale from 0–6 to measure the differing degrees of empathy
among people. Level Zero is when an individual has no empathy at all. At Level 6, an
individual displays remarkable empathy.

• Majority of people fall between Levels 2-4 on the scale.

 Empathy

Baron-Cohen's Barometer of Empathy

• Level 0 - People have no empathy at all. These people find relationships difficult
and they cannot understand how another is feeling. They may or may not be cruel
to others.

• Level 1 - People tend to lack self-control. Level 1 people hurt others because when
they get upset they cannot control their behavior.

• Level 2 - People have difficulty with empathy but have enough empathy to
understand that they have hurt someone afterwards
 Empathy

Baron-Cohen's Barometer of Empathy

• Level 3 - People still have difficulty having and showing empathy. They know
they don't understand something that everyone else does. Social interaction is
hard.

• Level 4 - People have a low-average amount of empathy; this level is more typical
of normal men. They prefer not to talk about emotions and base friendships more
on shared activities.
 Empathy

Baron-Cohen's Barometer of Empathy

• Level 5 - People are slightly above average on empathy and more typically
female. They are careful about how they interact with others, trying to be sensitive
to the feelings of others.

• Level 6 - Represents people with unusually high levels of empathy. They can pick
up on the feelings of others and are deeply interested in them.
 Empathy

Baron-Cohen says:

• Empathy is most valuable social resource in our world

• In school or parenting curricula empathy figures hardly at all

• In politics, business, the courts, or policing, it is rarely, if ever, on the agenda

• Erosion of empathy is a critical global issue of our time

• It relates to health of our communities; small (like families) or big (like nations)
 Empathy

Baron-Cohen says:

• Without empathy we risk the breakdown of relationships, become capable of hurting

others, and cause conflict

• With empathy, we have a resource to resolve conflict, increase community cohesion, and
dissolve another person's pain

• We must put empathy back on the agenda

• We need to realize what a powerful resource we as a species have, at our very fingertips,
if only we prioritize it.
 Empathy

• Early development of empathy helps to prevent further development of egocentric

perspective.

• Teaching empathy is not just about helping learners to recognize consequences, but also to
feel these – even when they relate to others.

• It turns a self-centered perspective into an ‘other-centered’ and ‘altruistic perspective’.

• This leads to a more enlightened and compassionate outlook.

• It also leads to a deeper search for the moral compass within.

 Compassion

• Many people consider empathy and compassion to have the same meaning, and they are
frequently used interchangeably. However, they are actually quite different

• Empathy is ability to understand and share the feelings of another. It is an emotional

response to a person’s situation or well-being. The ability to empathize can sometimes be
developed when you try to understand how another individual may be feeling – imaging
yourself in the same situation and thus feeling the same emotions as the person you are
feeling empathy for. However, although you feel the same emotions, you do not take
actions on your feelings; you do nothing to alleviate the emotions of the person/animal
you are feeling empathy for.
 Compassion

• On the other hand, when you feel compassion, you have more of a desire to take action.
You can understand a person or animal’s pain and suffering. You place yourself in the
shoes of the individual, but you feel that you want to do something to relieve the pain and
suffering.

• Compassion is an emotion which calls for action. You are motivated to take action to
ensure a positive outcome.

• So, the ultimate aim of humane education should be the development of compassion, with
empathy as an important step in this process.

• This can be encouraged by the inclusion of practical programs to take action for animals,
and the development of a volunteering ethos
 Empathy vs Compassion

• By showing your empathy, you are creating a passive emotion towards an individual.
Although you feel the same emotions, you do not take actions on your feelings; you do
nothing to alleviate the emotions of the person you are feeling empathy for.

• Compassion is a word used to express the same feeling as empathy. Yet when you feel
compassion, you have more of a desire to take action. You can understand a person’s pain.
You place yourself in the shoes of the individual, but you feel that you want to achieve
more. Compassion is an emotion which calls for action. If a person is distressed you want
to provide the individual with comfort; you want to take action to ensure a positive
outcome.
 Empathy vs Compassion

• An excellent example of empathy and compassion can be found in death. If we know of

someone who has experienced the bereavement of a loved one we will instantly express
our sorrow at their loss. We will remember what it was like when we lost a loved one; we
will identify with our personal experiences and relate them to the person who has recently
been bereaved. This is showing empathy to the individual, it is a passive emotion that
requires us to take no action. If we show the individual compassion for their loss, not only
will we understand and identify with the same feelings, but we will want to take some
kind of action to alleviate their pain. For example, we may want to provide physical
reassurance that everything’s going to be ok, or we may want to take away some of the
pressure away by helping them with their daily tasks.
 Empathy vs Compassion

Summary

• Many people use both words to explain the same emotion.

• Although thought of as the same, Empathy and Compassion are different forms of the
same emotion.

• Empathy and Compassion require you to imaginatively experience the same feelings as
the person or situation in question.

• Empathy is seen as a passive emotional response.

• Compassion requires you to take positive action to alleviate a person’s pain or situation.
 Sympathy vs Empathy

• Sympathy and Empathy are two of the most common misunderstood terms

• Both sympathy and empathy are acts of feelings

• With sympathy though, you feel for the person. You pity or feel sorry for them but
you do not necessarily understand what they are actually feeling. As a result of
this you tend to have no choice but feel sympathetic for the person because you do
not understand the problem that they are presently having
 Sympathy vs Empathy

• Empathy on the other hand takes a little more imagination, work, or even similar
situations to gain empathy for someone. It is most often referred to as higher order
in the overall complexity of the human emotions.

• You can describe empathy as sharing a feeling with someone

• Sometimes it may seem impossible for someone to feel empathetic to a person’s

feelings because of their reactions. These reactions involve their thoughts and
feelings towards the issue and are going to be unique to each and every individual.

• Idea of empathy though implies a much more active process than sympathy does.
 Sympathy vs Empathy

• It is hard for you to empathetic to a person’s feelings but it can be easy for you to
feel sympathy.

• It is easy for you to feel sympathy for someone who has lost a loved one, has
undergone some certain kind of trauma, or have faced some very difficult times.

• When sympathy is expressed to a person that is experiencing grief suggests to you

that that person is alone in their grief. Empathy on the other hand suggests to the
person that you are right by their side through the whole issue that they are dealing
with, at the moment. You have the ability to imagine how it is to be in their shoes