Glossary / Lexicon

Empathy refers to identification with or sharing of another's feelings, situation, or attitudes nad ist the attribution of one's personal feelings or attitudes to an external object.

Likewise it is the vicarious experience of another's feelings; putting oneself in another's shoes.
Empathy refers also to the ability to put oneself in the shoes of another person-to experience events and emotions (e.g., joy and sadness) the way that person experiences them. Likewise, it is the ability to understand how only people are feeling and to identify with the likely emotions. Developing empathy involves several processes: recognizing the emotional state of another person; perspective taking; having a similar emotional response; and acting on it (e.g., expressing sympathy).

Description

Empathy in psychology refers to the ability to understand and share the feelings of others. It involves being able to put oneself in another person's shoes and truly connect with their emotions. Empathy plays a crucial role in forming and maintaining relationships, as it allows individuals to communicate effectively and show compassion towards others. This concept is often studied in the field of developmental psychology, as researchers seek to understand how empathy develops from childhood through adulthood. Additionally, empathy is closely related to emotional intelligence, as individuals with high levels of empathy are often better at managing their own emotions and navigating social situations.

Application Areas

• Counseling and therapy
• Social work
• Conflict resolution
• Leadership and management
• Educational settings

Treatment and Risks

• Therapeutic techniques such as cognitive-behavioral therapy can help individuals develop empathy skills
• Risks of empathy include burnout for individuals in caregiving professions

Examples

• A therapist using empathy to understand a client's struggles and provide support
• A teacher showing empathy towards a student who is experiencing difficulties at home
• A manager demonstrating empathy towards an employee who is struggling with a workload

Articles with 'Empathy' in the title

• Egocentric empathy: Egocentric empathy is when a person recognizes distress in another person and responds to it in the same way one would respond if the distress were one's own
• Empathy (Being Empathic): Empathy (Being Empathic) refers to the ability to have deep understanding toward a another. May be more important as a function of the stage of the counseling relationship
• Empathy-altruism hypothesis: Empathy-altruism hypothesis refers to the idea that when we feel Empathy for a person, we will attempt to help him or her purely for altruistic reasons- that is, regardless of what we have to gain

Summary

Empathy in psychology is the ability to understand and share the feelings of others, playing a crucial role in forming and maintaining relationships. It is studied in developmental psychology and is closely related to emotional intelligence. Empathy is applied in various areas such as counseling, conflict resolution, and leadership, but it also comes with risks such as burnout in caregiving professions.

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