Little, C., Solomonova, E., Jordan, M., Klein, N., Jennings, B., Schmidtmann, G., Leos, H. & Gold, I. (2022). The discrimination of self from other as a component of empathy. Emotion.  Empathy, imagining oneself in another’s place—and understanding their feelings, wants, thoughts, and actions, is key to forming positive relationships with others. To understand one aspect of empathy, researchers asked, “Do persons who have higher levels of empathy distinguish their feelings from others’ feelings more than those with less empathy?” Using a measure of empathy, researchers tested 140 participants to categorize them into high and low empathy groups. Researchers split them into two conditions. First, facial images appeared for one second on a screen. Participants then rated the face’s emotional arousal (how relaxed or excited the facial expression appeared), and how pleasant the expression appeared. All participants then rated their own mental state or feelings upon seeing the facial images. In the second condition, researchers switched this order, so participants first rated how the facial images made them feel. Results? Participants in the high empathy group significantly distinguished to a greater degree their own feelings from those of others’ emotions in type and arousal strength. Practice empathy to enhance your relationships with others! Notice another’s situation and their concerns and feelings. Reach out and share your feelings and concerns for theirs.

Written by Vanessa Melendez, B.S.