Abstract
Objectives
Empathy is fundamental to social cognition, driving prosocial behaviour and mental health but associations with aging and other socio-demographic characteristics are unclear. We therefore aimed to characterise associations of these characteristics with two main self-reported components of empathy, namely empathic-concern (feeling compassion) and perspective-taking (understanding others’ perspective).
Methods
We asked participants in an internet-based survey of UK-dwelling adults aged ≥18 years to complete the Interpersonal Reactivity Index subscales measuring empathic concern and perspective taking, and sociodemographic and personality questionnaires. We weighted the sample to be UK population representative and employed multivariable weighted linear regression models.
Results
In 30,033 respondents, mean empathic concern score was 3.86 (95% confidence interval 3.85, 3.88) and perspective taking was 3.57 (3.56. 3.59); the correlation between these sub-scores was 0.45 (p < 0.001). Empathic concern and perspective taking followed an inverse-u shape trajectory in women with peak between 40 and 50 years whereas in men, perspective taking declines with age but empathic concern increases.
In fully adjusted models, greater empathic concern was associated with female gender, non-white ethnicity, having more education, working in health, social-care, or childcare professions, and having higher neuroticism, extroversion, openness to experience and agreeableness traits. Perspective taking was associated with younger age, female gender, more education, employment in health or social-care, neuroticism, openness, and agreeableness.
Conclusions
Empathic compassion and understanding are distinct dimensions of empathy with differential demographic associations. Perspective taking may decline due to cognitive inflexibility with older age whereas empathic concern increases in older men suggesting it is socially-driven.
Funder
Wellcome Trust
UCLH Biomedical Research Centre
National Institutes of Health
North Thames Applied Research Collaboration
Nuffield Foundation
UK Research and Innovation
Publisher
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Reference45 articles.
1. Impact of aging on empathy: Review of psychological and neural mechanisms;JN Beadle;Frontiers in psychiatry,2019
2. Social cognition;M Sollberger;Lifelong Learning in Neurology,2010
3. The benefits of empathy: When empathy may sustain cooperation in social dilemmas;AC Rumble;European Journal of Social Psychology,2010
4. Maintenance of satisfaction in romantic relationships: Empathy and relational competence;MH Davis;Journal of personality and social psychology,1987
5. Trait empathy as a predictor of individual differences in perceived loneliness;JN Beadle;Psychological reports,2012
Cited by
20 articles.
订阅此论文施引文献
订阅此论文施引文献,注册后可以免费订阅5篇论文的施引文献,订阅后可以查看论文全部施引文献