Abstract
<p>The primary purpose of this study was to investigate relationships between aggression, empathy, and life satisfaction during the COVID-19 pandemic. The main aim was to analyse the contribution of empathy components (empathic concern, personal distress, perspective-taking, and fantasy) above reactive and proactive aggression in predicting life satisfaction.. The Reactive-Proactive Aggression Questionnaire (RPQ), Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI), Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), Single Item on Overall Life Satisfaction (OLS), and Single Item on Overall Happiness (OH) measures were applied to 418 students in private higher education (232 male, 186 female). The participants’ age ranged from 18 to 34, with a mean age of 21 years (SD = 3.18). Results showed that reactive aggression negatively predicted satisfaction with life and overall happiness, while proactive aggression did not significantly predict indicators of life satisfaction. Empathic concern showed a significant positive effect on satisfaction with life, while personal distress showed a significant adverse effect on all indicators of life satisfaction. Aggression and empathy together accounted for 14% of the variance in the satisfaction with life and 5% of the variance in overall life satisfaction and overall happiness. Empathy added incremental variance in explaining life satisfaction after controlling for aggression. The results highlight the importance of reactive aggression and emotional empathy in the explanation of life satisfaction.</p><p> </p><p><strong> Article visualizations:</strong></p><p><img src="/-counters-/edu_01/0983/a.php" alt="Hit counter" /></p>
Highlights
The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted individuals' quality of life and psychosocial functioning in many aspects of their lives
Reactive aggression was negatively related to overall life satisfaction and happiness, while proactive aggression was negatively related to empathic concern
Empathic concern was positively related to satisfaction with life, while personal distress was negatively related to satisfaction with life, overall life satisfaction, and overall happiness
Summary
The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted individuals' quality of life and psychosocial functioning in many aspects of their lives. A longitudinal study of mental health and well-being in the UK during the COVID-19 pandemic on 3077 adults conducted in three waves between the spring and autumn 2020 (O'Connor et al, 2020) has shown increased rates of suicidal ideation among young adults (18–29 years), and moderate to severe levels of depressive symptoms and loneliness. These results were similar for ethnic minorities and White in the UK. All levels of education, including private higher education, have been influenced by COVID-19 limitations, including rapid adaptations to virtual learning (Qureshi et al, 2020), and a significant reduction of social contacts between students and professors
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