Empathy-Related Responding and Cognition: A “Chicken and the Egg” Dilemma

Abstract

The concepts of empathy, sympathy, and role taking frequently are embedded in theories and models of moral development. However, these various terms fre­ quently have not been adequately differentiated; for example, empathic reactions generally have not been differentiated from sympathetic and personal distress responses. Moreover, the interrelations of empathy, sympathy, personal distress, and related cognitive processes (such as role taking and accessing relevant cogni­ tions from memory) have not been adequately explored, conceptually or em­ pirically. Consequently, in this chapter we consider definitions of the aforemen­ tioned terms, review empirical research on relations among the constructs of interest, and hypothesize about possible links among vicariously induced emo­ tional reactions and cognitive processing. The cognitive processes considered are conditioning/direct association, labeling, elaborated networking, and role tak­ ing; the various vicarious emotional processes are empathy, sympathy, and per­ sonal distress. Alternative tentative causal models are presented and discussed. In particular, the possible sequencing of these various processes is addressed. Issues concerning the elicitation and maintenance of vicariously induced emo­ tional responses and related cognitive processes are viewed of importance to an understanding of pro-and antisocial behavior.