Nonverbal behaviors perceived as most empathic in a simulated medical context

Abstract

Perceiving empathy from healthcare professionals contributes to clinical benefits. Yet, for methodological and ethical reasons, the factors affecting perceived empathy, such as how the nonverbal behaviors of professionals interact, are less understood than those influencing the actual act of empathizing. Two online studies examined how the perception of empathy in a medical context of pain was influenced by factors related to digital healthcare professionals (DHPs) and participants acting as suffering patients. In Study 1 (n = 123), participants watched videos of DHPs showing variations in gaze direction, posture, and facial expression to rate perceived empathy from a visual patient perspective. They perceived more empathy from the face expressing pain, regardless of gaze, posture, and gender of the DHPs. The sex of participants also modulated perceived empathy. Study 2 (n = 116) expanded Study 1 by adding faces expressing pain and sadness of varying intensities, along with perspective-taking instructions, to determine whether higher perceived empathy for the face expressing pain stems from its congruence with the medical pain context. Participants perceived more empathy in faces expressing sadness than pain. Sadness and pain interacted differently with the effects of intensity, posture, and gaze direction. This work challenges the idea that exact congruence with the patient's affective state is necessary and further contributes to investigating nonverbal behaviors of empathy.