Empathetic Practice Research Articles

Designing audio processing strategies to enhance cochlear implant users' music enjoyment

Cochlear implants (CIs) provide hundreds of thousands of users with increased access to sound, particularly speech, but experiences of music are more varied. Can greater engagement by CI users in the music mixing process mutually benefit them as well as audio engineers? This paper presents an exploratory mixed-methods study that leverages insights from CI users and professional audio engineers (AEs) in the investigation of techniques to enhance CI user music enjoyment and promote empathetic practices in AEs. Analysis of data collected over a multi-step process of surveys, interviews, and iterative cycles of sound mixing and feedback revealed two mixing strategies—namely essentializing and exaggeration of musical elements—common among mixes preferred by CI users. Participant responses also highlighted systemic ableism and audism in the music industry—an industry from which CI users report feeling excluded. Specifically, AEs felt inadequately trained around aural diversity considerations and experienced anxiety around their own aural diversity. In sum, this work contributes to insights into CI user music listening preferences; how AEs approach mixing for an aurally diverse audience; and discussion around the efficacy of CI simulation, user feedback, and AE peer feedback on mix enjoyment by CI users. Based on these findings, we offer several design insights that emphasize the need for customizable music listening tools centered around user agency and enjoyment.

TRANSFORMATIVE EMOTIONAL JOURNEYS: RECONCEPTUALIZING GUILT, SHAME, HOPE, AND COMPASSION IN ADDICTION THERAPY

This paper reconceptualizes four key emotions—guilt, shame, hope, and compassion—in addiction therapy, proposing a novel framework that acknowledges their transformative potential. Traditional perceptions cast guilt and shame as purely negative, but this study posits them as motivators for change when reframed positively. Hope and compassion are re-envisioned as active forces, essential for resilience and recovery. Integrating positive psychology and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, the paper advocates for a therapeutic approach that focuses on strengths and growth, promoting a balanced treatment that fosters personal development. A literature review and theoretical analysis support the framework, calling for therapeutic engagement with emotions as central to the recovery process. The new model aims for a holistic, empathetic practice, empowering clients and suggesting a paradigm shift in clinical addiction therapy. Future research is encouraged to establish long-term efficacy and explore integration with conventional methods.

Using the Skill of Noticing to Support Empathy for Third-Year Medical Students in Family Medicine.

Previous research has described a waning interest among third-year students to employ empathetic practice along with decreased opportunity to develop empathic communication skills. In this study we sought to address this decline using the skill of noticing (ie, the capacity to attune to specific aspects of practice and interactions) as an intervention for third-year medical students. We designed a qualitative study to address the following research question: How can a focused noticing tool encourage empathetic moments during the patient interview for third-year medical students? Eight third-year medical students used the Social Emotional Noticing Tool (SENT) during their 4-week family medicine rotation, then joined a focus group to share their experiences with SENT and articulate barriers and opportunities toward practicing empathy during clerkship. Student participants (a) described using the tool, including barriers and opportunities; (b) made connections between the practice of noticing using SENT and enacting empathy; and (c) emphasized how enacting empathy in their third year is largely influenced by interactions with clinical faculty. The use of SENT helped students notice empathy or lack thereof. However, making connections between individual capacity for empathic interactions and the impact of positive or negative role models is necessary. Based on our findings, we encourage the need for shared responsibility among students, faculty and preceptors, and organizations.

"SO FAR AWAY" How Doctors Can Contribute to Making Endometriosis Hell on Earth. A Call for Humanistic Medicine and Empathetic Practice for Genuine Person-Centered Care. A Narrative Review.

The distance physicians may create within the relationship with their patients by not having a humanistic approach to their practice may strongly influence clinical outcomes. The purpose of this paper is to convey the well-known narrative of patient dissatisfaction into pro-action by discussing the aspects of dehumanization, which may occur in the relationship between physicians and women with endometriosis. Eight dimensions of dehumanization are examined and related to everyday scenarios occurring in endometriosis care settings and the possible downstream consequences on patients' clinical outcomes are described. Objectification, which may come across as minimization of pain, may not only increase patients' perception of pain but also lead to undertreatment of unrecognized forms of endometriosis, especially among adolescents. Passivity, that is not favoring shared decision-making nor self-management, may compromise adherence to treatment, reducing patients' trust in physicians and quality of life. The same consequences may result from homogenization, that is giving for granted that all patients have the same access to care. Both isolation, ie not practicing therapeutic empathy, and loss of meaning, ie not supporting patients in the re-definition of their life plans, may affect women's psychological wellbeing and further increase pain perception. Ignoring women's personal journey by not providing clear information on the consequences endometriosis may have on their lives may favor women's self-silencing. Not promoting an un-biased communication and not setting aside scientific polarization are the main features of dislocation, which may jeopardize patient empowerment. Lastly, having a reductionist approach to the body may contribute to chronicization of pain, thus compromising quality of life. This considered, taking time to listen to women with endometriosis and tailoring decisions on the basis of their individual needs should be fostered as a moral duty. Physicians should always keep in mind that they are not only deliverers of treatment; they are a form of treatment themselves.

Empathetic Pedagogies in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) Teaching: Specific Strategies and Experiences from the Mekong Delta Context

In the current landscape of global education, the importance of understanding and effectively integrating emotional intelligence into teaching practices has gained significant attention. Within this framework, the role of empathy in teaching is emerging as a crucial component, particularly in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) settings where cultural and linguistic barriers present unique challenges. This study delves into the intricate role of empathy in EFL teaching, particularly within the Mekong Delta region. Employing qualitative research methods, in-depth interviews with 10 EFL educators were conducted to extract nuanced insights about their perceptions and experiences regarding empathetic practices in the classroom. The findings, after conducting thematic analysis, revealed multiple thematic areas: the challenges of balancing empathy with academic rigour; the influence of personal experiences on empathetic practices; the relationship between empathy and student motivation; empathy’s role in conflict resolution and classroom management; and the profound impact of empathy on teachers’ self-growth and renewal. Through the lens of socio-cultural theory and transformative learning theory, the study illuminates the deep intertwining of empathy with socio-cultural dynamics and transformative educational experiences. While the results underscore the paramount importance of empathy in enhancing classroom dynamics, student motivation and teacher development, they are grounded in the specific socio-cultural context of the Mekong Delta. Therefore, generalisations to broader EFL contexts should be made with caution. This research contributes to the burgeoning literature on empathetic pedagogies, emphasising its significance in modern EFL teaching environments.

Medical practitioner perspectives on AI in emergency triage.

A proposed Diagnostic AI System for Robot-Assisted Triage ("DAISY") is under development to support Emergency Department ("ED") triage following increasing reports of overcrowding and shortage of staff in ED care experienced within National Health Service, England ("NHS") but also globally. DAISY aims to reduce ED patient wait times and medical practitioner overload. The objective of this study was to explore NHS health practitioners' perspectives and attitudes towards the future use of AI-supported technologies in ED triage. Between July and August 2022 a qualitative-exploratory research study was conducted to collect and capture the perceptions and attitudes of nine NHS healthcare practitioners to better understand the challenges and benefits of a DAISY deployment. The study was based on a thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews. The study involved qualitative data analysis of the interviewees' responses. Audio-recordings were transcribed verbatim, and notes included into data documents. The transcripts were coded line-by-line, and data were organised into themes and sub-themes. Both inductive and deductive approaches to thematic analysis were used to analyse such data. Based on a qualitative analysis of coded interviews with the practitioners, responses were categorised into broad main thematic-types, namely: trust; current practice; social, legal, ethical, and cultural concerns; and empathetic practice. Sub-themes were identified for each main theme. Further quantitative analyses explored the vocabulary and sentiments of the participants when talking generally about NHS ED practices compared to discussing DAISY. Limitations include a small sample size and the requirement that research participants imagine a prototype AI-supported system still under development. The expectation is that such a system would work alongside the practitioner. Findings can be generalisable to other healthcare AI-supported systems and to other domains. This study highlights the benefits and challenges for an AI-supported triage healthcare solution. The study shows that most NHS ED practitioners interviewed were positive about such adoption. Benefits cited were a reduction in patient wait times in the ED, assistance in the streamlining of the triage process, support in calling for appropriate diagnostics and for further patient examination, and identification of those very unwell and requiring more immediate and urgent attention. Words used to describe the system were that DAISY is a "good idea", "help", helpful, "easier", "value", and "accurate". Our study demonstrates that trust in the system is a significant driver of use and a potential barrier to adoption. Participants emphasised social, legal, ethical, and cultural considerations and barriers to DAISY adoption and the importance of empathy and non-verbal cues in patient interactions. Findings demonstrate how DAISY might support and augment human medical performance in ED care, and provide an understanding of attitudinal barriers and considerations for the development and implementation of future triage AI-supported systems.

“I think the rose-tinted glasses do just sort of slowly come off”: a grounded theory study on the development of empathy towards people with dementia in healthcare student education.

Background:Globally, dementia prevalence is rising. In the UK, over a million people are expected to be impacted by dementia by 2050. One in four hospital beds are occupied by a person with dementia, and it is inevitable that healthcare professionals will work with people with dementia during their career and across a variety of settings. To deliver effective person-centered care, healthcare professionals need to have the capacity and skills to practice with empathy. Greater empathy can lead to better patient relationships, reduced burnout, and enhanced recognition of personhood. However, people with dementia frequently report episodes of care that lack empathetic approaches. To improve the quality of care, high quality dementia education needs to be provided at undergraduate level. To inform the design and delivery of suitable educational resources, this study aimed to understand the major factors that impact the development of empathy towards people with dementia during undergraduate education.Methods:A constructivist, longitudinal grounded theory study (Charmaz, 2014) was conducted. Data were collected in 2019 using semi-structured interviews with undergraduate nursing, physiotherapy, and medical students (n=30). A second interview was completed with students (n=26) eighteen months later. Emergent findings were informed by simultaneous data collection and analysis using constant comparison techniques, and the use of theoretical memo writing.Results:Preliminary findings suggested that the development of empathy towards people with dementia was impacted by social and emotional exposure during undergraduate years. Data centered on four sub-categories. While there were barriers connecting and understanding people with dementia, students experienced conflicting expectations about empathy more widely. Positive and negative cultural experiences during placement led to emotional changes and a shift in ideals.Conclusion:Environments that promote empathetic practice during clinical placement could impact the development of empathy in undergraduate healthcare education more widely. This study highlights a need for educational design that focuses on both the patient and the environment.

“It’s a Process:” How Faculty Develop and Adopt Empathetic Practices

ABSTRACT Empathy and empathetic classroom practices are a pillar of good pedagogy. These approaches create a learning environment that is adaptable and supportive for all. Building on a small but growing body of literature on the role of empathy in higher education, we explore the genesis of how faculty, across a range of disciplines, began to incorporate empathetic practices into their teaching. Our data come from interviews with 29 faculty members collected between the Spring of 2021 and the Spring of 2022. Our findings indicate that some faculty trace their empathetic practices back to their own educator models, or to their upbringing, while others espouse that their empathy is “naturally” occurring, and still others have had experiences in the classroom that led them to change their pedagogical approach to be more empathetic. Understanding how faculty learn about and implement empathy is important for sociologists because empathy is socially constructed. Empathy has been shown to help students embrace difficult content and have tough conversations. Empathy also helps students connect to faculty and improves student retention.

Physician empathy in Korean clinical contexts: developing a conceptual framework and exploring influencing factors.

Despite its well-known clinical importance, physician empathy (PE) has been variably defined and its concepts among cultures are yet to be studied. This study aimed to develop a conceptual framework of PE and explore influencing factors on physicians' empathetic behavior in the Korean clinical context. Forty-two faculty members and 67 residents participated in the two-round Delphi survey to arrive at a consensus regarding the conceptual framework of PE in 2019. To explore individual and external factors affecting physicians' empathetic behavior, a Likert scale questionnaire based on an initial free-text response was administered to the same participants. The conceptual framework of PE among Korean doctors consisted of basic communication skills and attitudes, cognitively understanding of patients' thoughts and emotions, and communicating the doctors' understandings to patients. Individual attributes and system- and patient-factors were revealed as influencing factors for PE in real practice. The former included communication ability, self-awareness and management, humanism, clinical competence, and good personality traits. Excessive workload, time constraints, aggressive attitudes, and negative preconceptions towards doctors were perceived as inhibiting or hindering empathy in patient care. PE in the Korean clinical context comprised behavioral and cognitive components. Individual attributes, as well as external factors including system- and patient-factors were identified to affect PE in clinical settings. Further studies are needed to enhance the conceptual clarity of PE and identify how to promote doctors' empathetic practice even in less favorable healthcare environments.

The Sociological Role of Empathy in the Classroom

Teaching during a global pandemic has prompted many discussions about how faculty can best support students and create classrooms where deep learning and engagement occur. In this conversation, we argue there is a role for empathy in college classrooms. We present data from interviews with faculty at a small, Midwestern, teaching-focused university during the fall of 2020. We map these perspectives onto the empathy paths framework and suggest that the therapeutic and instrumental paths are most useful for understanding empathy in the classroom. We also discuss why it is important for faculty to think about empathy and the role sociology can play in these conversations. Finally, we present a series of empathetic practices individual faculty can incorporate into their pedagogy and structural supports that departments and universities can provide to help faculty engage in empathetic practices in the classroom.

Transforming empathy to empathetic practice amongst nursing and drama students

ABSTRACT Nurses and actors both require the ability to demonstrate empathy in their practice. Mastering communication skills and techniques can inform an empathetic response. This skill is particularly important for nurses working in paediatric palliative and end of life care but there is lack of consensus whether empathy can be taught. The process an actor follows when getting into character incorporates drawing on personal emotive experiences and necessitates being receptive to others on stage in order to ‘journey’ from listening and empathising to actually being a character. We have translated this practice into the way we teach nursing students to communicate empathy.

Odwrócenie perspektywy. Empatyczna praktyka kolektywu Rotor

A Reversed Perspective. The Empathetic Practice of the Rotor Collective In this study I reflect upon the project Da quassùètutta un’altra cosa (From Above It Is Something Different Altogether), executed by Rotor in 2018 in Palermo, for the Manifesta 12 European Nomadic Biennial. The Belgian collective of architects and designers attempted to recycle a site and a space in order to give it back to the inhabitants. Pizzo Sella, a picturesque slope in the vicinity of Palermo, is the location in question, where developers began erecting a housing estate in the 1980s. But the construction was never completed, and the artists turned the hollow concrete structures, which are marks of trauma today, into platform-like viewpoints, so producing a unique experience. A reversed perspective, besides offering magnificent outlooks, may contribute to reinstating the human and nature symbiosis. The success of the chosen method is a result of an empathetic research attitude to the materials found in the area. Repurposing destroyed buildings is, to me, an example of the ancient practice of appropriation referred to as spolia. Those I wish to define broadly: as secondary, or reclaimed substances that make cognition possible for a body situated in a relation with the world.

The Necessity of Research Practice

The Necessity of Research Practice

Saigon to Seoul: Sartorial Desire, National Costume, and Transnational Crossdressing as Social Empathetic Practice

Saigon to Seoul: Sartorial Desire, National Costume, and Transnational Crossdressing as Social Empathetic Practice

The Empathetic Museum: A New Institutional Identity

AbstractThe Empathetic Museum is a group of colleagues who advocate institutional empathy as a transforming force for museums. Our initiative emerged in the second decade of the 21st century amidst a confluence of seismic events in the US that forced the museum field to examine its relationship to social issues. The Empathetic Museum arose as a critique of museums’ indifference and reluctance to engage with issues deeply affecting their communities, especially those of color. We propose a lack of institutional empathy as a subtle yet powerful cause of this indifference. The article traces the development of the Empathetic Museum initiative; the evolution of its philosophy of institutional empathy; the creation of the Maturity Model as a key tool for empathetic practice; and its use and impact in the field. As a work in progress, the Empathetic Museum initiative has evolved and expanded through constant observation of, reflection on, and engagement with the important issues of our time.

Patients’ stories in healthcare curricula: learning the art of healthcare practice with patients

ABSTRACT In a previous article, we theorised that patients’ stories prepare students by allowing them to reflect on their practice in the safety of the academic environment. This article furthers this theory by arguing that, when engaging with patients through storytelling, students grow epistemologically, whereby they develop knowledge about empathetic practice, and ontologically, whereby they learn to form and maintain relationships with the patients in their care. These new forms of knowing then inform practice and their professional decision making. Patients’ stories galvanise students to think more deeply about their practice and their patient engagement. Through that, they develop their art of healthcare practice, becoming competent, empathetic practitioners who are constantly motivated to developing their practice.

Empathetic Practice: The Struggle and Virtue of Empathizing with a Patient's Suffering.

In this article, our analysis of empathy in the clinical context hinges on the complexities of patients who are acutely suffering. Using a case concerning a heart transplant patient with Duchenne muscular dystrophy, Alex, and his nurse, Joe, we investigate how empathy's phenomenological nebulousness can generate doubts about its virtue. Even when asking, "How are you, Alex?" Joe hates the question; it seems empty, silly. Cases like this show both that the enactment of empathy is sometimes challenging and that it can be reasonable to wonder if empathy is a virtue at all. Perhaps Alex's suffering is simply too massive: Joe cannot possibly know how he feels, so why try? Perhaps empathy would only cause Joe to suffer along with Alex. Not only is empathy difficult to produce in the context of Alex's suffering; it may not even be possible; and if we simply cannot muster empathy, what is the point of morally demanding it? In response, we distinguish different kinds of empathic engagements from one another and offer separate counsel. We argue that it is important to understand empathy as something that must be honed across varied contexts before it can be called a virtue. Conceptualizing and operationalizing empathy in this way helps to ground its possibility and virtue even in the most challenging and complex clinical encounters.

Empathy in clinical practice: a qualitative study of early medical practitioners and educators.

To explore the reasons for decline in empathy among physicians and to identify strategiesfor fostering empathetic clinical practice. The qualitative study was conducted at the Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, from February to June 2017, and comprised focus group discussions involving separate sessions with medical students, residents and clinical teachers. Content analysis was used to analyse the verbatim transcripts for identification of codes which led to derivation of themes from the data. Consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative research was used to assess the quality of the study. Of the 109 subjects, 57(52.3%) were medical students, 30(27.5%) residents and 22(20.2%)clinical teachers. Of the 9 focus group discussions, 4(44.4%) were held with the students, 3(33.3%) with residents and 2(22.2%) with the teachers. Four themes that generated were delineating empathetic clinical practice, reasons for decline, challenges for promoting empathetic clinical practice, and recommendations for developing and facilitating empathetic clinical practice. All the participants unanimously agreed that there was a decline in empathetic clinical practice. Primary challenges included increased workload and time constraints inhibiting empathetic practice.. It is essential to teach empathetic clinic practice to students and residents during medical training while continuous professional development should reinforce the significance of empathetic clinical practice among medical practitioners and educators.

Using Health Impact Assessment as an Interdisciplinary Teaching Tool.

Health Impact Assessment (HIA) courses are teaching public health and urban planning students how to assess the likely health effects of proposed policies, plans, and projects. We suggest that public health and urban planning have complimentary frameworks for training practitioners to address the living conditions that affect health. Planning perspectives emphasize practical skills for impacting community change, while public health stresses professional purpose and ethics. Frameworks from both disciplines can enhance the HIA learning experience by helping students tackle questions related to community impact, engagement, social justice, and ethics. We also propose that HIA community engagement processes can be enriched through an empathetic practice that focuses on greater personal introspection.

Living a fairy tale: the educational experiences of transgender and gender non-conforming youth in Northern Ireland

ABSTRACTThis article investigates educational experiences of transgender and gender non-conforming (TGNC) youth living in Northern Ireland (NI) through a mixed-methods research design and analytical framework of heteronormativity. It draws on large-scale survey data which, for the first time in NI, captured the experiences of 16 year olds who identify as TGNC. This provides a baseline for the demographics of TGNC youth living in NI and the levels of homophobic and transphobic abuse they experience in school. Survey data are triangulated with findings from five qualitative interviews exploring the subjective experiences of TGNC youth in educational environments. Interview data reveal how heteronormativity is embedded in educational policies and practices. This institutionalisation of heteronormativity was found to be linked to the influence of conservative Christian values, which inhibit open and positive dialogue about TGNC and non-heterosexual identities, in educational domains. We show how educational environments shaped by heteronormativity and conservative Christian values serve to undermine the self-determination and freedom of expression of TGNC youth. In conclusion, we offer practical examples of counter-heteronormative interventions that will assist educators and schools in NI to develop empathetic practice and supportive environments that will erode the inequality and injustice TGNC youth experience in pedagogical institutions.