Lower Levels Of Empathy Research Articles

АКСІОЛОГІЧНИЙ АСПЕКТ РОЗВИТКУ ДУХОВНОСТІ ПЕДАГОГІЧНИХ ПРАЦІВНИКІВ

The article reflects an axiological aspect of the development of the spirituality of participants in pedagogical interaction. Scientific works are analyzed on the study of objective factors that actualize the problem of the development of values and spirituality. The purpose of the article is to study the level of spirituality, potential and values of teachers, to determine the psychological characteristics of the formation of spiritual and moral values of teachers, and to determine the axiological aspect of personal development. According to the purpose of our study, we used a system of valid psychodiagnostic techniques (observations, interviews, questionnaires, test methods, sociometric data of fellow teachers), as well as a group of data processing methods (qualitative and quantitative analysis, determination of correlations). It’s concluded that the initial level of the development of teachers’ spiritual values is 21,8 %, the spirituality of teachers is 193 %, and the spiritual potential of teachers is 17,5 %. It means that almost a quarter of teachers with an initial level of spiritual development often focus on individualistic values. They are characterized by weak self-control, impulsiveness, low level of empathy and moral norms, unmotivated sense of rivalry, increased antisocial activity (intrigue, rebellion), violation of the hierarchy of motives and values and spiritual regulation, and inability to higher spiritual qualities. They want to deepen the theoretical and practical levels of spirituality, but, unfortunately, do not make adequate efforts for self-development. Educators with an average level of development of spiritual values, spirituality and spiritual potential do not always possess the stability and consistency of the value system of personality, but they adequately assess their qualities of character, level of development of culture and values, and can identify their shortcomings, etc. Teachers with sufficient and higher levels of development of spiritual values, spirituality and spiritual potential can effectively solve spiritual and moral problems and professional tasks of the educational process. They consciously try to acquire spiritual and moral knowledge and update professional values in their own activities. According to the results of statistical processing, the development of teachers' values correlates directly with the focus on altruism. Having a willingness to give up their interests for the good of others, and developed self-awareness, and responsibility, teachers work on the development of spirituality. We see the prospect of further research in the in-depth study of the interaction of participants in pedagogical interaction, modification and improvement of development programs, and development of innovative technologies that would contribute to the formation and develop­ment of axiological aspects of a person’s spirituality.

Political ideology and pandemic lifestyles: the indirect effects of empathy, authoritarianism, and threat

BackgroundIn this paper, we integrate theory and research from sociology, psychology, and political science to develop and test a mediation model that helps to explain why political conservatism is often associated with pandemic behaviors and lifestyles that are inconsistent with public health recommendations for COVID-19.MethodsUsing national data from the 2021 Crime, Health, and Politics Survey (n = 1743), we formally test the indirect effects of political conservatism (an index of Republican party identification, conservative political orientation, right-wing news media consumption, and 2020 Trump vote) on pandemic lifestyles (an index of social distancing, hand sanitizing, mask usage, and vaccination) through the mechanisms of empathy (concern about the welfare of others), authoritarian beliefs (authoritarian aggressiveness and acquiescence to authority), and pandemic threat perceptions (threats to self and to the broader society).ResultOur results confirm that political conservatism is associated with riskier pandemic lifestyles. We also find that this association is partially mediated by lower levels of empathy, higher levels of authoritarian beliefs, and lower levels of perceived pandemic threat.ConclusionsUnderstanding why political conservatism is associated with riskier pandemic lifestyles may eventually lead us to ways of identifying and overcoming widespread cultural barriers to critical pandemic responses.

Влияние эмпатии на комплаентность пациентов и клиническую эффективность лечения хронического гастрита

The aim of the research. To study the influence of empathic care level provided by the attending physician on the level of chronic gastritis patients’ adherence to treatment and on therapy effectiveness. Material and methods. A total of 302 patients with chronic gastritis were examined. Depending on the level of patients’ adherence to treatment, the patients were divided into 4 groups. Group 1: 96 patients with chronic gastritis associated with H. pylori; group 2: 110 patients with chronic gastritis not associated with H. pylori. Patients in these groups had a high level of adherence. Group 3 was formed from 36 patients with chronic gastritis associated with H. pylori who rejected treatment; group 4 included 60 patients with chronic gastritis associated with H. pylori who partially adhered to the physician’s recommendations. The “Consultation and Relational Empathy Measure” (CARE Measure) questionnaire was used to assess the degree of empathy that arose between the physician and the patient during examination. Results. The maximum degree of eradication of the causative agent of chronic gastritis was over 80% and the minimum frequency of clinical manifestations and complications of the disease was observed in group 1. Patients of this group fully adhered to the physician’s recommendations and had high scores on the CARE Measure questionnaire at the beginning of the study (44 points), as well as the maximum number of visits to the physician in the observation period (9.0 [7.0; 10.0]) in comparison to groups 2 and 3 (8.0 [6.0; 9.0] and 5.0 [3.0; 6.0], respectively; p=0.012). The minimum result was noted in group 3, which was due to the extremely low adherence of these patients. At the same time, these patients noted a low level of empathy on the part of the doctor, which made a significant contribution to the decrease in the level of their adherence to treatment. Conclusion. The CARE score may be used as a criterion of chronic gastritis patients’ adherence to treatment and as a predictor of therapy effectiveness .

EMPIRICAL STUDY OF FACTORS OF LONELINESS EXPERIENCE IN ADOLESCENCE

The purpose of the article is to present the results of the study of loneliness factors, in particular the factors of educational socialization, which influence the experience of loneliness in adolescence. The study involved 272 people aged 14–16 years (149 boys and 123 girls) and used «Differential questionnaire of loneliness» (E. Osin, D. Leontiev), «Test of vitality» (S. Muddy), the method of «Emotional self-awareness» (O. Vlasova, M. Berezyuk), Dembo-Rubinstein method, author's questionnaire. 58,1% of the studied adolescents are characterized by a low overall level of loneliness. In 38% of respondents this figure is average, and in 4% of adolescents – high. The inability to stay alone was indicated by 20,2% of respondents, 72,1% of adolescents have an average level of dependence on communication. The average level of ability to find a resource in solitude was found in 57% of adolescents, high inherent in 9,6% of subjects. 33,5% of subjects showed low development of positive loneliness. The study identified the following age characteristics of loneliness: at 14 years of age expressed a negative attitude towards loneliness, which becomes less pronounced at 15 years and continues to decline at 16 years; in 15–16 years the degree of acceptance of loneliness and solitude increases, the ability to constructive use of solitude develops. It is statistically established that there are relationships between indicators of adolescent loneliness and components of their educational socialization: educational (dissatisfaction with education, learning conditions and content of educational activities), interaction (dissatisfaction with relationships with friends and classmates, including the end of friendships), environmental (dissatisfaction with vacations, leisure) and psychological and educational (dissatisfaction with their own lifestyle in the absence of psychological assistance). It was also found that the experience of loneliness in adolescents is due to the influence of such individual differences as low levels of resilience, self-esteem, low levels of empathy, the ability to express emotions, taking responsibility for their own emotional experiences.

Comparing boys and girls in juvenile detention in Portugal: differences in psychopathic traits, criminal behaviors, and one-year recidivism

ABSTRACT Gender is a critical explanatory variable among juvenile justice system-involved youth, with the literature showing differential protective and risk factors for serious delinquency among female and male youth. The aim of the current study is to examine gender differences in psychopathic and related traits, externalizing behaviors, and offense profiles among a sample of female (n = 76, M = 16.37 years, SD = 1.16) and male (n = 214, M = 16.40 years, SD = 1.30) youth incarcerated in Portugal. Results showed that boys tended to present significantly higher levels of psychopathic/callous–unemotional traits, conduct disorder, proactive aggression, and also lower levels of empathy. In terms of offense profiles, boys tended to present significantly higher levels of crime frequency, crime diversity, crime seriousness, days in detention, and general and violent one-year recidivism, and also lower ages of crime onset, first legal problem, and first detention. Findings support the notion that gender-informed services and supervisions are essential for understanding and intervening among justice-involved youth.

Empathy with humans and with non-human animals: are there differences between individuals who have adopted and those who have relinquished a pet?

The objective of this study was to evaluate the empathy of humans with animals (human-animal empathy) and humans with humans (human-human empathy, in a sample of individuals who have adopted a dog or a cat and a sample of individuals who have relinquished a dog or a cat in Portugal. A sample of 1,047 individuals completed an online questionnaire on pet adoption and relinquishment, which also included a section measuring their human-human empathy and human-animal empathy. We used the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) translated to Portuguese and the Animal Empathy Scale (AES) modified for the Portuguese population to analyze, respectively, the human-human empathy and with human-animal empathy. This article intends to go deeper into the subject, analyzing those indexes for a sample of the Portuguese population that have adopted or relinquished a companion animal. We found high levels of human-animal empathy in our sample, with no significant differences between adopters and relinquishers of dogs or cats. We found a significant link between human–human empathy and human-animal empathy, and very high scores in the AES in both adopters and relinquishers. The results suggest that empathy levels themselves, specifically a lack of or low levels of empathy, are not the key driver of animal relinquishment.

LEVEL OF EMPATHY AND SEVERITY OF PSYCHOPATHIC TRAITS IN MEDICAL, LAW AND PSYCHOLOGY STUDENTS

The aim of this study was to show the differences between groups of medical, law and psychology students in terms of empathy and psychopathy, as well as to show whether there are relationships between these variables in the studied groups. The study involved 70 female and 50 male students, constituting three equal groups of 40 people each, studying Medicine, Law and Psychology respectively. Two standardized tools were used in the study: the Index of Interpersonal Reactivity (IRI) by M.H Davis and the Polish adaptation of I. Pilch and her team's Triarchic Psychopathy Measure (TriPM), the original version of which was developed by Patrick, Fowles and Krueger, as well as a specially designed sociodemographic questionnaire. The study showed an inverse relationship between empathy and psychopathy and that there were differences in both empathy and psychopathy levels between different groups of students. Law students had lower levels of empathy in two di mensions according to the IRI than medical and psychology students. When analyzing the severity of some psychopathic traits and the overall psychopathy score according to TriPM, it was found that law students had the highest levels in the overall psychopathy score and meanness, but no statistically significant differences were observed in other TriPM variables between the groups studied. Law students had the lowest empathy scores of the groups studied, and medical students had slightly lower empathy scores than psychology students. It was also shown that law students had the highest overall psychopathy score of the three groups studied. Negative correlational relationships between empathy and psychopathy were observed in medical and law students – indicating that higher levels of empathy are associated with lower levels of psychopathy.

Relationship between problematic gaming and emotional intelligence and empathy in early adolescence

The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between problematic gaming and emotional intelligence and empathy in early adolescence. The study involved N = 143 participants, seventh- and eighth-grade students; n = 76 participants being female. Three instruments were used in the study. E-questionnaire: Emotional Empathy Scale and Imagination Scale, Emotional Skills and Competencies Questionnaire, and Problematic Online Gaming Questionnaire. The research has revealed that problematic gaming is negatively correlated with emotional intelligence, i.e., that adolescents who score higher on the online gaming questionnaire have lower levels of emotional intelligence, and vice versa. Furthermore, problematic gaming is negatively associated with adolescent empathy; adolescents who assess the more frequent presence of behaviors characteristic of problematic gaming have a lower level of empathy, and vice versa. Regarding gender differences, the research showed that, unlike girls, boys are more likely to show behaviors characteristic of problematic gaming, and that the negative association between emotional intelligence and problematic gaming occurs only in boys, while in girls it is absent. The findings of this research indicate the existence of a negative association between empathy and emotional intelligence and problematic gaming, but it does not determine its direction. Further research is needed to shed light on the nature of this association. The findings of this research may serve as a starting point for future more extensive, longitudinal research on the relationship between problematic gaming and emotional functioning.

Does CWB repair negative affective states, or generate them? Examining the moderating role of trait empathy.

Counterproductive work behavior (CWB) is a topic of considerable importance for organizational scholars and practitioners. Yet, despite a wide-ranging consensus that negative affect (NA) is a precursor to CWB, there is surprisingly little consensus as to whether CWB enactment will subsequently lead to lower or higher levels of NA. That is, scholars disagree as to whether CWB has a reparative (negative) or generative (positive) effect on subsequent NA. We submit that both perspectives have validity, and thus the question should not be whether CWB is associated with lower or higher subsequent levels of NA, but rather for whom. This article is dedicated to answering this question. Drawing from the behavioral concordance model, we position empathy as a moderator of this relationship, such that CWB will be reparative for those with lower levels of empathy and generative for those with higher levels of empathy. Findings across 3 experience-sampling studies support our hypotheses and highlight a number of interesting directions for future research. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Empathy With Patients and Post-Traumatic Stress Response in Verbally Abused Healthcare Workers.

Objective The current study examined the differential empathic capacity, post-traumatic symptoms, and coping strategies in healthcare workers (HCWs) according to the exposure of verbal or physical workplace violence (WPV). Methods Using online survey, a total of 422 HCWs employed at a training general hospital of South Korea participated and completed self-reporting questionnaires including the WPV questionnaire with coping strategy, the Jefferson Scale of Physician Empathy. Results Those who experienced either only verbal violence or both physical and verbal violence had lower Jefferson Scale of Physician Empathy scores (p<0.05). Posttraumatic stress symptom severity was higher among people who experienced verbal violence than physical violence. HCWs’ exposure to verbal violence was associated with severe posttraumatic symptoms and a low level of empathy with patients (p<0.05). More than half of the victims of verbal violence responded that they did not take any action, receive organizational protection, or peer support, while most physically-abused HCWs received institutional intervention or help from others. Conclusion Our findings highlight the critical importance of reducing verbal violence, which may represent a larger psychological burden compared to physical violence, by actively implementing effective strategies and policies at the institutional level.

Association of Characteristics of the Learning Environment and US Medical Student Burnout, Empathy, and Career Regret

Previous studies have shown that medical student mistreatment and burnout are common. However, few longitudinal data exist to describe how mistreatment and other learning environment experiences are associated with subsequent burnout and other student characteristics. To examine the association between mistreatment and perceptions of the learning environment with subsequent burnout, empathy, and career regret among US medical students. This cohort study analyzed data from the 2014-2016 Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) Medical School Year 2 Questionnaire (Y2Q) and 2016-2018 AAMC Graduation Questionnaire (GQ). Medical students from 140 allopathic medical schools who responded to both AAMC surveys were included in the analysis. Data were analyzed from December 1, 2019, to January 11, 2021. Self-reported medical student mistreatment (eg, experiences of negative behaviors and discrimination related to sex, race/ethnicity, and sexual orientation) and perceptions of the learning environment (Medical School Learning Environment Survey subscales for faculty, emotional climate, and student-student interactions). Burnout, empathy, and career regret as measured by Oldenburg Burnout Inventory data for burnout, Interpersonal Reactivity Index scores for empathy, and a single item assessing career regret. Data from 14 126 medical students were analyzed; 52.0% were women, and the mean (SD) age was 27.7 (2.9) years at graduation. Mistreatment was reported by 22.9% of respondents on the Y2Q. In multivariable analysis adjusted for Y2Q measures, mistreatment reported on the Y2Q was associated with a higher exhaustion score (1.81 [95% CI, 1.60-2.02]), a higher disengagement score (0.71 [95% CI, 0.58-0.84]), and higher likelihood of career regret on the GQ (186 of 989 [18.8%]; all P < .001). A more positive emotional climate reported on the Y2Q was associated with a lower exhaustion score (for each 1-point increase, -0.05 [95% CI, -0.08 to -0.02]; P = .001) and lower disengagement score (for each 1-point increase, -0.04 [95% CI, -0.06 to -0.02]; P < .001) on the GQ. More positive faculty interactions on the Y2Q were associated with higher empathy score on the GQ (for each 1-point increase, 0.02 [95% CI, 0.01-0.05]; P = .04). Better student-student interactions were associated with lower odds of career regret during year 4 of medical school (odds ratio for each 1-point increase, 0.97 [95% CI, 0.95-1.00]; P = .04). The findings of this cohort study suggest that medical students who experienced mistreatment and perceived the learning environment less favorably were more likely to develop higher levels of exhaustion and disengagement, lower levels of empathy, and career regret compared with medical students with more positive experiences. Strategies to improve student well-being, empathy, and experience should include approaches to eliminate mistreatment and improve the learning environment.

Recognition of Facial Expressions of Emotion and Depressive Symptoms among Caregivers with Different Levels of Empathy

ABSTRACT Objectives To assess differences in the recognition of facial expressions of emotion among caregivers of older people with different levels of empathy. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted with 158 caregivers of older adults who provided care in family residences or nursing homes. The caregivers were divided into three groups based on the score of the multidimensional Interpersonal Reactivity Index: “lower empathy”, “intermediate empathy”, and “higher empathy”. Data collection involved the administration of a sociodemographic questionnaire, the Emotion Recognition Test, and the Patient Health Questionnaire. Results No significant differences were found among the groups in terms of sociodemographic variables. Regarding clinical characteristics, the “higher empathy” group had more depressive symptoms than the other groups (p = .001). Moreover, the “higher empathy” group exhibited greater accuracy at recognizing the expression of sadness than the “lower empathy” group (p = .033). The recognition of sadness remained significant in the analysis of variance adjusted for depressive symptoms (p < .05). Conclusions Caregivers with higher levels of empathy showed greater accuracy at recognizing sadness emotion compared to caregivers with lower levels of empathy. Additionally, caregivers with greater empathy have more depressive symptoms. Clinical implications The recognition of facial expressions of sadness may give caregivers a skill to infer possible needs in older care recipients. However, a higher level of empathy may exert a negative psychological impact on caregivers of older people, which could have repercussions regarding the quality of care provided.

Empathy in Social Anxiety Disorder: The Association with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

Objectives: Our main hypothesis in this study was that patients with social anxiety disorder (SAD) and comorbid attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) had lower empathy levels than those without ADHD. Also, after controlling for the severity of SAD and depression, we hypothesized that ADHD symptoms contributed to lower levels of empathy in SAD patients. Methods: 72 patients (46 females, 32 males) with SAD between the ages of 18–65 years were divided into two groups as those with (n = 32) and those without ADHD (n = 40). Participants were evaluated using the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale (LSAS), Turgay’s Adult Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), and Empathy Quotient. In this study, Mann Whitney-U test, Spearman correlation test, logistic and multiple regression analysis were used. Results: Education level (U = 371.5, p = .002) and empathy scores (U = 259.5, p < .0001) of SAD patients with ADHD were significantly lower than those without ADHD. BDI (U = 206.5, p < .0001), LSAS total (U = 454.5, p = .036), fear (U = 457.0, p = .038), and avoidance scores (U = 453.0, p = .034) were higher in SAD patients with ADHD than those without ADHD. Low levels of empathy (B = - 0.119, Exp(B) = 0.895, p = .014) and high severity of current depression (B = 0.119, Exp(B) = 1.127, p = .001) were significantly associated with comorbidity between SAD and ADHD. ADHD-inattention (β = −0.369, Exp(B) = −0.541, p = .004), and depression (β = −0.262, Exp(B) = −0.212, p = .036) negatively predicted empathy levels. Conclusions: Our findings may provide some evidence for the contribution of ADHD-inattention and depression to poor empathy in SAD patients. Therefore, it is recommended that symptoms of ADHD-inattention and depression should be carefully evaluated in SAD patients with low empathy.

Neuroscience, Empathy, and Violent Crime in an Incarcerated Population: A Narrative Review

Empathy is a fundamental construct that allows individuals to perceive and understand the cognitive and emotional state of others. Empathy is not only a psychological and sociological concept; it also heavily impacts our daily lives by affecting our decisions and actions. Empathy is connected to and involves specific parts of the brain which, if damaged or of reduced volume, can lead to actions that are morally unjust, aggressive, or simply denoting a lack of understanding and sensitivity. The literature affirms that the low level of empathy, guilt, embarrassment, and moral reasoning displayed by violent and psychopathic criminals is strongly associated with empathy-linked brain regions that are smaller in size or less developed. The aim of this review is to show empirical data over the last 5 years on the connection between empathy and neuroscience among violent and psychopathic offenders, reflecting on future research on the topic.

Contributors to and consequences of burnout among clinical genetic counselors in the United States.

Prior research has found that many genetic counselors (GCs) experience burnout. Studies of other clinicians have demonstrated that burnout can have significant detrimental consequences for clinicians, patients, and the healthcare system. We sought to explore the prevalence of, contributors to, and consequences of burnout among GCs. We performed a secondary data analysis of baseline data from Me‐GC, a randomized controlled trial of meditation for GCs. We applied a systems model of burnout proposed by the National Academy of Medicine (NAM), which depicts burnout arising from a combination of contributors that include both work system and individual mediating factors, and then leading to consequences. Validated self‐report scales were used to measure burnout and most contributors and consequences. Female and white GCs were over‐represented in our sample. Over half (57.2%) of the 397 participants had Professional Fulfillment Index scores indicative of burnout. Multiple potential contributors were associated with burnout, consistent with its known multifactorial nature. Among work system factors, higher levels of burnout were associated with insufficient administrative support, lack of autonomy, and not feeling valued by non‐GC colleagues. Individual mediating factors associated with greater burnout included higher levels of anxiety, depression, and stress. Participants with lower levels of burnout reported greater mindfulness, resilience, and use of professional self‐care behaviors. Among variables categorized as consequences, higher levels of burnout were associated with lower levels of empathy, counseling alliance, and positive unconditional regard, as well as higher reactive distress, and a greater desire to reduce the amount of time spent on clinical care. Given the prevalence and potential consequences of burnout observed here, it is imperative that the field take steps to mitigate burnout risk.

Empathy Among Orthopaedic Surgery Trainees.

Background:It has been postulated that the process of—and stresses associated with—medical training may cause a loss of empathy among trainees. Because empathy is considered an important value for clinicians and may even be associated with better patient outcomes, we assessed the empathy of orthopaedic surgery trainees and identified factors associated with empathy.Methods:Between June and September 2020, an anonymous survey was distributed electronically to trainees in 23 Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education-accredited orthopaedic surgery residency programs via the Collaborative Orthopaedic Educational Research Group. The survey comprised the validated Short-Form 8-Item Empathy Quotient (EQ-8) questionnaire—scored on a scale of 0, least empathetic, to 16, most empathetic—and single-item measure of emotional exhaustion and depersonalization derived from the Maslach Burnout Index—scored using a frequency scale. In total, 438 of 605 (72%) trainees completed the survey. The scores were compared via one-way analysis of variance, with Bonferroni correction and Tukey post-hoc testing, α = 0.05.Results:The mean (±SD) EQ-8 score among respondents was 11.3 ± 3.3. Women scored significantly higher (mean, 12.2 ± 2.8) than men (mean, 11.2 ± 3.3) (p = 0.02). Mean scores were significantly higher for trainees planning on a career in academic medicine (12.0 ± 2.9) than those intending to pursue private practice (10.9 ± 3.3) or those with a military commitment (10.4 ± 3.4) (p = 0.01). An inverse relationship was found between EQ-8 scores and single-item Maslach Burnout Index measures in depersonalization and emotional exhaustion (both, p < 0.01). No significant differences were found in EQ-8 scores across postgraduate year, program location, primary training setting, intended fellowship, relationship status, or whether they reported having children.Conclusions:We found no association between postgraduate year and EQ-8 score. Women and those intending to pursue a career in academic medicine had significantly higher levels of empathy. A significant inverse relationship was found between burnout and empathy. Respondents with higher levels of emotional exhaustion and depersonalization had lower levels of empathy.

Burnout, empathy and well-being in medical and psychology students

The present study aims to analyze the relationships between burnout, empathy and the well-being of medical and psychology students, as well as the differences in these variables depending on their specialization. The study was attended by 270 students, 94 males (35%) and 176 females (65%), aged between 18 and 48 years, M = 20.84, SD =3.26. Regarding the specialization, 83 are enrolled at the Faculty of Dentistry Titu Maiorescu (31%), 73 are enrolled at the Faculty of General Medicine and Pharmacy Carol Davila (27%), and 114 are enrolled at the Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Bucharest (42%). Burnout was measured with the Academic Burnout Scale (Zhang, Shi, Yun, Li, Wang, He, &amp; Miao, 2015), empathy was measured with the Jefferson Scale of Empathy, JSE (Hojat, Maxwell, Carroll, &amp; Cass, 2016), and well-being was measured with The Satisfaction with Life Scale, SWLS (Diener, Emmons, Larsen, &amp; Griffin, 1985). The results showed that medical students have higher levels of burnout than psychology students and lower levels of empathy and well-being. Empathy also moderates the relationship between burnout and well- being. These results can be used to develop intervention programs to reduce burnout and increase students' empathy in order to increase well-being.

Who says “yes” to science without ethics? Acceptance of the violation of ethical norms due to scientific reasons in the context of empathy, systemizing, and the scientistic worldview

There is a tension between scientific motivation for discoveries or broadening knowledge and compliance with ethical standards. What psychological factors are associated with recognizing scientific research as ethically unacceptable is of interest. The level of acceptance of the violation of ethical norms due to scientific reasons, empathy, systematization, and scientistic worldview was measured in 350 participants. A lower level of empathy and higher levels of systematization and the scientistic worldview were associated with a higher approval of the violation of ethics in scientific research. Male participants were also more willing to accept the violation of ethical norms due to scientific reasons than female participants. The above variables explained about 20% of the variance of the level of acceptance of the violation of ethical norms due to scientific reasons. Such acceptance was not related to age or the education level of the participants.

Mindfulness and self-compassion based intervention program to prevent burnout in medical and dentistry students

IntroductionBurnout occurs in every stage of a medical graduation and career. In the first years of graduation, is affects 35-45% of medical and dentistry students. This has severe consequences, such as: higher levels of suicidal ideation, substance abuse, medical errors and medical neglect; lower levels of empathy and self-compassion - essential to the quality of healthcare. Students with certain personality traits (e.g., neuroticism and, particularly, perfectionism) are more vulnerable to emotional dysregulation when facing stressors of daily life. Our recent studies proved that mindfulness and self-compassion can attenuate the effect of perfectionism on psychological distress.ObjectivesTo present the rational, materials, methodology and preliminary results of our project COMBURNOUT, aimed to develop, implement and assess the efficacy of a mindfulness and self-compassion-based intervention to prevent burnout in medical and dentistry students.MethodsStudents with high levels of burnout, psychological distress and perfectionism will be randomly assigned to intervention (8 weekly sessions) or control groups. The sessions will be composed by psychoeducation about burnout, mindfulness and self-compassion practices, within and between sessions. The follow up will include three assessment moments until a year after the intervention.ResultsWe expect that the experimental group will present significantly lower levels of burnout, psychological distress and perfectionism, and higher levels of emotional regulation skills.ConclusionsThe facilitators training and the manualization are guaranties of standardization and sustainability. If the positive impact of COMBURNOUT is verified, we intend to provide the program to medical/dentistry students from all over the country.

Empathy and perceived burden in caregivers of patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders

BackgroundCaregivers of patients load different kinds of burdens, including emotional distress. Aims of this study were to evaluate both burden and empathy of caregivers who assist patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders.MethodsWe selected a sample of 60 caregivers (34 women and 26 men), who assisted patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders treated in our local Community Mental Health Center for a 1-year minimum period. We administered two scales to our sample, Zarit Burden Interview (ZBI) and Balanced Emotional Empathy Scale (BEES), and collected data of caregivers and their assisted patients in a 3-month period. Data were statistically analyzed.ResultsWe reported a mean ZBI score of 49.68 (±15.03 SD) and a mean BEES score of 14.35 (±9.05 SD), indicating the perception of moderate-severe burden and low level of empathy, respectively. The analysis of internal consistency confirmed the good reliability of both ZBI (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.90) and BEES (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.77). The correlation between the two scales was not statistically significant at Spearman test. At our multiple linear regression, many variables of both caregiver and patient showed a significant correlation with the ZBI score. In particular, not living with the assisted patient and female gender of caregiver potentially decreased the burden, whereas clinical severity of assisted patient and two caregiver conditions, middle school education and spouse relationship with patient, could worsen the burden. We highlighted two positive statistically significant correlations between the total score of BEES and caregiver characteristics: being spouse and not living with assisted patient.ConclusionsOur study highlights that the caregiver burden of patients with severe psychiatric disorders is high and is associated with low emotional empathy experienced by caregivers, probably due to a defensive psychological mechanism. The conditions of spouse and cohabitation can concomitantly increase both empathy and burden in caregivers.