Triggering Situations Research Articles

General Psychosomatic Medicine or the Loss of the Core of Being

IntroductionThe authors presents an overview of the schools of learning in the area of modern psychosomatic medicine.ObjectivesThe author presents different variants for the concept of disease in psychosomatics.MethodsGroddeck was of the opinion that illness was a “creative endeavour”. Adler speaks of the will to be ill. Schulz Henke found that there are “gaps” where one would expect “normal life coping”. Heraclitus said the character of the human is his fate. In psychosomatic medicine, we must focus attention on the character failings. Viktor von Weizäcker spoke of the revolving door principle. Gebsattel concentrated on the inhibition in becoming. Arthur Jores described psychosomatic disorders as human illnesses. Humans become sick when they find themselves in a “dead-end-street of destiny”. They lose their core of being. Günther Ammon describes the psychosomatic reaction as the expression of a disturbed interaction process and advocates the psychoanalytical group therapy in the treatment of psychosomatic illnesses.Results In psychosomatics one looks for a special personality type or for a special trigger situation. One asks about the childhood anamnesis and the biography, about the characteristic drives and the character problems for the respective illness.Those who have lost their core of being can regain it through self-education and self-reflection. However, a “core of being” must be present.ConclusionsDepending on the illness, character and social environment, it can happen that a patient “learns to express his wishes and fantasies, needs and sensitivities through his respective physical symptoms and complaints.DisclosureNo significant relationships.

IMPLEMENTING BLENDED LEARNING IN A PRAGMATIC CLASS FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS: WHAT MAKES BLENDED LEARNING ENGAGING?

Looking into blended learning practices in a Pragmatic course attended by the English Letters students, this study aims to investigate the performance of that course based on the point of view of cognitive presence and practical online courses. This study has found that teaching online is a complex phenomenon involving multi-facet aspects. Above all, the students mostly find online learning enjoyable if the facilitators can create a triggering situation; facilitate the learning process; be active in giving comments/feedback to the students, and use multi-learning media to deliver instructions.

Disease Impact, Diagnostic Delay, and Unmet Medical Needs of Patients With Cholinergic Urticaria in German-Speaking Countries.

BackgroundCholinergic urticaria (CholU) is a common type of chronic inducible urticaria. Little is known about the burden of the disease and its unmet medical needs.AimTo characterize the unmet medical needs of patients with CholU.MethodsPatients with CholU (n = 111) took part in a German online survey that assessed their symptoms, diagnostic delay, impact on daily life, quality of life (QoL), and their experience with physician care.ResultsVirtually all patients reported typical signs and symptoms of CholU, i.e., whealing (93.7%) and itching (91.9%), in response to typical trigger situations, such as physical activity, passive warming, or stress. Despite this, patients reported a marked diagnostic delay of 30.2 months (range from 0 to 279 months). Only 38% of the patients received a blood examination, and only 16% underwent provocation testing for diagnosing CholU, as recommended by the international guidelines. Physician contacts were common, but patient satisfaction with their disease management was low. In total, 90.1% of the patients stated to have an uncontrolled disease, resulting in a strong impact on their everyday activities, sleep, and QoL.ConclusionPatients with CholU exhibit many important unmet needs, and improvement in the diagnostic workup and patient care is needed, as are better treatment options.

Exploring the Mediating Role of Situation Awareness and Crisis Emotions Between Social Media Use and COVID-19 Protective Behaviors: Cross-Sectional Study.

BackgroundIn an outbreak of an infectious disease especially, online media would usually be an important channel for people to get first-hand knowledge and evaluate risks of the specific emergency. Although there has been increasing attention to the effect of social media use during epidemics and outbreaks, relatively little is known about the underlying mechanism by which social media plays a role in people's cognitive, affective and preventive responses.ObjectiveWith an objective to advance current knowledge surrounding social media effects on people's cognition, affection and health protective behaviors during epidemics, we aim to examine the associations between social media exposure to COVID-19 risks related information and preventive behavior of the public, and also the role that situation awareness and crisis emotions including anxiety and fear played.MethodsAn online cross-sectional survey was conducted in China a total of 632 participants were recruited. Measures included exposure to COVID-19 information through social media, situation awareness, anxiety, fear and protective behaviors that participants have taken. We have performed the descriptive statistical analysis, correlation and mediation analysis to test the research hypotheses.ResultsFindings indicated that situation awareness was positively associated with social media use (B = 0.54, p < 0.001), anxiety (B = 0.95, p < 0.001) and fear (B = 0.87, p < 0.001), and preventive behavior (B = 0.68, p < 0.001). Social media use would also have an indirect effect on anxiety (indirect effect = 0.40; 95% CI = [0.34, 0.46]) and fear (indirect effect = 0.35; 95% CI = [0.29, 0.42]) through situation awareness. The serial mediation effect of situation awareness and fear in the correlation between social media use and preventive behavior has been testified (indirect effect = 0.04, 95% CI = [0.01, 0.08]).ConclusionsSocial media use might influence the adoption of preventive behaviors through triggering situation awareness and fear. Therefore, health communication regarding COVID-19 prevention should target people with less internet access and low eHealth literacy. Understanding the positive role of negative crisis emotions during outbreaks could also help communicators and policymakers develop appropriate strategies to make people proactive to avoid the remaining health hazard.

Event-based rigid formation system with cooperative finite-time control

Abstract We note that most of the rigid formation control based on distance-constrained theory only guarantees exponential or asymptotic convergence of the system. In this paper, we proposed a finite-time event-based control scheme applied in rigid formation control system. Centralized finite-time event-based formation control system is designed where the next trigger time is determined by a central event-based controller, which broadcasts and updates the control input signal to all agents. Then, we build a distributed finite-time event-based control strategy, different from the above system where each agent only uses its own local information. For the above two protocols, we discussed the trigger situation, which ensures that the formation system converges in a finite time. Finally, simulation results proved the performance and effectiveness of the proposed finite-time event-based scheme.

Erciyes Üniversitesi Tıp Fakültesi Öğrencilerinde Baş Ağrısı Sıklığı ve İlişkili Faktörler

Headache is one of the oldest known symptoms in humans and headache disorders are among the most common diagnoses in neurology clinics. More than 90% of people experience a headache at least once in their lifetime. Medical students may frequently experience headache triggering situations such as insomnia, fatigue, and stress. The purpose of this research; The aim of this study is to examine the frequency of headache in Erciyes University Faculty of Medicine students, the nature of the pain in patients with headache and related factors.Materials-Methods: This descriptive study; It was conducted with medical faculty students studying at Erciyes University. In March 2019, 1602 students were enrolled in the medical faculty and all of them were planned to be included in the study and the sample size calculation was not made, and a total of 1296 people could be reached when the data collection phase was completed. The obtained data were evaluated in computer environment and p &lt;0.05 values were accepted as significant in statistical analysis. Results: 46.5% of the participants in the study were men and 53.5% were women. 6.9% of the participants stated that they had a diagnosed headache disease, 31.7% stated that they had a headache at least once a week. The triggering factors were mostly; insomnia (77.4%), stresssadness (72.4%), fatigue (%70.0), noise (%59.4), study (%44.5). The frequency of headache is significantly higher in women, those with a family history and those living with their families. The mean severity score of those who describe sharp and throbbing pain, which is mostly seen in migraine, is significantly higher than the feeling of tension and heaviness. Conclusion: One-third of the participants stated that they experienced a headache once or more per week. A significant relationship was found between headache and the factors of gender, family history and place of residence. It has been determined that the factors that trigger pain are mostly insomnia, stress-sadness and fatigue. Medical students can be informed about the examination of headache complaints by the physician and the arrangement of necessary treatments, as well as training on sleep hygiene and coping with stress, and social support can be provided.

Quality of Life and Clinical Correlates in Adults with Social Phobia: A Scoping Review.

Objective:In light of the substantial clinical and societal burden of social phobia (SP) and impact on the sense of well-being of affected individuals, we sought to summarise extant data related to quality of life and relevant correlates in adults with SP to distill clinical profiles for earlier identification and appropriate management.Methods:A scoping review was carried out on studies examining quality of life in adults with SP and clinical correlates within different settings. PubMed/Medline and Web of Science databases were searched for relevant articles beginning from database inception until May 2021.Results:A total of 25 papers were included. Most of the studies (92%) were cross sectional in nature (80%), conducted in the West (92%), and within clinic or community settings (88%). Patients with comorbid psychiatric conditions, and undergraduate students reported higher rates of SP compared with community population. Significant correlates of SP included demographic (such as females, younger age, living alone, fewer years of education, unemployment) and clinical factors (such as family history of anxiety disorders, suicidal ideas, avoidant personality features). SP was widely associated with decreased QoL involving several domains and especially related to complexity, greater number of feared or trigger situations, and comorbid medical and psychiatric conditions.Conclusion:SP is not uncommon within clinical, and undergraduate populations, and has a significantly negative impact on quality of life. Awareness of its associated clinical profiles allows better identification and overall management of this condition including improvement in QoL.

What’s happening to the locomotive of global economy, or The myths about the recovery of China

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused irreparable damage to all economies. Coping with the consequences by the leading players in the global economy is only expected. However, the worlds leading organizations have been trumpeting about overcoming the crisis in China. The aim of the research is to analyze the current state of the Chinese economy and answer the question whether it has overcome all the crisis phenomena. As part of the study, the authors analyzed indicators such as GDP, debt level, level of domestic demand, activity in the financial market and the MA market, as well as technological and social policies of China and the structure of trade. For the analysis of quantitative indicators, a combination of comparison and classification methods, media scanning, and crowdsourcing was used. The information base was grounded on annual reference books published by official institutions in Сhina, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, statistical data from international publications devoted to Chinese economy. The analysis showed the presence of trigger situations in the stock market, in the market for innovative investments and the banking sector. The state of the credit system is also a matter of concern. The authors have proven that enthusiastic statements about the rapid recovery of the Chinese economy are more an encouraging myth than a fait accompli. Today, China is only at the beginning of its recovery from the crisis caused by the pandemic. Will it be able to become the locomotive of global economic growth again, as in 2008? The answer to this question remains open.

Роль впливу соціального уникнення та дистанціювання на схильність до тривожних розладів у період пандемії covid-19

Background. Quarantine restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic have become an important trigger for psycho-emotional distress and the manifestation of vulnerability to mental health problems. Physical ("social") distancing, aimed at preventing the spread of COVID-19, has allowed people with a history of common mental health problems (such as depression, generalized anxiety disorder, or social phobia) to receive some short-term relief by giving rational justification for the maladaptive strategies of behavioral or cognitive avoidance of trigger situations or life circumstances. However, it is assumed that the avoidance of social interaction or situations may contribute to the masking of persistent functional disorders associated with the level of social anxiety in particular. At the same time, the denial of one's own needs and the uncertainty of the future in the context of pandemics and quarantine restrictions will affect vulnerability to anxiety disorders, which may increase after quarantine restrictions and the need to return to everyday life. Analysis of the role of social avoidance and distancing during the pandemic will expand the understanding of the mechanisms of vulnerability to psychosocial dysfunction for anxiety disorders. The results can help develop recommendations for self-help and psycho-correctional programs aimed at psychoeducation and prevention of common mental health problems. Objective. Investigate the features of psycho-emotional discomfort associated with avoiding experience as a factor in vulnerability to anxiety disorders in a pandemic setting. Materials and methods. The study group included 242 individuals who complained of significant psycho-emotional distress related to social restrictions due to quarantine conditions and/or avoidance of social contacts due to anxiety (including anxiety before negative evaluation and condemnation, health concerns, uncertainty, etc.). Age distribution from 18 to 35 years (M = 24.3; SD = 4.93), mostly female - 66.94% (n = 162). The main sample was 126 subjects, and 116 people formed a control. Diagnostic interviews with The MINI: International Neuropsychiatric Interview, self-questionnaires, and scales from complex IAPT and SCL-90-R were used to study the pathopsychological symptoms, were conducted as part of the screening of the mental state. AAQ-II self-questionnaire was assessed for experiential avoidance. Results. We studied the relationship between strategies for coping with distress by experiential avoiding under quarantine restrictions and psycho-emotional discomfort in current life situations and vulnerability to anxiety disorders during interviews. The study found that quarantine restrictions can be seen as a factor in general vulnerability to the anxiety response. At the same time, avoidance of the corrective experience under quarantine restrictions increases the manifestation or risk of recurrence of more specific anxiety disorders. Considering experiential avoidance (as inflexible use of maladaptive strategies to regulate emotions and somatic sensations) associated with uncertainty and the duration of social restrictions significantly contributes to pathogenetic cycles of anxiety disorders. Additional vulnerabilities in the combined regression model were male gender, age-range 24-35 years, and the presence of one or more common mental disorders in anamnesis. The results are consistent with the indirect relationship between experiential avoidance, symptomatic distress, and daily and work activities. The obtained results have the prospect of further developments, particularly in developing recommendations for psychosocial support and prevention of common anxiety disorders in the context of global change.

Responses to Offense at Work and the Impact of Hierarchical Status: The Fault of the Leader, Causal Attributions, and Social Support During the Covid-19 Pandemic Crisis.

The study explores the mechanism by which unadapted causal attributions and the perception of social support stimulate revenge and reconciliation at the social and professional level in the context of the current pandemic. In particular, the purpose of the study is to investigate the relationship between the accused, the victim and offender status and the search for revenge or reconciliation following a personal offense. To test the suggested research model, we analyzed the data collected by 167 (m = 28.52; SD = 8.98) employees in different organizations using a multifactorial experimental design. The results support the influence of attributional predictions in forming revenge and reconciliation and show that they are involved in the decision to carry out revenge, but especially in the way the employee interprets the trigger situation. In conclusion, the revenge is based on a negative attributional mechanism that produces the greatest deficit of adaptation to the situation and a weakening of the perception of social support, while reconciliation seems to be based on a much more complex socio-occupational mechanism. Leaders should pay attention to organizational communication during a crisis as they could encourage hopelessness depression. Adjusting crisis communication is crucial to ensuring job satisfaction that could mitigate negative effects.

Psychodynamic factors in tinnitus aurium

Tinnitus aurium is the conscious perception of an acoustic sensation in the absence of a corresponding external stimulus. Besides other psychological factors, psychodynamic factors play an important role in the disease. This study evaluated patients with tinnitus who attended the tinnitus outpatient clinic at the ENT Department of LMU Munich. In addition to a physical examination, in a psychodynamic interview the trigger situations, parents’ parenting style, relation to hearing personality, and individual conflict dynamics associated with the onset and course of tinnitus were examined. We included 99 patients diagnosed with tinnitus. Besides organ-related triggers, we identified conflict-laden stresses as trigger situations. 53% of the patients described themselves as sensitive to noise before the start of the tinnitus. Compared with the general population, patients with tinnitus showed less overt aggressiveness (P < .001) and more social orientation (P < .001) and state and trait anxiety (P < .001). Inhibition of aggression was a major psychodynamic factor in the development of tinnitus. A conflict of autonomy was found in the majority of cases. The results underline the importance of psychodynamic factors in tinnitus. We were able to put the individual psychological factors into a meaningful overall context.

Protocolo terapéutico del síncope en urgencias

Syncope can be classified as reflex (neuromediated) syncope, syncope due to orthostatic hypertension, or syncope secondary to cardiovascular pathology. Given that reflex syncope has a good prognosis, treatment is essentially aimed at preventing recurrence. The diagnosis must be explained to all patients and they must be reassured and advised on the risk of recurrence and how to avoid triggering situations and factors. Isometric counterpressure movements in the upper and lower limbs can avoid onset of syncope once symptoms have begun as well as prevent falls. Tilt training can be considered for instructing young patients. In patients with very recurrent episodes of the orthostatic form of vasovagal syncope, administration of fludrocortisone or midodrine can be considered. Syncope due to orthostatic hypotension tends to occur in elderly patients and those with hypotensive treatment. We must first adjust hypotensive treatment. Intake of 400 - 500ml of water three to four times per day can help in both reflex and orthostatic hypotension syncope. Cardiogenic syncope occurs in patients with underlying cardiopathy or an abnormal electrocardiogram. It tends to have a poor prognosis and its end mechanism must be understood in order to establish treatment.

Linguistic-Cultural Mediation in Asylum and Refugee Settings and Its Emotional Impact on Arabic-Spanish Interpreters.

Emotional factors in linguistic–cultural mediation have attracted the attention of prior literature for a number of decades, both regarding the cognitive processes involved in language interpreting and the impact of stress and emotion on the performance of interpreters. However, research has not yet been replicated in the Arabic–Spanish pair, despite it being one of the combinations most requested by public services in Spain and Europe. Methodology: An exploratory study conducted by an anonymous online 17-item survey was carried out in order to discover the perception of Arabic–Spanish interpreters in asylum and refugee settings about the emotional impact of their job. Out of 30 contacted, 23 active interpreters completed the survey. Results: The answers showed that all of the interpreters had been exposed to situations that had emotionally impacted them. Triggering situations and a list of negative emotions were collected. Discussion: Direct and indirect implications of the referred emotional episodes and their consequences on the performance of the interpreters were analysed and discussed. Conclusions: Linguistic–cultural mediation in these settings exposes interpreters to harsh stories that trigger mostly negative emotions. These professionals lack psychological support; thus, they are forced to deal individually with each situation, without taking into account the possible consequences on their work and their physical and mental health.

Pathological personality, situations, and their joint influences on daily emotional symptoms.

The present research aims to advance current understanding on how individuals with pathological personality traits construe their day-to-day situational experiences. College students (N=231) completed a measure of personality pathology, followed by six assessments of everyday situations and anxiety/depression symptoms over two weeks. Multilevel analyses indicated that personality pathology was meaningfully associated with situational experiences. Major findings suggested that situations that entailed aggravations and interpersonal confrontations were associated with negative affectivity, antagonism, and psychoticism. Detached individuals were less likely to experience pleasant and social situations. Exploratory analyses suggested an amplification effect where individuals high on personality pathology were more anxious or depressed when they perceived certain situational features, compared to their low trait counterparts. However, such cross-level interactions constituted a small minority; most personality traits and situations exerted additive effects on symptoms. Situational experiences appear to be driven in part by personality pathology. The exacerbation of daily negative symptoms can be attributed to the joint (largely additive) influence of the trigger situations and pathological personality traits.

Internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy in children and adolescents with obsessive compulsive disorder: a feasibility study

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is the first choice of treatment of obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) in children and adolescents. However, there is often a lack of access to appropriate treatment close to the home of the patients. An internet-based CBT via videoconferencing could facilitate access to state-of-the-art treatment even in remote areas. The aim of this study was to investigate feasibility and acceptability of this telemedical approach. A total of nine children received 14 sessions of CBT. The first session took place face-to-face, the remaining 13 sessions via videoconference. OCD symptoms were recorded with a smartphone app and therapy materials were made accessible in a data cloud. We assessed diagnostic data before and after treatment and obtained measures to feasibility, treatment satisfaction and acceptability. Outcomes showed high acceptance and satisfaction on the part of patients with online treatment (89%) and that face-to-face therapy was not preferred over an internet-based approach (67%). The majority of patients and their parents classified the quality of treatment as high. They emphasized the usefulness of exposures with response prevention (E/RP) in triggering situations at home. The app itself was rated as easy to operate and useful. In addition to feasibility, a significant decrease in obsessive–compulsive symptoms was also achieved. Internet-based CBT for pediatric OCD is feasible and well received by the patients and their parents. Furthermore, obsessive–compulsive symptomatology decreased in all patients. The results of this study are encouraging and suggest the significance of further research regarding this technology-supported approach, with a specific focus on efficacy.Trial registration number: Clinical trials AZ53-5400.1-004/44.

Causes of visual hallucinations in Parkinson's disease

HintergrundVisuelle Halluzinationen (VH) werden zumeist als Spätsymptome der Parkinson-Krankheit (PK) angesehen. Sie kommen jedoch in leichterer Form auch in Frühstadien der Erkrankung vor. Ursächlich wurden VH anfänglich als Folge einer dopaminergen Überstimulation gesehen, später ebenso im Rahmen einer demenziellen Entwicklung der PK.FragestellungDie vorliegende Arbeit untersucht, ob sich das Entstehungsmodell der VH in den letzten Jahren erweitert hat.Material und MethodikBasierend auf klinischen, pharmakologischen und neuropathologischen Arbeiten sowie funktioneller Magnetresonanzgraphie erfolgt eine systematische Aufgliederung in monomodale und multimodale Entstehungsmodelle der VH. Die Anwendbarkeit auf unterschiedliche VH-Formen und -Auslösungsmomente wird jeweils kritisch beleuchtet.ErgebnisseEinbußen bei der visuellen Informationsaufnahme und -verarbeitung, Defizite der Aufmerksamkeit und fehlerhafte Konnektivität zwischen kortikalen Netzwerken werden herausgearbeitet. Es bestehen z. T. Überlappungen mit dem Lhermitte-Syndrom und dem Charles-Bonnet-Syndrom. Kein Modell erklärt jedoch befriedigend alle Spielarten der VH. Nicht alle VH weisen die gleiche Pathogenese und stets eine schlechte Prognose auf.SchlussfolgerungDie Ursachenkette visueller Halluzinationen ist komplex und individuell unterschiedlich. Inwieweit dies therapeutisch einsetzbar ist, ist bisher wenig erforscht. Es gibt erste Hinweise, dass neben einer Änderung der Medikation auch Visusverbesserung, die Einbindung des Partners/der Partnerin und vielleicht individuell anpassbare Copingstrategien erfolgreich eingesetzt werden könnten.

Biases for Evil and Moral Perfection

I argue that deeply ingrained dispositions to do evil do not render moral perfection impossible. I discuss various accounts of moral perfection and the evidence from cognitive (neuro)science that points towards a strong disposition for evil. Afterwards, I discuss three strategies that can allow humans to overcome their evil dispositions. These are: cognitive enhancement, avoiding triggering situations and structural solutions.

Understanding Community-Dwelling Chinese Older Adults' Engagement in Physical Activity: A Grounded Theory Study.

Limited information is available on the process of Chinese older adults' initiation, engagement, and maintenance of physical activity (PA), thus limiting the development of effective PA promotion programs. The purpose of the study was to investigate Chinese old adults' perspectives and experiences with PA engagement and to develop a conceptual model illustrating the process of how community-dwelling Chinese older adults engage in PA. This study used grounded theory methodology. Nineteen community-dwelling Chinese older adults aged older than 60 years participated. We conducted semistructured in-depth interviews with participants. Open, axial, and selective coding, along with constant comparative analysis, was performed to analyze the data. Participants described PA engagement as a complex and dynamic process, consisting of 3 stages: Getting started, Participating in PA, and Making PA part of life. The transition from one stage to the next was driven by an increasing internalized motivation toward PA through Seeing benefits. Many participants described that Staying in groups was a key strategy for them to keep physically active. Moreover, Restructuring occurred when Chinese older adults encountered trigger situations. This study identified the stages of how community-dwelling Chinese older adults engage in to perform and maintain PA. The developed conceptual model can inform future interventions for promoting PA among Chinese older adults.

Impact of COVID-19 Confinement on Adolescent Patients with Anorexia Nervosa: A Qualitative Interview Study Involving Adolescents and Parents.

COVID-19-related restrictions may have a serious impact on patients with eating disorders. We conducted semistructured interviews with female adolescent patients with anorexia nervosa (AN) (n = 13, 13–18 years) currently receiving inpatient or outpatient treatment and their parents (n = 10). We asked for their experiences during COVID-19 confinement regarding everyday life, AN symptoms, and treatment. We used thematic analysis to interpret the data. The main themes identified from the patients’ interviews involved restrictions of personal freedom (i.e., leading to tension between patients and family members, reduced motivation to work on recovery), interruption of the treatment routine (emerging risks through self-monitored weight, challenges/opportunities of teletherapy), changes in AN symptoms (more exposure to triggering situations), COVID-19-related fears, and compulsions but also potential opportunities (less stress, better family relationships). The parents discussed changes in daily routines as negative (challenges in maintaining day structures) and positive (more family time, “slowing down”). They expressed reservations about reduced outpatient monitoring and increased teletherapy and discussed challenges in keeping contact with the child and clinicians during inpatient treatment. Moreover, the parents discussed deteriorations and improvements in the patients’ psychopathology. Clinical implications from these in-depth insights include the importance of strengthening communication between changing staff cohorts, patients, and parents; motivational work; and joint weight monitoring with the therapist.

The Language of Situational Empathy

Empathy is the tendency to understand and share others' thoughts and feelings. Literature in psychology has shown through surveys potential beneficial implications of empathy. Prior psychology literature showed that a particular type of empathy called "situational empathy" --- an immediate empathic response to a triggering situation (e.g., a distressing situation) --- is reflected in the language people use in response to the situation. However, this has not so far been properly measured at scale. In this work, we collected 4k textual reactions (and corresponding situational empathy labels) to different stories. Driven by theoretical concepts, we developed computational models to predict situational empathy from text and, in so doing, we built and made available a list of empathy-related words. When applied to Reddit posts and movie transcripts, our models produced results that matched prior theoretical findings, offering evidence of external validity and suggesting its applicability to unstructured data. The capability of measuring proxies for empathy at scale might benefit a variety of areas such as social media, digital healthcare, and workplace well-being.