This research examined the correlations among cognitive style, empathic traits, and other variables such as age, sex, grade, school ability, birth order, and school-related achievement, identified from previous empathy and cognitive-style research. Subjects were 840 seventh and eighth grade students. The Hogan Empathy Scale measured empathic disposition globally, while the Interpersonal Reactivity Index measured dimensional traits of empathic concern, personal distress, perspective taking, and fantasy. Cognitive style was assessed on the Group Embedded Figures Test. No significant correlation appeared between empathy and cognitive style as measured by this instrument. Two empathy factors were identified, a general empathic factor and a withdrawn personal distress factor. Correlations with the other variables are presented and discussed.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
AdamsG. R.SchvaneveldtJ. D.JensonG. O. (1979) Sex, age, and perceived competency as correlates of empathic ability in adolescence. Adolescence, 15, 811–818.
2.
AronfreedJ. (1968) Conduct and conscience: The socialization of internalized control over behavior. New York: Academic Press.
3.
BorkeH. (1971) Intepersonal perception of young children: Egocentrism or empathy?Developmental Psychology, 5, 263–269.
4.
ChandlerM. J.GreenspanS. (1972) Ersatz egocentrism: A reply to H. Borke. Developmental Psychology, 7, 104–106.
5.
DavisM. H. (1979) Individual differences in empathy: A multidimensional approach. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Univer. of Texas at Austin.
6.
DavisM. H. (1980) A multidimensional approach to individual differences in empathy. JSAS Catalog of Selected Documents in Psychology, 10, 85.
7.
DavisM. H. (1983) Measuring individual differences in empathy: Evidence for a multidimensional approach. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 44, 113–126.
8.
DeutschF.MadleR. A. (1975) Empathy: Historic and current conceptualizations, measurement, and a cognitive theoretical perspective. Human Development, 18, 267–287.
9.
DymondR. (1949) A scale for the measurement of empathic ability. Journal of Consulting Psychology, 13, 127–133.
10.
FeshbachN. D. (1975) Empathy in children: Some theoretical and empirical considerations. The Counseling Psychologist, 5, 25–30.
11.
FeshbachN. D. (1978) Studies of empathic behavior in children. Progress in Experimental Personality Research, 8, 1–47.
12.
FeshbachN. D. (1982) Sex differences in empathy and social behavior in children. In EisenbergN. (Ed.), The development of prosocial behavior. New York: Academic Press. Pp. 315–338.
13.
FeshbachN. D.FeshbachS. (1969) The relationship between empathy and aggression in two age groups. Developmental Psychology, 1, 102–107.
14.
GendronK. (1982) An investigation of relationships between empathy test measures and selected personality traits. Unpublished manuscript, Univer. of Minnesota.
15.
GoughH. C. (1969) California Psychological Inventory. Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press.
16.
GreifE. B.HoganR. (1973) The theory and measurement of empathy. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 20, 280–284.
17.
HathawayS. R.McKinleyJ. C. (1943) Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory. New York: Psychological Corp.
18.
HoffmanM. L. (1977) Sex differences in empathy and related behavior. Psychological Bulletin, 84, 712–722.
19.
HoganR. (1969) Development of an empathy scale. Journal of Counseling and Clinical Psychology, 33, 307–316.
20.
HoganR. (1975) Empathy: A conceptual and psychometric analysis. The Counseling Psychologist, 5, 14–18.
21.
MeadG. H. (1934) Mind, self and society. Chicago, IL: Univer. of Chicago Press.
22.
MehrabianA.EpsteinN. (1972) A measure of emotional empathy. Journal of Personality, 40, 525–543.
23.
NovacoR. W. (1977) Stress inoculation: A cognitive therapy for anger and its application to a case of depression. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 45, 600–608.
OtisA. S.LennonR. T. (1967) Otis-Lennon Quick-scoring Mental Ability Tests. New York: Psychological Corp.
26.
PiagetJ.InhelderB. (1956) The child's conception of space. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.
27.
RitterE. M. (1979) Social perspective-taking ability, cognitive complexity and listener-adapted communication in early and late adolescence. Communication Monographs, 46, 40–51.
28.
RogersC. R. (1957) The necessary and sufficient conditions of therapeutic personality change. Journal of Consulting Psychology, 21, 95–103.
29.
RogersC. R. (1975) Empathic: An unappreciated way of being. The Counseling Psychologist, 5, 1–14.
30.
RothenbergB. B. (1970) Children's social sensitivity and the relationship to interpersonal competence, intrapersonal comfort, and intellectual level. Developmental Psychology, 2, 335–350.
31.
StaubE. (1971) The use of role playing and induction in children's learning of helping and sharing behavior. Child Development, 42, 805–816.
32.
StotlandE.DunnR. E., (1963) Empathy, self-esteem, and birth order. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 66, 532–540.
33.
StotlandE.MatthewsK. E.ShermanS. E.HanssonR. O.RichardsonB. Z. (1978) Empathy, fantasy and helping. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage Publ.
34.
StotlandE.ShermanS. E.ShaverK. G. (1971) Empathy and birth order. Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press.
35.
StotlandE.WalshJ. A. (1963) Birth order and an experimental study of empathy. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 66, 610–614.
36.
SullivanH. S. (1953) The interpersonal theory of psychiatry. New York: Norton.
37.
TruaxC. B.CarkhuffR. R. (1967) Toward effective counseling and psychotherapy. Chicago, IL: Aldine.
38.
UnderwoodB.MooreB. (1982) Perspective-taking and altruism. Psychological Bulletin, 91, 142–173.
39.
WitkinH. A. (1971) The Embedded-Figures Test. Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press.
40.
WitkinH. A.DyxR.FatersonH. F.GoodenoughD. R.KarpS. A. (1962) Psychological differentiation. New York: Wiley.
41.
WitkinH. A.GoodenoughD. R. (1977) Field dependence and interpersonal behavior. Psychological Bulletin, 84, 661–689.
42.
WitkinH. A.GoodenoughD. R.OltmanP. K. (1979) Psychological differentiation: Current status, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 37, 1127–1145.
43.
WitkinH. A.LewisH. B.HertzmanM.MachoverR.MeissnerP.WapnerS. (1954) Personality through perception. New York: Harper.
44.
WitkinH. A.OltmanP. K.RaskinE.KarpS. A. (1971) A manual for the Embedded Figures Tests. Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press.
