Vicarious experience: the effects of message-induced empathy on attitudes toward individuals with severe depression
Public Deposited- Last Modified
- March 22, 2019
- Creator
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McKeever, Robert
- Affiliation: Hussman School of Journalism and Media
- Abstract
- This study sought to investigate the effects of in-group and out-group empathy on empathic responses, attitudes and helping behaviors for people with severe depression. To accomplish this, a three-condition experiment was employed. Two versions of an empathic perspective-taking exercise were created in order to induce empathy for in-group and out-group members. The results indicate differences exist in the way observers feel empathy for someone in pain when that person is considered part of their social group. These findings offer evidence that the amount of expressed empathy for someone experiencing depression may be enhanced when that person is in the same social group. Importantly however, this research revealed that the effects of out-group empathy inductions were less likely to differ from scores produced from those in a control condition, and were often lower than results related to in-group empathy at levels that were statistically significant. Based on these findings, the presence and amount of positive outcomes associated with induced empathy appear highly contingent on perceived similarity, and offers support for the assertion that in order to change how and when humans share and respond to the suffering of others, it is important to establish commonality across individuals and across groups.
- Date of publication
- December 2012
- DOI
- Resource type
- Rights statement
- In Copyright
- Advisor
- Riffe, Daniel
- Degree
- Doctor of Philosophy
- Graduation year
- 2012
- Language
- Publisher
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