You might have high levels of empathy
If you’re often the first to lend a helping hand, donate to a cause-in-need or take on those volunteer roles that no one else seems to shoulder, you might have especially high levels of empathy.
According to an interesting paper in the Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, there’s a link between empathy and people’s intrinsic motivation to be helpful.
The paper’s authors — Louisa Pavey, Tobias Greitemeyer, and Paul Sparks — measured empathy levels through questionnaires. They posed questions about people’s motivations and intentions for helping others, asking participants to reflect on statements like “I help people because I want to” and “I help people because it’s expected of me”.
After two weeks, the paper’s authors followed up to see how much the participants had actually helped people over that fortnight. Those who scored higher levels of empathy were more likely to have helped others in their day-to-day life, while those who scored low levels of empathy were less helpful, and less often.
Fortunately, you’re not stuck with your current level of empathy — the paper’s authors also found it’s possible to increase empathy scores. In a second research study, they had participants read a story about a woman suffering from depression. Some people were asked to focus on the woman’s feelings as they read the story, while others were asked to focus on details, like where she lived or worked. Those who focused on her feelings reported feeling more empathetic.
This research suggests that when you focus on how other people feel, you might increase your empathy levels and feel more compelled to help. The world could use more helpers and it’s never too late to start dialling up your empathy score — and not for entirely selfless reasons, either. Studies show that helping others is good for your wellbeing. It makes you feel good and more connected to the world around you.
So, why not see if you can shift your empathy up a notch? Who will you help today?