Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/1959.11/30195
Title: Effects of teaching empathy online: A randomized controlled trial
Contributor(s): Sentas, Eva (author); Malouff, John M  (author); Harris, Bernadette (author); Johnson, Caitlin E (author)
Publication Date: 2018-12
DOI: 10.1037/stl0000119
Handle Link: https://hdl.handle.net/1959.11/30195
Abstract: Empathy, which involves understanding another individual's emotions, is often a subject of psychology courses and is a characteristic that counseling and other health professions programs aim to instill in students (e.g., Bell, 2017; Gerdes & Segal, 2011). The purpose of this study was to test whether brief, online training could increase empathy. The training focused on how to identify emotions in others, how to feel the emotions of others, and how to express empathy. The training included written instruction, models, video and auditory materials, quizzes to test comprehension, practice online, feedback, and assigned practice in natural settings. One hundred eighteen adults, mostly university students, entered the study. The participants completed measures of empathic responses and perspective taking at baseline and at the end of training. An analysis of covariance showed significantly higher empathic responses in the experimental group after training, compared with the waiting list group, F(1, 78) = 9.33, p = .03, Hedges' g = 0.66. A 2-month follow-up assessment with members of the training group showed that they maintained a significant improvement in empathic responses from baseline. We interpret the results to mean that brief online training can increase scores on a measure of empathy.
Publication Type: Journal Article
Source of Publication: Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology, 4(4), p. 199-210
Publisher: American Psychological Association
Place of Publication: United States of America
ISSN: 2332-211X
2332-2101
Fields of Research (FoR) 2008: 170199 Psychology not elsewhere classified
Fields of Research (FoR) 2020: 520302 Clinical psychology
Socio-Economic Objective (SEO) 2008: 970117 Expanding Knowledge in Psychology and Cognitive Sciences
Socio-Economic Objective (SEO) 2020: 280121 Expanding knowledge in psychology
Peer Reviewed: Yes
HERDC Category Description: C1 Refereed Article in a Scholarly Journal
Appears in Collections:Journal Article
School of Psychology

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