The Heterogeneity of Empathy: Possible Treatment for Anhedonia?

Discussion of the treatment potential, or usefulness of empathy inductions for therapeutic change, is presented. • Remaining empirical questions are presented. The “Standard” Empathy Definition vs. A Non-canonical Approach to Empathy Most often, the term empathy is used to refer to the vicarious sharing of another's pain or sorrow (1). This form of empathy has been described as empathic concern (2–4) because the empathizer “shares in” the negative emotional experience of the target. However, the main argument made here is that positive-valence forms of empathy exist and should be studied alongside empathic concern because they may be useful in clinical settings as a standalone or adjunctive tool to well-established forms of behavioral treatment (e.g., Cognitive Behavioral Therapy-CBT) for positive affect deficits that are commonly observed in individuals with various psychological (e.g., Major Depressive Disorder-MDD, schizophrenia) and/or neurological (e.g., Parkinson's disease) disorders. There are at least two forms of positive-valence empathy. An individual may exude positive emotion while in the presence of someone who is experiencing a negative emotional state as a means to convey tenderness and comprehension of the person's physical or emotional pain or sadness; in order to catalyze a positive emotional state in the target (e.g., an observer says “cheer up” to someone who has do...
Source: Frontiers in Psychiatry - Category: Psychiatry Source Type: research