Empathy, Altruism and Normative Ethics

Abstract

Empathy contributes to our knowledge of others, but empirical research on empathy also suggests that it tends to cause or motivate altruistic action. The empirical evidence suggests that when individuals empa- thetically take up the perspectives of others and feel others’ emotions, they put the concerns and needs of those others ahead of their own. Such studies do not nullify the idea that empathy has epistemic functions, for it is entirely possible that certain types of empathy have epis- temic functions and motivate altruism. This chapter will examine this possibility and investigate the relationship between the epistemic functions of empathy and the consequences of empathy. My suggestion is that the empirical research is important for understanding the psychological and moral effects of perspective-taking empathy in clinical settings, but it does not tell us about when people actually empathize in real life situations, when they ought to empathize, or how empathy relates to our moral duties and obligations to others. Moreover, while empirical research reveals the likely effects of empathy, it also shows that people tend to empathize with those who are most similar to themselves. Empathy appears to be biased in favor of those with whom one is most similar.