Discusses whether humans have a capacity to care about others, or if the target of concern is always oneself. Presents evidence that supports the empathy-altruism hypothesis, suggesting that humans are capable of empathy and caring for another in need. Discusses limits on human capacity for altruistic caring. (JS)

The construct of empathy may be located conceptually at several different points in a network of social cognition and vicarious emotion. This paper discusses one specific form of emotional empathy, empathy in response to perceiving another person in need. First, evidence is reviewed suggesting that there are at least two distinct types of…

Possible discrepancies between client and counselor assessment of clients' problems were examined. Attribution theory suggests that counselors perceive clients' problems to lie with the clients as persons, whereas clients perceive their problems to be a result of situational pressures. Both groups perceived client problems as relatively personal.…

This paper explores the role of empathic arousal in mediating helping behavior. Undergraduates listened to a recording of a radio newscast that described the situation of a young woman whose parents had been killed in an automobile accident. Subjects were instructed either to imagine how the woman felt about her situation (imagine condition), or…

Forty adults participated in an experiment in which 20 participants unexpectedly found a dime (elevated-mood condition) and half did not (neutral-mood condition). Opportunities to acquire information and to help another person were then presented. Elevating mood increased helping but also increased information acquisition, supporting an activation…