Empathy, Its Nature and Uses

232 Pages·1963·30.36 MB·English

by  Robert L. Katz

EMPATHY
ITS NATURE
AND SES
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ROBERT L. KATZ |
EMPATHY
Its Nature and Uses
By ROBERT L. KATZ
Empathy—theprocess of ‘‘feeling into” another
person—is a puzzling phenomenon.It involves
both cognition and relationship. A process of
non-verbal communication, empathy suggests
an elusive skill, a form of ‘‘as-if’ behavior, a
technique of penetrating the inner core of
others. Linked with empathyare such processes
as identification, role-taking, imitation, and
fellow-feeling. Sociologists see it as a function
of in-group membership. Biologists speak of
empathic assessment and instinctive rever-
beration.
In this book, Professor Katz investigates the
nature and origin of empathy, interpreting in-
sights from such apparently divergentfields as
aesthetics, biology, sociology, and psychoanal-
ysis. The discussion is sharpened by a num-
ber of fascinating examples drawn from the
empathic experiences of artists, writers, an-
thropologists, and psychotherapists. One out-
standing feature is the demonstration of how
empathic insights aid the biographer.
To highlight the discussion, the author has
selected particularly illuminating insights into
empathyfrom the writings of Sigmund Freud,
Erich Fromm, Theodor Reik, Martin Buber,
George Herbert Mead, Max Scheler, Theodor
Lipps, Jacob L. Moreno, Leo Baeck, andsev-
eral leading literary figures.
Why is one counselor more empathic than
another? Whataccounts for the empathy va-
riable among members of the same in-group?
Is empathic skill innate, acquired, or both? Is
empathy a function of the social situation and
(Continued on back flap)

EMPATHY
ITS NATURE
AND USES
Robert L. Katz
THE FREE PRESS OF GLENCOE
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Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 63-13539
DESIGNED BY R. A. KASELER
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and our children
Amy Jean, Michael, and Jonathan