Empathy and Helping: Considering the Consequences of Intervention

This study tested the prediction derived from the empathy-altruism hypothesis that more empathically concerned persons would be more sensitive to the long-term consequences of their intervention for recipients. Subjects (N = 84), instructed either to observe the situation or to imagine another's feelings, were exposed to a person in immediate distress who requested assistance (hints) to complete an anagram task. Half the subjects were informed that giving too many hints could have long-term detrimental effects (potential detrimental-effect condition); half were given no information about future consequences (no-detrimental-effect condition). Consistent with the predictions, although the anticipated effect of intervention made no difference in the number of hints given by subjects in the observe-set condition, imagine-set subjects gave fewer hints when they were informed of potentially detrimental effects of intervention. These results suggest that empathy enhances sensitivity to the needs of others, including considering the potential consequences that one's intervention may have for the recipient.