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Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Ilaine who wrote (121583)	6/23/2005 2:12:35 PM
From: greenspirit	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 793839

No, I didn't confuse the two. I prefer Steven Covey's point of view. What is the difference between sympathy, empathy and compassion? These three concepts tend to be confused in the minds of many as similar or even the same, but they are not. They are vastly different and elicit from the respondent three different types of behavior. These three behaviors can best be illustrated with the following graphics. 1. In Sympathy there is sorrow for the other in need. But with sorrow there is also a sense of distance, separation from the other, an "I'm not like you" type of response. Even though there is an emotional response, the "bridge of identification" with the other has not been crossed. 2. In Empathy there is not only sorrow, but also an identification with the other in need. Here the person crosses the "bridge of identification" and enters into the emotional sphere of the other and identifies with the pain. The other senses and knows that identification has taken place. 3. In Compassion there is not only sorrow and identification with the other in need, but also an involvement in action to meet the need.