Empathy It is a key socio-emotional skill for life: it allows put yourself in the other's place, understand what they feel and respond respectfully. In childhood, their early development facilitates better relationships, less conflicts and a stronger self-esteem.
What is empathy and how does it work?
Empathy can be understood as the ability to perceive, share y grasp the emotional state of another person. It includes two components working together: empathy affective (respond with an appropriate emotion) and the cognitive (understanding the other's mental state). There is also a dimension of intercultural empathy, useful for respecting different beliefs and traditions.
Empathy is not the same as sympathy. Sympathy can remain in the pity, while empathy involves validate what the other person is experiencing without lowering expectations: you can accompany a child in what he or she feels and maintain clear limits and goals.
La empathy as well as as we have described in several previous articles is the capacity that human beings have to put themselves in the place of another, feel y think different. Many adults, for whatever reason, do not transmit that empathy to others and it is something that should be work.
In the children The same thing happens, many do not have this developed capacity, hence the importance of fostering this capacity at home, working with them since childhood, since it is in the bosom familiar where you can best acquire empathy and later, of course, at school.
Importance of empathy in children
In children it is important to help develop this ability because in adulthood they will need to care for other people and worry about others other than themselves. You have to ensure that they are not too much selfish and that they know how to put themselves in someone else's shoes, which will help you understand feelings of others and to differentiate when they may have caused harm to someone without even realizing it. Thanks to this ability we will help them to be best people in the future and who know how to treat everyone around them much better.
- Improve communication: listen actively reduces misunderstandings and strengthens the confidence. .
- Increases emotional attunement: facilitates a climate of comfort and closeness where children and adults feel safe.
- Develop charisma: connecting with the emotions of the environment reinforces the positive influence and social skills.
- Decreases aggressiveness: Understanding other perspectives reduces impulsiveness and violent reactions.
- Promotes social acceptance: Empathetic children tend to be more respected and cooperatives.
- Increases personal satisfaction: helping others elevates the Self esteem and reduces stress.
As they grow, children broaden their outlook and can empathize with people and groups different from their reality (for example, those who live with a disability or vulnerable situations), strengthening their social conscience.
How to foster empathy at home and at school
To foster empathy in children we must for example reading stories as a family where they know how to put themselves in the place of each character and know explain, at first with the help of their parents, what each of them feels, if they are sad, happy, tired... Give example it is something evident when you have children, therefore we have to lead by example and be the first to help people who need it, not be selfish, care about others ... Teach them what kind of feelings exist and making each of them visible in the people around us, even when walking down the street, will make it go differentiating each of the emotions, always giving examples of our own feelings. Another thing that we should not forget, especially as parents, is that we should not to nag never to a child for expressing their feelings since constant scolding can cause them to develop a fear to express themselves publicly and cause serious problems socialization In the future, that's why when the boy or girl cries, let him cry, if he laughs, let him laugh... let him learn to express his feelings and know recognize them in others it is something very positive in a person.
- Drawings of emotions: use faces that show happiness, sadness, fear or anger and ask that identify and explain why they might feel that way.
- Role plays: with costumes or accessories, play the roles of family members, friends or teachers to exercise perspective taking.
- Small dramatizations: create short plays with folk tales and change characters to explore different emotions.
- empathic language: use phrases like “It seems that you…" or "I hear you say that…" instead of "What you have to do is…".
To speak with empathy it is useful to remember four keys: consider the point of view of the child, do not judge ahead of time, understand your feelings y communicate that we understand him. Furthermore, validating emotions does not imply accepting any behavior; the emotion is accompanied and the comportamiento.
In the classroom it is advisable to reinforce: sensitivity (identifying feelings with stories), listens sincere, flexible thinking (avoid all/nothing), tolerance in the face of differences, communicative skills (non-verbal expression and language), goodness (without prejudice) and assertiveness (expressing needs without harming).
Stages of empathic development
- Global empathy (first months/years): the baby does not distinguish well between his/her states and those of his/her attachment figure; imitates the perceived emotion.
- Egocentric empathy (early years): differentiates between what is one's own and what is foreign, but their responses focus on what works for him (offers his favorite stuffed animal for comfort).
- Empathy with the feelings of others (childhood): recognizes simple emotions and, progressively, more complex like disappointment.
- Empathy with the reality of others (adolescence): integrates that each person acts according to their experiences and circumstances and broadens its view to groups and broader contexts.
At all stages, children learn by observing: if adults show coherence Between what they say and do, minors incorporate a more respectful and empathetic relationship model.
Teaching empathy at home and at school creates more secure bonds, reduces conflict, and enhances emotional well-being. With simple activities, emotional validation, and clear boundaries, any child can develop empathy. compassionate gaze and social skills that will last a lifetime.
