Name: Lee Zi Ying

Class: T107

IS 7 Issues
Individual Assignment (20%)

Youths all over the world today are becoming less empathetic towards others.

What is empathy? Empathy is defined as having the ability to gain insight on the
predicament of others either through experience or by putting themselves in others
shoes. (Segal, 2011). Compassion, on the other hand is to merely to understand
another persons feelings while empathy is to feel anothers pain and emotions like
our own. (Conti, 2016)

Empathy is essential to our survival as humans. In fact, this ability is what sets us
apart from the rest of the animal kingdom and is what makes us human. According
to Ibrahim, the author of Expanding Peace Journalism: Comparative and Critical
Approaches:

Social scientistsdiscovering human narrative which suggests that human

evolution is measured not only by the expansion of power over nature, but
also by the intensification and extension of power over nature but also by the
intensification and extension of empathy[.] (340)

Empathy is fundamental in our understanding and accepting different cultures and

practices. It is the glue that keeps our society together. (Rifkin, 2009) Without it, our
society will cease to function properly and our inability to understand each other will
cause conflicts that will give rise to a turbulent and volatile society.

However, youths, people who are between 15 to 24 years old (Population Facts,
2015) are becoming less empathetic towards others. A study done by the University
of Michigan evaluated sample size of close to 14000 college students between 1979
and 2009. They were asked how much they agreed with statements like I
sometimes try to understand my friends better by imagining how things look from
their perspective. and I often have tender, concerned feelings for people less
fortunate than me. (Konrath, O'Brien, & Hsing, 2010) It was found that empathetic
concern in youths had generally decreased sharply over the years with the biggest
decrease in empathetic concern originated in the 2000s. (Refer to Fig 1)

This research highlights the problem of the decline of empathy in youths today.
Hence, in this essay, I will discuss the reasons as to why this problem has surfaced
in hopes that it will be able to shed light on the problem and help raise awareness to
this serious issue before it is too late.
One possible reason would be the increase in development of technology. With this
amazing gift in our hands, human kind is like an infant obsessed over a new toy; we
are unable to leave our technology alone and are constantly hooked on our
computers, televisions and smart phones. In fact, a study conducted in 2010 showed
that people spent an average of around 7.5 hours online per day. (Rideout, Foehr, &
Roberts, 2010) While there is no question that technology has brought us new
advancements and improvements to communication and our quality of life, it is
double edged sword- technologys very advantages have also proven to affect our
ability to feel empathetic towards one another.

This is mainly because communication via technology often does not involve face-to-
face contact. Without face to face contact, we will often miss out on facial expression
or body language which are an integral part of the communication process. Think
about this: If a friend of yours sends you a text message asking you for help, will you
be inclined to help the friend as compared to another that asks you for help through
direct contact? The answer is most probably no. This is because nonverbal language
plays the most important part of communication, amounting up to 55% of the
communication process. (Mehrabian & Wiener, 1967) Therefore, without this vital
part of the communication process, we are unable to truly discern how the other
person is feeling and may be less attentive and less responsive towards the feelings
of others.

Another reason for the decrease in empathy in youths would be the ability to be
anonymous online. The power of anonymity allows them to be detached from the
morals attached to their identity, causing them to develop the Online Disinhibition
Effect. The Online Disinhibition Effect causes an individual to act more intensely and
provocatively than they would in person. (Suler, 2004) This effect has led to the
erosion of empathy in youths online, causing the drastic increase of online
aggression and online bullying cases as youths become increasing detached to
moral values and the need to feel empathetic towards others.

Speaking about the advancement of technology, it has also increased the

accessibility of the media. A 2015 study found that teens (from 13-18 years old)
spend at least 9 hours on social media every day. (Refer to fig 1) ("The Common
Sense Census: Media Use By Tweens And Teens | Common Sense Media")
This shows that most the youths today are spending almost half their day on social
media and social media inevitably plays a large part in the daily lives of youths today.
According to the cultivation theory, the media can shape our beliefs, values and view
on the world. (Shanahan and Morgan, 1999)

Sara H. Konrath, the same researcher who lead the study on empathetic concern in
youths noted that there was a relationship between the decrease of empathetic
concern and the rise of narcissism among youths. According to the University of
Michigan:

[youths today are] one of the most self-centred, narcissistic, competitive,

confident and individualistic in recent history.

However, Konrath also noted that this phenomenon arose from increased exposure
of social media in youths as many research today are starting to point out the
relation between increased exposure to social media and the rise of narcissism.
(Swanbrow, 2016)

On the other hand, some people might argue that the media is more of a source for
good as the media is able to raise awareness about important topics and educate us
the world around us. (Pollard) This stand is true only to a very limited extent.
Although it is true that the media exposes us to more diverse topics and information
that without it we will be unlikely to get access to, it is ultimately detrimental to our
sense of empathy as it is able to desensitise us to the violence around us.

A study that accessed 707 individuals over a 17-year period found that children who
reported watching television at a younger age and higher frequency were more
prone to commit violent acts in the future. (Refer to Fig 3 & 4) (Johnson 2468-2471)

This highlights the fact that violence, portrayed in the media can desensitise children
and decrease their sense of empathy towards the feelings of others.

In conclusion, I agree that youths today are becoming less empathetic towards
others due to the lack of face to face communication, the Online Disinhibition Effect,
the rise of narcissism and desensitisation of violence. I believe that this is a very
serious problem in our society today as social empathy is the foundation in which
social policies and legislations are built upon. (Segal, 2011) As Segal points out in
his article on social empathy:

Social empathy provides a framework for more effective social policies

that address disparities and support social and economic justice for all
people. (2)

(188 words)
Figure 1

Figure 2
Figure 3
Figure 4
 Works Cited

Conti, G. (2016). Feeling Others Pain: Transforming Empathy into Compassion.

Cogneurosociety.org. Retrieved 2 November 2016, from
https://www.cogneurosociety.org/empathy_pain/

Johnson, J. G., Cohen, P., Smailes, E., & Brook, J. S. (2002, April 29). Television
Viewing and Aggressive Behavior During Adolescence and
Adulthood. Science,295(5564), 2468-2471. Retrieved November 1, 2016.

Konrath, S., O'Brien, E., & Hsing, C. (2010). Changes in Dispositional Empathy in
American College Students Over Time: A Meta-Analysis. Personality And
Social Psychology Review, 15(2), 180-198.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1088868310377395

MEHRABIAN, A. & WIENER, M. (1967). DECODING OF INCONSISTENT

COMMUNICATIONS. Journal Of Personality And Social Psychology, 6(1),
109-114. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/h0024532

Population Facts. (2015) (1st ed., p. 1). Retrieved from

http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/documents/youth/fact-sheets/YouthPOP.pdf

Rifkin, J. (2009). The empathic civilization: The race to global consciousness in a

world in crisis. New York: J.P. Tarcher/Penguin.

Segal, E. (2011). Social Empathy: A Model Built on Empathy, Contextual

Understanding, and Social Responsibility That Promotes Social Justice.
Journal Of Social Service Research, 37(3), 266-277.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/01488376.2011.564040

Shanahan, J., & Morgan, M. (1999). Television and Its Viewers: Cultivation Theory
and Research. Cambridge University.
Shaw, I. S., Lynch, J., & Hackett, R. A. (2012). Expanding Peace Journalism
Comparative and Critical Approaches. Sydney: Sydney University Press.

Suler, J. (2004). The Online Disinhibition Effect. Cyberpsychology & Behavior, 7(3),
321-326.

Swanbrow, D. (2016). Empathy: College students don't have as much as they used
to | University of Michigan News. Ns.umich.edu. Retrieved 11 November
2016, from http://ns.umich.edu/new/releases/7724

The Common Sense Census: Media Use by Tweens and Teens | Common Sense
Media. (2016, November 1). Retrieved November 10, 2016, from
https://www.commonsensemedia.org/research/the-common-sense-census-
media-use-by-tweens-and-teens