I believe that empathy – the imaginative act of stepping into another person’s shoes and viewing the world from their perspective – is a radical tool for social change and should be a guiding light for the art of living. As I describe in this video definition of empathy, it matters not just because it makes you good, but because it is good for you.
Empathy is different from pity, sympathy, compassion or everyday kindness. If you see a homeless person living under a bridge you may feel sorry for him and give him some money as you pass by. That is pity, not empathy. If, on the other hand, you make an effort to step into his shoes, to consider what life is really like for him, and perhaps have a conversation that transforms him in your eyes from a faceless stranger into a unique individual, then you are empathising.
Below you will find a selection of my writings and talks on empathy. I’ve also written about empathy in my new book, The Wonderbox, and on my blog Outrospection, and am pursuing a range of empathy projects such as creating the world’s first Empathy Museum.
The Six Habits of Highly Empathic People
This is the video of a talk I gave at the Royal Society of the Arts, which describes six ways to expand our empathic potential, drawing on everything from the empathy experiments of George Orwell to developments in industrial design, from the struggle against slavery in the eighteenth century to the Middle East crisis today. Discover why the 21st century needs to become the Age of Outrospection.
The ideas in this talk are discussed in my new book The Wonderbox.
The full version of this talk is available as a podcast.
Empathy and the Art of Living
This essay shows how developing empathy is the ultimate art form for the twenty-first century and the key to creating a revolution of human relationships. Mahatma Gandhi and other great empathic adventurers will be your guides. This is probably the best introduction to my ideas on empathy.
‘Empathy is imaginatively and practically explored in Empathy and the Art of Living, an essay by the ever thoughtful and surprising Roman Krznaric.’ – Mark Vernon, author of The Philosophy of Friendship
You Are Therefore I Am: How empathy education can create social change
This research report published by Oxfam argues why empathy needs to be taught in schools and how it should be done. It explores surprising options such as using babies as teachers in the classroom and explains why the art of conversation should be put at the heart of the curriculum for young people in primary and secondary education.
‘Beautifully written, thoughtful, scientific and humanistic. I really appreciated the big picture approach of this report.’ – Mary Gordon, founder of The Roots of Empathy education programme, Canada
‘An impressive paper, with – best of all – a rare call for expanding an interpersonal skill to the realm of social change.’ – Alfie Kohn, US education expert and author of The Schools Our Children Deserve
Empathy and Climate Change: Proposals for a Revolution of Human Relationships
This essay argues that the huge gap between knowledge and action on climate change can be explained by our failure to empathise both with future generations and those being affected by global warming today in developing countries. It offers a range of empathy projects to close the gap, including the creation of a European Climate Corp and grassroots Climate Diary groups.
Free download or find an updated version in the book Future Ethics
Watch a six-minute video presentation of the essay.
Empathy with the Enemy
This essay, published in The Pedestrian journal, explores the necessity and challenges of empathising with those whose views we might disagree with or who are ‘enemies’ in some way. Why is it important to try to see the world through the eyes of those who have different political, religious or ethical views than our own?
To read the essay you need to pay $2.99 for online access to The Pedestrian.
Selected short articles on empathy
‘Five ways to Expand Your Empathy’ – the most popular post from my Outrospection blog.
‘Time to Swap Introspection for Outrospection’ – on the art of empathy travel, from The Scotsman newspaper.
‘Empathy’ – from The Observer’s Ideas for Modern Living series.
