empathic understanding

a form of understanding and explanation achieved by imagining oneself in the role of the social actors whose actions one seeks to understand or explain. Since this form of explanation would appear to rest on a suspect introspective psychology, the method is often dismissed as ‘unscientific’ (Abel, 1977). Sometimes it is wrongly assumed, as by Abel, that all forms of MEANINGFUL UNDERSTANDING AND EXPLANATION are equally suspect, depending merely on introspection. However, the most widely used forms of interpretive explanation in sociology (e.g. in WEBER's work) only impute meanings to actors where the likelihood of such meanings can be confirmed by prevailing social norms and values (see VERSTEHEN). See also EMPATHY.

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Integrating perspectives from multiple ways of knowing potentially contributes to an empathic understanding of a client that is more accurate and comprehensive.

Empathy: an integral model in the counseling process

In the next example, the counselor communicates empathic understanding by acknowledging what the client is experiencing in a purposeful and sensitive way that may prompt him to continue discussing the troubling topic.

Empathy and sympathy: therapeutic distinctions in counseling

My ignorance led me to believe that open communication, education, and empathic understanding would allow all to slowly transition to a less self-indulgent manner of fulfilling our responsibility to patients and society.

'The rudest awakening'

We believe that the key to establishing spiritual connections with Asian clients is through communicating empathic understanding.

Asian shades of spirituality: implications for multicultural school counseling

It also encourages an empathic understanding of psychiatric illness.

Use of literature in teaching psychopathology

Empathic understanding, in which a teacher learns about individual students, their specific needs, and their interests and abilities, is one of the best ways to correct or prevent student misbehaviors (Gordon, 1989).

Exploring the foundations of middle school classroom management: the theoretical contributions of B. F. Skinner, Fritz Redl and William Wattenberg, William Glasser, and Thomas Gordon all have particular relevance for middle school educators

Those individuals not of lower social class might wish to spend extra effort interacting with cross-class clients, to improve their empathic understanding of their clients' attitudes, values, and life experiences.

Welfare-to-Work Services: A Person-Centered Perspective

For now, it seems safe to say that an ample reserve of empathic understanding generally serves relationships well, even if too much of it backfires at times, Ickes says.

Catching mind readers in the act; researchers get a feel for empathy's ups and downs

From a humanistic perspective, a counselor's imagination has the potential to render a deeper empathic understanding of a client and capture the uniqueness of the individual.

Imagination: an essential dimension of a counselor's empathy

2002) found that Asian American clients with strong adherence to Asian cultural values perceived increased counselor empathic understanding and a stronger client-counselor working alliance than did Asian American clients with weaker adherence to Asian cultural values when they were counseled by European American counselors.

Client adherence to Asian cultural values, common factors in counseling, and session outcome with Asian American clients at a university counseling center

Empathic understanding: Empathic understanding is more than a knowledge of the client based on knowledge of the groups to which he or she belongs.

Do we need multicultural counseling competencies?

The information it contains will assist school counselors in advocating for the fair treatment of all youth in schools and may even move some beyond tolerance to a more empathic understanding of sexuality minority youth issues.