Bridging the Empathy Gap - Ideas for Change in America

What do you think is the most effective way to turn this idea into real policy? Add your suggestions here for how you think we should run an advocacy campaign to advance the idea – including the overall strategy, messaging, targets, and tactics.

Approach this from the standpoint that people reading this forum already agree with you on the importance of the issue, and are asking "What can we do to help make this a reality?"

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Suggested by Kristofer Young, DC on 03/17/2009 @ 03:15PM PT
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The human capacity for empathy is a natural result of complete psychological development in conditions of freedom for growth in an environment of security and unconditional love. There needs to be a complete change in attitude regarding the education of children. They become empathetic adults if allowed the freedom to grow and develop completely. This means that their psychological needs should be taken more seriously... both at home and at school. Effective education is education for the child as a whole or 'holistic education' also known as 'democratic education'. (www.HolisticEducator.com)

Suggested by Marion Hubbard on 03/17/2009 @ 02:06PM PT
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The empathy gap is a symptom of over emphasis on material values in a capitalistic consumer culture. Children's growth and development should be taken more seriously. Since the human capacity for empathy is the result of complete psychological and moral development then children should have the freedom to grow in conditions of security and unconditional love. They become empathetic adults only if they are provided with the right conditions for development both at home and at school... There needs to be a complete change in attitude regsee the importance of education for the child as a whole or 'holistic education'.

Suggested by Marion Hubbard on 03/17/2009 @ 01:54PM PT
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DIGG These and GET ThE WORD OUT. YES on 1388!
http://digg.com/politics/HR_1388_Will_it_build_Obama_s_New_Civillian_Army

http://digg.com/political_opinion/Obama_Requires_YOU_to_SERVE_H_R_1388

Suggested by DARLENE MATTHEWS on 03/17/2009 @ 12:46PM PT
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This is so great! We are four women who are the co-founders of a project in Australia called the Empathy Foundation. This change initiative is completely aligned with our vision. Here is some of what we are doing.The Empathy Foundation Why the Empathy Foundation? Why Empathy?“The human brain and heart that are met primarily with empathy in the critical early years cannot and will not grow to choose a violent or selfish life.” Robin Grille, Parenting for a Peaceful WorldModern research shows that the capacity for empathy in adults is directly related to the experience of empathy they have received as a child, that the capacity for empathy can be grown in adults and that people with a high level of empathy treat others and the earth with more care.The goal of the Empathy Foundation (Australia) is to provide a platform from which to spread the understanding of the importance of empathy, as the key to creating a world that is environmentally sustainable, socially just and spiritually fulfilling. The mission of the Empathy Foundation (Australia) is to spread the understanding that the practice of empathy is essential to the future of humankind on our planet. We do this through the communication of the empathy message broadly in society, and by creating empathy training programs to suit a wide range of sectors in society. Currently we are developing “The Empathic Classroom” training for educators and we have identified the Sedona Method as one of the most effective tools for adults in developing their capacity for empathy. The Empathy Foundation will bring cultural change to all levels of human groups and organizations by targeting a broad range of society, from families to schools, workplaces, the arts, government and business. It will transform how people relate to each other in organizations of all kinds by fostering the practical expression of empathy. People will be empowered and will help each other to learn and grow and to be more collaborative, creative and effective. The first Empathy Foundation talk “Can Empathy Save the World?” given at the Early Childhood Australia Conference in Canberra in 2008, introduced the project and attracted interest from experienced early childhood leaders.Our vision is that “empathy training” becomes a household word and a part of the education of every parent, child and member of the public from the police to administrative officers, from education to business and the arts. At every level it would be understood and accepted that empathy is essential to humanity developing in a just and sustainable way. Fostering and protecting empathy will be paramount in government policy at all levels. A truly transformative understanding will become widely adopted - that the future of humanity is determined by our ability to raise emotionally healthy, empathic children, to foster a healthier, more creative generation than has ever been seen on earth, who will become the source of the rapid changes that are needed for a sustainable and just future for humanity.

See also http://empathyfoundation.ning.com/http://www.lifeenergycoaching.com.au/blog/

Suggested by Rita Johnston on 01/28/2009 @ 01:15PM PT
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I came to the site to vote for this idea and cannot figure out how to do that. Nonviolent language skills are SO important in every aspect of life, including workplace, home, school, places of worship, government, and in all public discourse!

Suggested by Valerie Siegel on 01/21/2009 @ 05:52PM PT
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I'm all for this-- is there still a way to vote for it?

Suggested by Aiyana Bailin on 01/20/2009 @ 09:54PM PT
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I suggest that “we the people” develop person-to-person groups throughout our society, in elementary schools through to universities, in government, and in neighborhood and regional communities. These groups would be characterized by the practice of empathic understanding and respect for the unique experience of each participant.

Initially, the groups could be facilitated by thousands of individuals who are already trained in the discipline of this practice. There are many associations that cultivate empathic and respectful practices from which interested volunteers could be drawn. One such organization is the nonviolent communication organization represented above by Ana Campos. The association with which I am most familiar is the Association for the Development of the Person-Centered Approach (http://www.adpca.org/). These organizations draw inspiration from the revolutionary psychologist, Carl R. Rogers. It was Rogers who initiated international conflict resolution and human relations workshops. There is a large body of literature available on this subject.

The goal for such groups is to create a safe environment conducive to shared communication in which all participants have an equal right to speak to express their thoughts and feelings. Such groups tend to be unstructured and without agenda. The primary task of the group leader is to facilitate the self-expression of anyone who chooses to speak. As a climate of mutual trust develops, participants tend to feel more freedom to be themselves in relationship with others. As defensiveness dissolves, reciprocal communications improve, negative attitudes can shift, and new and creative ways of being together in community develop.

After the Columbine school murders, C.H. Patterson, a prolific writer and professor emeritus from the University of Illinois, sent a similar suggestion to a person-centered email group . He suggested instituting encounter groups (characterized by empathy and respect for others) in early elementary school and keeping the groups going throughout all grade levels. He wrote: : “Such a continuing experience holds the greatest promise for changing our society from one which is characterized by lack of understanding and conflict to one which is characterized by understanding and cooperation... In the encounter group students can learn through experience: to listen to others, to accept and respect others, to understand others, to identify and become aware of feelings, to express one's own feelings, to become aware of the feelings of others, to experience being listened to by others, to experience being accepted and respected by others, to experience being understood by others, to recognize the basic commonalities of human experience, to explore oneself, to develop greater awareness of oneself, to be oneself, to change oneself in the direction of being more the self one wants to be.” (message to the client-centered/person-centered email network, May 3, 1999, originally proposed in his 1973 book, Humanistic Education).

My proposal is that we develop such groups in all communities and for all ages and walks of life, including within institutions and government. Organization, facilitation and proliferation, I believe, would be best promoted on a volunteer basis, with the only assistance from government being to open doors into governmental and corporate institutions and perhaps provision of free meeting spaces that are large enough to provide and hold a single circle of chairs that can accommodate between 20 and 100 participants.

Kathryn Moon
Chicago, Illinois

Suggested by Kathryn Moon on 01/18/2009 @ 10:39AM PT
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Like intellectual humanism, self-esteem, etc., empathy naturally and most appropriately arises from the core of our nature with the regular daily practice of a traditional form of meditation such as that taught by the Buddhist tradition, Transcendental Meditation, etc. (see tm.org or PermanentPeace.org).

Once that practice is established, then I whole-heartedly support and endorse the technology of empathy-based communication, particularly NVC, as a way to apply that which naturally flows from within.

How about a Federally-sponsored demonstration project in Washington D.C. that implements BOTH the "Quiet Time / TM" program and NVC's empathy tool kit K through 12?

That would demonstrate the effectiveness of two complimentary technologies, and build congressional advocacy for Federal education grants to set up similar demonstration programs within each state.

Supportive Discussion:

Empathy? Easy to support, tough to properly frame, tougher to implement, and toughest of all to achieve without unintended consequences.

Who could be against more empathy between members of our global community? No one, and yet...

I am reminded of California's experience on an equally well-intentioned bandwagon: "Self-Esteem"

I am also reminded of the aphorism, "Virtue in excess becomes vice."

As good a pick for the spot light as "empathy" is, I suggest you find a deeper, more profound technology that cultivates "Wisdom" and allows tools for empathy-based communication to be brought to bear on a wise, situation-by-situation basis.

Otherwise we remain at risk of corrupting "empathy," its usefulness, its vocabulary, etc. in the same way "self-esteem" became an industry of fake praise, and intellectual humanism on campus became the tyranny of politically-correct New-Speak.

Instead, champion "empathy" by championing a technology that automatically gives rise to empathy along with every other virtue, and brings them to bear in service to situation-specific Wisdom.

Ancient Vedic Wisdom says, "Know 'That' by knowing which all else is known."

Translation: Broaden the surface mind to include the deep, empty Silence that lies within, far beyond the field of the senses and the objects of sense.

Becoming established in pure Being, one is free to act in harmony with the highest purpose of the moment, and in accordance with ALL the laws of Nature.

Warm Regards.

Eric Hutchins

Suggested by Eric Hutchins on 01/18/2009 @ 01:50AM PT
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I think there is an educational piece that is needed to help people "get" this proposal. It is important to understand that there are proven, concrete, teachable practices that reliably support the emergence of empathic understandings, with which some groups have had considerable experience. It is also true that there are proven, concrete, teachable practices for resolving conflicts. Both empathy and related conflict resolution practices are visible in the way that Pres. Obama operates, and could be brought into government operations more broadly.
In the absence of this information, it would be easy to lost in doubt, wanting to focus on proposals that are really do-able. This proposal is much more do-able than may be readily apparent.
Nonviolent Communication (see for example http://cnvc.org/) offers a set of practices that very effectively lead to empathy. I offer this not to say that there might not be other practices that could support this proposal, but as a starting point, to support confidence that we can implement the idea. There are also other established techniques for resolving conflicts, and these also rely on the development of greater mutual understanding, if not fully-developed empathy.
"Yes we can" really implement this proposal. It has the potential to produce much more satisfying outcomes than those that are produced by our current institutions and practices.

Suggested by Robert Wentworth on 01/17/2009 @ 08:17AM PT
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