ABSTRACT
A common expression to denote empathy is ‘putting yourself in someone else’s shoes’. In recent decades, the phenomenon of empathy has received increased attention across different areas of social life, including politics, management, and self-help. Not surprisingly, given the popularity of the idea across social spheres, a burgeoning body of research spanning the humanities, the social, and the natural sciences contributes a diversity of perspectives that have greatly expanded our scholarly knowledge of empathy. In this chapter, the notion of empathy will be situated within the contemporary sociological literature on emotion. The chapter is divided into three major parts. First, the chapter distinguishes empathy from closely aligned emotional concepts, such as sympathy and compassion. While the three are generally understood as being pro-social emotions, empathy is more inclusive of a wide array of emotional experiences since it is not limited to feelings regarding the suffering of others. Second, the chapter introduces a sociological perspective on empathy. Following my previous work, I view empathy as the process of imagining and sharing the thoughts and feelings of others. Then, the chapter discusses the notion of empathy norms, the associated phenomenon of emotional deviance, and the distinction between experiencing and performing empathy. The conclusion provides a summary and includes a critical consideration of contemporary empathy.
