ABSTRACT
Affective empathy' denotes a range of emotional responses we can have to what others feel or the situation they are in, which include sympathy, empathic anger, and contagious joy. The consensus among philosophers tends to be that only what is described above under the title 'affective empathy' is affective empathy proper. Social psychologists, by contrast, mainly talk of what philosophers call sympathy, when they talk of empathy or, more precisely, empathic concern. To understand affective empathy, one needs to understand how it is connected to, yet different from, these other affective states. The literature on empathic affect and empathy-related emotions has been dominated by a focus on the feelings of those in need: pain, distress, sadness, and so on. It has been assumed that empathy with people suffering plays a crucial role in moral development and behavior, and in social adjustment.
