Abstract
Empathy, popularly described as “standing in another’s shoes,” is central to survival, society, interrelationship, and more, and not only for human beings. At one level, our “mirror neurons” build in this capacity. Darwin too, in his later evolutionary writings, unknown to some, spoke strongly of empathy (called sensitivity) along with group bonding, love, and collaborative activity. At best empathy can lead to compassionate action. Here too are intimacy and our strongest bonds. Empathy, mutuality, and relationship can also be highly creative and co-creative—as product and process—meeting criteria of originality and meaningfulness. Far from optional these help direct our earliest brain development and not only can enrich life but sustain it.
Where empathy and concern flow both ways, there is an intense affirmation of the self and, paradoxically, a transcendence of the self, a sense of the self as part of a larger relational unit. The interaction allows for a relaxation of the sense of separateness; the other’s well-being becomes as important as one’s own.
Judith Jordan, PhD
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Notes
- 1.
Jordan, “The Meaning of Mutuality,” 83.
- 2.
Lewis, The Four Loves, 163.
- 3.
Thich Nhat Hanh, Teachings on Love.
- 4.
Lewis, The Four Loves, 163.
- 5.
Siegel, Developing Mind.
- 6.
Siegel, The Mindful Brain, 164–166.
- 7.
This chapter deals with empathy for humans and other species too. Since this author has concerns about animal experimentation and humane treatment of living beings, she has omitted an anecdote about accidental discovery of mirror neurons. Buddhist monk, and translator for HH Dalai Lama, Matthieu Ricard, in Plea for the Animals, shares that France passed, in 2014, “an amendment to the French civil code … that recognized animals as sentient beings … extended to the entire French legal system.” (p. 272). This includes not causing pain. Unfortunately this is not the case in most parts of the world. Empathy plus awareness of situations (often hidden) can hopefully cause us to act.
- 8.
DeParle, “Orphaned.”
- 9.
Richards, “Relational Creativity and Healing Potential: The Power of Eastern Thought in Western Clinical Settings.”
- 10.
Ibid., 298, I no longer have the original emails, but recounted her story the next year, and in later talks.
- 11.
Malchiodi, Art Therapy Sourcebook, e.g., 138.
- 12.
Rothberg, The Engaged Spiritual Life: A Buddhist Approach to Transforming Ourselves and the World.
- 13.
See Ekman, www.YouTube.com/watch?v=3AgvKJK-nrk (June 17, 2010); also Goleman, www.danielgoleman.oinfo/three-kinds-of-empathy-cognitive-emotional-compassionate. Retr. 3-10-2018.
- 14.
Epstein and Norris, “Experiential Thinking Style.”
- 15.
Feinstein and Krippner, The Mythic Path.
- 16.
Baron-Cohen, The Science of Evil.
- 17.
Bostrom, Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, Strategies.
- 18.
Kurzweil, The Singularity is Near.
- 19.
deWaal, Age of Empathy.
- 20.
Loye, “Telling the New Story: Darwin, Evolution, and Creativity Versus Conformity in Science.
- 21.
Ibid., 157.
- 22.
Richards, editor, Everyday Creativity and New Views of Human Nature.
- 23.
Loye, “Telling the New Story.”
- 24.
Kolbert, The Sixth Extinction.
- 25.
Moran, Ethical Ripples of Creativity and Innovation.
- 26.
Jordan, Kaplan, Miller, Stiver, and Surrey, Women’s Growth in Connection; Note too, Guisinger and Blatt, “Individuality and Relatedness: Evolution of a Fundamental Dialectic.” Western psychologies have typically stressed the autonomous, independent side of this dialectic, where interpersonal relatedness has been relatively less emphasized. Pressures of natural selection favor both; there are implications for mature development, social policy. See also Montuori, Combs, and Richards, “Creativity, Consciousness, and the Direction for Human Development.”
- 27.
Siegel, Developing Mind, 233. Includes discussion of supersystems. See too Guevara, et al., “Attractor Dynamics of Dyadic Interaction,” exploring children’s problem solving, with oscillation between two attractor states; cooperation and coordination was moderately correlated with better performance.
- 28.
Jordan, Relational-Cultural Therapy.
- 29.
Each book may be used with a DVD that demonstrates applications in therapy. See www.apa.org/pubs/books//Theories-series-and-dvds.aspx.
- 30.
Richards, “Relational Creativity and Healing Potential,” 286.
- 31.
Root-Bernstein and Root-Bernstein, Sparks of Genius.
- 32.
Kaufman and Gregoire, Wired to Create.
- 33.
Richards, “Relational Creativity and Healing Potential,” 292.
- 34.
Jordan, Relational-Cultural Therapy, 69.
- 35.
Dalai Lama and Cutler, The Art of Happiness.
- 36.
Ibid., 69.
- 37.
Thich Minh Duc, personal communication, Sept 30, 2005.
- 38.
Richards, “Relational Creativity and Healing Potential,” 300.
- 39.
Siegel, The Mindful Brain.
- 40.
This can involve both role-playing and role-reveral. With thanks to Kady Pomerleau-Corpstein for her dynamic teaching innovations in working with young people.
- 41.
It is worth finding precursors and vulnerabilities in one’s life, whether bullied or the one who bullies, and also alternative ways both can handle the situation.
- 42.
Wallace, The Four Immeasureables.
- 43.
Richards, “Relational Creativity and Healing Potential,” 300.
- 44.
Thich Nhat Hanh, Teachings on Love, 1.
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Richards, R. (2018). Empathy and Relational Creativity. In: Everyday Creativity and the Healthy Mind. Palgrave Studies in Creativity and Culture. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-55766-7_14
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