The Dark and Light Sides of Empathy: The Clinical Relevance of the Assessment of Cognitive and Affective Empathy Across Negative and Positive Emotions.

ABSTRACT: Is empathy a "double-edged sword"? This study aimed to contribute to a more nuanced understanding of the multidimensional empathy construct in the statistical prediction of negative and positive mental health outcomes. More specifically, this research intended to reveal whether, what, and how four individual empathy dimensions (i.e., cognitive empathy for negative emotions, cognitive empathy for positive emotions, affective empathy for negative emotions, and affective empathy for positive emotions) uniquely statistically predicted the levels of anxiety and depression symptoms, as well as well-being. A total of 786 Polish-speaking adults (452 females and 334 males) filled out a series of self-report questionnaires on empathy (the Perth Empathy Scale), anxiety, and depre

SUBMITTER: Larionow P 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11941167 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature