Basic empathy in older adults: conceptualization, measurement, and application

Older adults comprise the most rapidly increasing age group in America. In addition, an increasing number of older adults are involved in helping behaviors or volunteering. Although empathy has been identified as a critical component of a helping relationship, few studies concerning empathy have been conducted with older adults and few instruments have been developed that can be used with this population. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between two measures of empathy in older adults. The Hogan Empathy Scale and an Adjective Check List Empathy Scale were used to assess basic empathy in 43 older adults between the ages of 63 and 96. Results indicated that the mean scores of older adults were lower than mean scores in younger populations. Scores on both measures were comparable suggesting that both instruments could be used to measure basic empathy in older adults.