Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 11, 2026

Experimental Paradigm for Measuring the Effects of Self-distancing in Young Children
Published on: March 1, 2019
The Kids' Empathic Development Scale (KEDS): a multi-dimensional measure of empathy in primary school-aged children
Corinne Reid1, Helen Davis, Chiara Horlin
1School of Psychology, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia, Australia. Corinne.Reid@uwa.edu.au
Abstract:
Empathy is an essential building block for successful interpersonal relationships. Atypical empathic development is implicated in a range of developmental psychopathologies. However, assessment of empathy in children is constrained by a lack of suitable measurement instruments. This article outlines the development of the Kids' Empathic Development Scale (KEDS) designed to assess some of the core affective, cognitive and behavioural components of empathy concurrently. The KEDS assesses responses to picture scenarios depicting a range of individual and interpersonal situations differing in social complexity. Results from 220 children indicate the KEDS measures three related but distinct aspects of empathy that are also related to existing measures of empathy and cognitive development. Scores on the KEDS show age and some gender-related differences in the expected direction.
Related Concept Videos
Empathy
Cognitive Development During Adolescence
Socioemotional Development during Infancy
Primary Temperament Types
Stella Chess...
Erikson's Theory on Socioemotional Development during Childhood
The first four of Erikson's eight psychosocial stages...
Social Foundations of Self II: The Generalized Other
Relationship with Other Adult Family Members and Siblings

