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Dispositional Empathy Among Psychotherapists: A Latent Profile Analysis
Valerie Lachance1, Olivier Laverdière1, David Kealy2
1Department of Psychology, Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada.
Clinical Psychology & Psychotherapy
|June 11, 2024
Summary
Therapists exhibit distinct empathy profiles, varying significantly with personal traits like attachment style and personality, but not professional background. Understanding these dispositional empathy profiles is crucial for psychotherapy.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Clinical Psychology
- Psychotherapy Research
Background:
- Therapists' dispositional empathy is key to effective psychotherapy.
- Understanding empathy profiles can inform clinical practice and training.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify distinct profiles of dispositional empathy among therapists.
- To examine how these profiles relate to therapists' professional and personal characteristics.
Main Methods:
- Latent profile analysis of dispositional empathy using the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI).
- Assessed predictors including demographic, professional, attachment, personality, and narcissism variables in 376 clinicians.
Main Results:
- Four distinct empathy profiles emerged: rational empathic (20%), disengaged/detached (10%), empathic immersion (35%), and insecure/self-absorbed (35%).
- Profile membership strongly correlated with personal characteristics (attachment, personality traits, vulnerable narcissism) but weakly with professional/demographic factors.
Conclusions:
- Therapists' empathic dispositions are significantly associated with underlying personality dimensions.
- Findings have implications for psychotherapy training, practice, and research, highlighting the role of personality in therapist empathy.
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