Components of Empathy in Children: Factor Structure of the Empathy Quotient for Children (EQ-C)

Empathy is multifaceted, involving sharing and understanding the emotional and mental states of others. This study investigated the factor structure of the English-language version of the Empathy Quotient for Children (EQ-C; Auyeung et al., 2009), an empathy measure previously well-validated only as a global scale. We aimed to compare children with and without educational differences (i.e., Special Educational Needs & Disabilities, SEND), and explored associations between empathy and sensory sensitivities across the whole sample. Based on responses from 680 parents, we analysed data from English-speaking children aged 6-12 years, via a series of factor analyses using polychoric correlation matrices and bass-ackward analysis. Empathy domain profiling for children with SEND status (versus children without SEND status) was investigated as group differences (t tests). Sensory sensitivities were examined via associations (correlation) and net effects (regression). We identified an optimal four-factor solution (emotional empathy, social-cognitive empathy, negative interactions, antisocial behaviours), and robust higher order one-, two- and three-factor models. Children with SEND status displayed empathy differences across all four empathy domains (all p < .001). Children with greater sensory sensitivities displayed significant differences for social-cognitive empathy and negative interactions only (both p < .001). We demonstrated the potential utility of the English-language EQ-C as a domain-level measure of empathy. Our paper discusses how the domains align with traditional emotional and cognitive dimensions in adults and cross-culturally. Our empathy profiles can be used alongside global empathy measures for different groups of children, with and without educational differences and sensory sensitivities.