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Girls are More Empathetic: The multifaceted results show not only a significant difference in the empathy of boys and girls, but also on their perception of their parents’ empathy.

This indicates that girls are more empathetic.

It also shows that they are also perceived as more empathetic, while simultaneously being more capable of perceiving empathy.

This could be due to cultural factors and gender roles. In many cultures, girls are expected to be more careful and concerned for others while boys are expected to be independent.

Parent Modeling: The study also found some interesting meaningful connections between children’s’ empathy and their perception of their parents’ empathy.

Not only is the development of empathy in middle and late childhood correlated with parents’ modeling of empathy, it also varies by gender and particular qualities of the parent.

For instance, boys are only influenced by their father’s PT and FS. This shows that boys do not perceive the emotional empathetic qualities of their fathers, just the cognitive ones.

On the other hand, girls are heavily influenced by both their mother and fathers empathetic modeling, both cognitive and emotional.

This study points to the importance of gender and parent modeling for empathy development in middle and late childhood.

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The study produces results in three distinct areas:

1. Differences in Empathy Between Boys and Girls: where girls and boys were compared in all four empathy dimensions, there is a significant overall effect of gender, with girls scoring higher in each category.

2. Differences in Boys’ and Girls’ Perception of Their Parents Empathy: while the study indicated no difference in the ways that girls and boys perceive their mothers’ empathy, there is a significant difference in the way they view that of their fathers’ empathy, with girls perceiving their fathers as more empathetic than the boys do.

3. Boys' and Girls' Perception of their Parents' empathy: The correlational findings are quite nuanced, with boys and girls seeming to be influenced by different aspects of their parents’ empathy:

Boys are most affected by perceptions of their father’s PT, which influences both their PD and PT. Father’s FS influences son’s FS, and mother’s EC affects boy’s EC.

Girls are most affected by their mother and father's PT, which influences their PD. Girls’ FS is influenced by their mother and father’s (FS), and girls’ EC is affected by mother and father's EC.

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The study uses two measurement tools to assess empathy and empathy perception:

Davis’ Interpersonal Reactivity Index: Includes 28 items that assess empathetic disposition through four factors, two cognitive and two emotional. These include perspective taking (PT), Fantasy (FS), Empathetic concern (EC),  and Personal Distress (PD).

Measure of Children’s Perspective of Parental Empathy: children were given two questionnaires, one on mothers and one on fathers, with 28 items each corresponding to the 28 items on the Interpersonal Reactivity Index.

The author used these assessments to examine the differences in empathy between boys and girls, the differences between boys and girls’ perception of their parents’ empathy, and the correlation between perception of their parents’ empathy and their own empathy.

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The study recruited participants, ages nine to twelve, from three public schools in Buenos Aires, Argentina. A total of 387 children (190 boys and 197 girls) were included in the study. All of the children lived with both their mother and father. Instruments were administered to the children in groups of 20.

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Empathy includes both cognitive processes and emotional experiences.

Cognitive approach: in relation to perspective taking or understanding others

Emotional approach: related to emotional arousal or sympathy in response to the feelings or experiences of others.

Integrative approach: both cognitive and emotional approaches are important for understanding empathy.

Conflicting evidence regarding the relationship between parents' empathy and that of the children.

Bandura's Social Cognitive Theory (1986): asserts that children who are exposed to models of certain behavior are likely to emulate those acts.

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Minzi, M. C. (2013). Children's Perception of Parental Empathy as a Precursor of Children's Empathy in Middle and Late Childhood. The Journal of Psychology,147(6), 563-576. doi:10.1080/00223980.2012.721811

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This empirical article takes a multifaceted, nuanced approach to examine the development of empathy in middle and late childhood. Specifically, the study examines:

1.  How empathy develops in middle and late childhood, according to gender.

2. Children's perception of their parents' empathy, according to gender.

3. The relationship between children's perception of their parents' empathy and children's empathy.