What are some reasons for the large lack of empathy in America across all ages?

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   Express10posted 9 years ago

   What are some reasons for the large lack of empathy in America across all ages?

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   Suzanne Dayposted 9 years ago

   I think it's a matter of people not knowing what to do or how to do it to fix problems. Also, no one wants to have a big commitment in time or personal emotional input into another person when mental, emotional or physical issues can be very long term, sometimes permanent, and there is little effective professional help available to cover the myriad of issues going on.
   
   If issues were solved by pressing someone's little green button, we'd see a HUGE increase in empathy and people pressing the buttons. But as it stands, people do not want to give too much because they can see they will be needing it for themselves if they hit the same circumstances, or are just plain selfish.
   
   Also, society seems to be getting worse at putting judgemental labels on people and making groups of people war with each other. The media and governments encourage this. For example, an obese person might be ridiculed instead of treated normally, or an unemployed person might be seen as a "loser" or lazy.
   
   What it often boils down to is class division and "winners" and "losers" as defined by consumerist society. People who are up the top think they deserve to be there and can be quite selfish sometimes (eg, they may donate to the Society Of Pretty Dogs In Ballerina Costumes but they won't give $100 to a homeless person). People who are down the bottom lack empathy because they need plenty of love and empathy to overcome their own issues first. If class division increases, you can be sure empathy decreases right along with it.

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      Express10posted 9 years agoin reply to this

      You have made a few valid points that I'd not thought of.

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      Sri Tposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      A skilled beggar can pull in at least $500 a week in some cities in America.

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      Express10posted 9 years agoin reply to this

      I think most anything is possible Sri T however, one can help the homeless without giving them money directly. Suzanne did provide a good example of a lack of empathy with the Society of Pretty Dogs v/s a homeless person scenario.

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   tsmogposted 9 years ago

   Empathy as most know is not sympathy. It is the 'ability' to 'share' (meaning to experience) another individual or group's experiences, emotions, and feelings. Sympathy is simply recognizing them without experience, IMHO. In other words there is understanding and at times sorrow, yet really experiencing the emotions or feelings is not there. Recollection of similar experiences, maybe, and those associated feelings.
   
   I think (IMHO) in the US there is a lot of pain, suffering, and stress. If we accept studies saying overweight and obesity's number one cause is genetics followed by stress, then it seems we are a stressed out nation. Pain occurs as a cohort of stress.
   
   To be empathetic is to experience that pain and stress as real and not observed. I think it is just overwhelming today to be empathetic 'often', as one has enough stress and pain of their own. I think it takes a strong person of wellness to be empathetic often. I give a nod and take my hat off to those who have that capacity and/or ability. Or, our nation is not a nation of wellness today, therefore there is less empathy as need for empathy rises faster than it can be provided.

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      Express10posted 9 years agoin reply to this

      It seems very negative when there are so many who refuse to even consider another person's viewpoint, experience, proven facts or common knowledge. Then we have people who attempt turn turn tragedies into jokes. I'm interested in learning why.

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      tsmogposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      I'm not sure for certain your meaning. Tragedies as in media shown tragedy contrasting the death in the family, a pet, or loss of a job after 20+ years of working and not eligible for Soc Sec. There are many kinds of tragedy.

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      Express10posted 9 years agoin reply to this

      There are many examples but just one would be the case of the young girl killed by the boy whose prom invite she declined. I've heard jokes about this and seen many in comments. Just makes me wonder where's the empathy for those left behind.

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   M. T. Dremerposted 9 years ago

   I don't know if there is any less empathy than there was before. But I would say that coverage of it is at an all time low. People are out there all the time doing humanitarian efforts and fighting for people who are less fortunate, but those stories don't get coverage. Part of it is ratings and part of it is the extrovert-ideal. We watch every move of careless celebrities and ignore virtually everything else. Maybe if we started rising up more thoughtful people, the U.S. wouldn't have such a bad image in the world abroad.

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      Express10posted 9 years agoin reply to this

      I agree. The news can shock you or make you cry if you're a sensitive person, and there ratio of good to bad is overwhelmingly in favor of bad news.  I also wonder why many parents aren't in their kids' lives, raising law abiding + thoughtful kids.

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   Sri Tposted 9 years ago

   I don't know if you can paint a country with such a broad brush. Every time there is a tragedy, millions of dollars come flooding in from the people here. Whenever people are hurt, millions of people rush in to show their support. There are people who donate every day or leave huge tips at restaurants to help struggling waiters. The people in this country are some of the most generous in the world. Even the government are first to rush donations to other countries who have natural disasters.

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      Express10posted 9 years agoin reply to this

      I speak of not only tragedy but also of sexism, ageism, racism, and forms of maltreatment of others. Some of those who are generous in one way are hypocritical in another. I wonder why many refuse to think of how they can affect others.

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   c-m-hallposted 9 years ago

   propaganda ... lack of knowledge ... flouride in the water ... break down of family unit ... loss of values and goodness due to greed ... capitalism and belief in evolution ... fittest of the fit ,,,, etc ,,,

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      Express10posted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Break down of the family unit is the one that really pops out at me in part because a fair number of the problems in America can be traced back to this either in part or in full. Thanks for answering.

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