Adult Empathy: Possible Gender Differences in Gene-Environment Architecture for Cognitive and Emotional Components in a Large Italian Twin Sample

Toccaceli, Virgilia; Fagnani, Corrado; Eisenberg, Nancy; Alessandri, Guido; Vitale, Augusto; Stazi, Maria Antonietta

doi:10.1017/thg.2018.19

Cited by 17 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 73 publications

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“…However, it has been observed that such trend is not representative of the empirical data obtained by some authors which reflect conflicting results. 22,[32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44][45] On the other hand, gender empathy has been studied in homozygotic and dizygotic twins 46 and possible gender-specific innate and environmental influences on empathy and its cognitive and emotional components were found. In relation to the differences found in the present work (higher in women) in the values of Empathy and PA, and, in particular with the PA dimension.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Empathy is influenced by multiple factors, as stated above, 8,16,17,[46][47][48] and this situation should also be considered to explain the differences found between the specialties studied in this work. The dentist is one of the health workers who experiences more physical and mental illness.…”

Section: It Is An Important Finding That the Dimensions CC And Puttingmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Psychometry and empathy levels and its dimensions in postgraduate students of dental specialties

Narváez

Oyarzún‐Muñoz

Reyes‐Reyes

et al. 2021

Eur J Dental Education

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Background:Empathy is an attribute that has an important role in the dentist-patient therapeutic relationship, clinical care and adherence to treatment, amongst other benefits. The aim of this research was to determine empathy in dentists in the process of specialisation. Materials and Methods:Through an observational and cross-sectional study, all postgraduate students of Dentistry Faculty of Universidad Andrés Bello (Chile) were analysed (N = 195). The Jefferson Scale of Physician Empathy Scale was applied. Results:The results show an adequate reliability of the empathy measure (α = 0.819, ω = 0.928). A three-factor structure is evidenced by confirmatory factor analysis (χ 2 /df = 1.445, GFI = 0.952, RMSEA = 0.047) and adequate factor invariance between men and women. Women showed greater empathy on the global scale and in the perspective adoption dimension, with no gender differences found in the dimension Compassionate care and putting oneself in the other's shoes (POOS). The median empathy reaches 120 points. Below, are placed, the specialty of oral rehabilitation (Med = 114.5), surgery (Med = 117) and periodontics (Med. = 117.5). With superior scores, temporomandibular disorder (Med. = 121), endodontics (Med. = 121), Orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics Med. = 122), Implantology (Med. = 125) and Pediatric dentistry (Med. = 127.5) are located. Conclusion:Women were more empathetic than men. In general, empathy levels are relatively high, but the common feature in which all students examined in different specialties have low levels in dimension POOS.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: It Is An Important Finding That the Dimensions CC And Puttingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Psychometry and empathy levels and its dimensions in postgraduate students of dental specialties

Narváez

Oyarzún‐Muñoz

Reyes‐Reyes

et al. 2021

Eur J Dental Education

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“…So far, very few twin studies have investigated innate and environmental effects in adult empathy and, even fewer have investigated possible gender differences in these effects. A twin study (Toccaceli et al, 2018) was conducted to examine innate and environmental influences on three components (cognitive, emotional and social skills) of an empathy scale frequently used with adults, the Empathy Quotient by Baron-Cohen & Wheelwright (2004), and to explore gender differences in these influences. Women's empathy (and its subdimensions as well) seemed to be predominantly driven by genetic factors and individual (non-shared) experiences, whereas for males, no genetic contribution and substantial influences of both shared and individual environmental effects emerged.…”

Section: From Children To Adults: Behavior Personality and Brain Funmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Italian Twin Registry: An Update at 18 Years From Its Inception

et al. 2019

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The Italian Twin Registry (ITR), established in 2001, is a population-based registry of voluntary twins. To date, it consists of approximately 29,000 twins who gave their consent to participate in the studies proposed by the ITR research group. The database comprises 11,500 monozygotic and 16,700 dizygotic twins resident throughout the country and belonging to a wide age range (from 0 to 95 years, mean 36.8 years). This article provides an overview of the recruitment strategies along with the major phenotypes investigated during an 18 years’ research period. Over the years, several self-reported questionnaire data were collected, together with saliva/blood samples and measurements taken during in-person interviews or outpatient clinical examinations. Mental and behavioral phenotypes as well as atherosclerotic traits were studied in depth across different age groups. A birth cohort of twins was established and followed up. Novel research hypotheses are also being tested in ongoing projects. The ITR is involved in international studies in collaboration with other twin registries and represents a valuable resource for national and international research initiatives regarding a broad spectrum of health-related characteristics.

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“…In line with this, recent studies have questioned the existence of such rigid differences in empathy between men and women. Sex differences could result from the interaction of multiple factors, such as social learning, genetic predisposition, evolutionary underpinnings, and interpersonal styles [ 61 , 62 ]. The women in the present study scored higher on the emotional components; as these are more dependent on neurochemical processes, it is intuitive for sex differences to exist.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Empathic Capacity and the Ability to Regulate It: Construction and Validation of the Empathy Management Scale (EMS)

et al. 2021

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The aim of this study was to develop a measure to evaluate the management of empathic capacity. To this end, two studies were conducted. Study 1 (N = 277, 172 females) describes the scale creation procedure, factorial validity, and internal consistency. The exploratory factor analysis yielded a five-factor model with 18 items (62.4% of the variance explained). The dimensions were as follows: D1: identification, D2: incorporation, D3: reverberation, D4: separation, and D5: projection. The internal consistency was good (alpha values ranging from 0.70 to 0.80). Study 2 (N = 480, 323 females) examined the validity (including convergent validity) of the model and the relationships with sociodemographic variables. The five-factor model showed a robust goodness of fit, χ2 = 240.5, p < 0.001, root mean square residual (RMSR) = 0.05. The fit indices were satisfactory, Non-normed fit index (NNFI) = 0.89, comparative fit index (CFI) = 0.90, mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) = 0.04. The convergent validity analysis showed that, as empathy management increased, so too did the empathy level and emotional intelligence. Some differences by age and sex were found. In conclusion, the Empathy Management Scale is a valid and reliable instrument for analyzing the empathic process that allows vulnerabilities and strengths to be estimated, which could improve professional practice in the healthcare context.

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Adult Empathy: Possible Gender Differences in Gene-Environment Architecture for Cognitive and Emotional Components in a Large Italian Twin Sample

Cited by 17 publications

References 73 publications

Psychometry and empathy levels and its dimensions in postgraduate students of dental specialties

Psychometry and empathy levels and its dimensions in postgraduate students of dental specialties

The Italian Twin Registry: An Update at 18 Years From Its Inception

The Empathic Capacity and the Ability to Regulate It: Construction and Validation of the Empathy Management Scale (EMS)

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