Exploring the Relationship between Empathy and Innovation among Engineering Students

Hess, Justin L.; Fila, Nicholas D.; Purzer, Şenay

doi:10.18260/p.24077

Cited by 25 publications

(38 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…For example, Davis 25 developed one of the most prominent psychometric measures for assessing individual differences in empathy, the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI), and this instrument has been used among engineering student populations. 14,32 In the IRI, Davis conceptualized empathy as four unique constructs; perspective taking, empathic concern, personal distress, and fantasy. However, some scholars have criticized the IRI for labeling some constructs as "empathy" that do not fit their definition, and we would not altogether refute these claims.…”

Section: What Is Empathy?mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…2,11,12 This sentiment also resonates with practicing engineers who have indicated that empathy and care were especially pertinent within the relational aspects of engineering work. 13 Additionally, scholars have shown that empathy can lead to innovation 14 , and others have argued that empathy is necessary for ethical decision-making within engineering 10 . In sum, it appears that promoting empathy within engineering would also improve already widespread efforts.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Development and Growth of Empathy Among Engineering Students

Hess

Fila

2016 ASEE Annual Conference &Amp; Exposition Proceedings

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interests include developing pedagogical strategies to improve STEM students' ethical reasoning skills; exploring the role of empathy within design, innovation and sustainability; synthesizing the influence of societal and individual worldviews on decision-making; assessing STEM students' learning in the spaces of design, ethics, and sustainability; and exploring the impact of pre-engineering curriculum on students' abilities and career trajectories. The Development and Growth of Empathy among Engineering Students AbstractDiscourse on empathy is growing globally, as is its focus within the engineering community. In the context of engineering, scholars have depicted this interpersonal phenomenon as a necessary skill for effectively communicating, a core component of ethical reasoning, and a key technique for designing to meet the needs of users. However, literature regarding its development within engineering is rather limited, and the literature that does exist is disconnected. Even literature outside of engineering tends to focus on childhood development as opposed to adult development. While the developmental literature may tend to focus on earlier ages (likely because this is when an individual most rapidly develops), the endeavor of empathic growth and development need not be abandoned within post-secondary education. Rather, it indicates that we lack an understanding of the ideal means for empathic development later in one's life.Given the growing emphasis on the necessity of empathy to thrive as an engineer, engineering educators need to understand the constellation of existing tools and pedagogical techniques to foster empathy within the engineering curriculum. This synthesis piece highlights a variety of educational contexts and pedagogical techniques, each of which we posit are equally salient and mutually supportive for the development of engineering students' empathic skills, abilities, or dispositions. We draw from literature from a wide variety of fields, including counselling, psychology, moral philosophy, psychotherapy, neuropsychology, and engineering education. In sum, we describe five educational contexts and a myriad of techniques that we posit, when used effectively and spread across engineering curricula, will be effective means towards the development of empathy among engineering students.

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Section: What Is Empathy?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Development and Growth of Empathy Among Engineering Students

Hess

Fila

2016 ASEE Annual Conference &Amp; Exposition Proceedings

Self Cite

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“…Influenced by the work of Kanter (1983; (2016) where managers and executives can take a version of the IBS to measure their own innovative behavior. A version of the IBS has also been used by Fila et al (2015) to explore the similarities and differences in innovation discovery behaviors between student and working engineers and by Hess et al (2016) to investigate empathic and innovative tendencies among engineering students.…”

Section: Measuring Innovation Capabilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Innovation Self-Efficacy: A Very Brief Measure for Engineering Students

Schar

Gilmartin

Harris

et al.

2017 ASEE Annual Conference &Amp; Exposition Proceedings

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The focus of Mark's research can broadly be described as "pivot thinking," the cognitive aptitudes and abilities that encourage innovation, and the tension between design engineering and business management cognitive styles. To encourage these thinking patterns in young engineers, Mark has developed a Scenario Based Learning curriculum that attempts to blend core engineering concepts with selected business ideas. Mark is also researches empathy and mindfulness and its impact on gender participation in engineering education. He is a Research Scientist and Lecturer in the School of Engineering at Stanford University and teaches the course ME310x Product Management and ME305 Statistics for Design Researchers.Mark has extensive background in consumer products management, having managed more than 50 consumer driven businesses over a 25-year career with The Procter & Gamble Company. In 2005, he joined Intuit, Inc. as Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer and initiated a number of consumer package goods marketing best practices, introduced the use of competitive response modeling and "onthe-fly" A|B testing program to qualify software improvements.Mark is the Co-Founder and Managing Director of One Page Solutions, a consulting firm that uses the OGSP R process to help technology and branded product clients develop better strategic plans. Mark is a member of The Band of Angels, Silicon Valley's oldest organization dedicated exclusively to funding seed stage start-ups. In addition, he serves on the board of several technology start-up companies.

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“…A more holistic understanding of the patient may provide for a more effective design process. In the engineering education field in general, a number of investigations have been conducted to explore the relationship and importance of empathy, self-awareness, and social-awareness in engineering students [11][12][13][14]. These studies reveal the importance of empathy for effective innovation and engineering design.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Diseases, Devices, and Patients: Exposing BME Students to the Patient Experience

Cavanagh

Tranquillo

2017 ASEE Annual Conference &Amp; Exposition Proceedings

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Exploring the Relationship between Empathy and Innovation among Engineering Students

Cited by 25 publications

References 13 publications

The Development and Growth of Empathy Among Engineering Students

The Development and Growth of Empathy Among Engineering Students

Innovation Self-Efficacy: A Very Brief Measure for Engineering Students

Diseases, Devices, and Patients: Exposing BME Students to the Patient Experience

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