Quadratic Associations Between Empathy and Depression as Moderated by Emotion Dysregulation

Abstract

Empathic tendencies have been associated with interpersonal and psychological benefits, but empathy at extreme levels or in combination with certain personal characteristics may contribute to risk for depression. This study tested the moderating role of cognitive emotion regulation in depression's association with empathy using nonlinear models. Young adults (N = 304; 77% female; M = 19 years) completed measures of cognitive emotion regulation strategies, depression, and affective and cognitive empathy. Individuals with good regulation had low levels of depression overall and their depression symptoms were lowest when levels of affective empathy were average. Individuals with poor regulation had high levels of depression overall, particularly when levels of empathy were moderate to high. Extremely high and low levels of cognitive empathy were associated with elevated depression, and this association was not moderated by regulation. These findings suggest tendencies to respond empathically to others' needs is neither an adaptive nor maladaptive characteristic but rather moderate empathy, particularly in the context of good regulation, may offer the greatest protection against depression.

How Cognitive and Affective Empathy Relate to Emotion Regulation: Divergent Patterns from Trait and Task-Based Measures

“…For example, Lockwood et al (2014) found that trait cognitive, but not affective, empathy was positively correlated with the self-reported use of reappraisal. Similarly, another study found that higher levels of trait perspective taking were associated with increased use of reappraisal (Tully et al, 2016).…”

“…Most previous studies have focused upon the moderating effect of regulation on the association between empathy and different behavioural or clinical outcomes, such as sympathy/personal distress (Okun et al, 2000), prosocial behaviours (Lockwood et al, 2014), and depression (Tully et al, 2016). While not the key question addressed by such studies, they have provided some evidence of a direct relationship between component processes of empathy and emotion regulation.…”

“…Most studies that have examined the relationship between empathy and emotion regulation have used questionnaire measures of both constructs (Lockwood et al, 2014;Eisenberg, Fabes, Guthrie, & Reiser, 2000;Okun, Shepard, & Eisenberg, 2000;Tully, Ames, Garcia, & Donohue, 2016). Given the lack of convergence between questionnaire and taskbased measures often observed in studies of socio-emotional constructs (Melchers, Montag, Markett, & Reuter, 2015), we decided to explore the relationship between empathy and reappraisal using a multi-method approach combining questionnaire and task-based measures of reappraisal.…”

The relationship of dispositional compassion for others with depressive symptoms over a 15-year prospective follow-up

“…Because of the lack of studies with long-term follow-ups and several measurement points, the direction of the relationship between compassion and depressive symptoms have remained largely unclear (Celikel et al, 2010;Cusi et al, 2011;Farmer et al, 2003;Schreiter et al, 2013;Tully et al, 2016). It has been previously suggested that depressive states may cause temporary changes in personality traits (Hirschfeld, 1999;Hur & Kim, 2009).…”

Validity and Reliability of the Jefferson Scale of Empathy, Nursing Student Version R in a Sample of Iranian Oncology Nurses

“…Empathy is a complex and multi-dimensional concept (7,8) and can be measured in different ways. Self-rating (the assessment of empathy using standardized instru-ments completed by the individuals assessed), patientrating (the use of instruments given to patients to assess the empathy they experience among their caregivers) and observer rating (the use of standardized instruments by an observer to rate empathy in communications between healthcare team members and patients) are among these methods (9).…”