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Empathy as the Opposite of Egocentrism: Why the Simulation Theory and the Direct Perception Theory of Empathy Fail.

This paper presents a new, third-personal account of empathy that characterizes empathy as being sensitive to others' concerns as opposed to remaining stuck in one's egocentric perspective on the world. The paper also demonstrates why this account is preferable to its two main rivals, namely the sim...

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Published in:Topoi: An International Review of Philosophy Vol. 39; no. 4; pp. 751 - 760
Main Author: Blanchet, Robert
Format: Article
Published: Springer Nature Sep2020
Subjects:
Empathy
Sensory perception
Egoism
Social perception
Online Access:View this record in EBSCOhost
Summary:This paper presents a new, third-personal account of empathy that characterizes empathy as being sensitive to others' concerns as opposed to remaining stuck in one's egocentric perspective on the world. The paper also demonstrates why this account is preferable to its two main rivals, namely the simulation theory of empathy, and the direct perception theory of empathy.