Cross-Cultural Perspectives on the Role of Empathy during COVID-19’s First Wave

Marina L. Butovskaya, Valentina N. Burkova, Ashley K. Randall, Silvia Donato, Julija N. Fedenok, Lauren Hocker, Kai M. Kline, Khodabakhsh Ahmadi, Ahmad M. Alghraibeh, Fathil Bakir Mutsher Allami, Fadime Suata Alpaslan, Mohammad Ahmad Abdelaziz Al-Zu’bi, Derya Fatma Biçer, Hakan Cetinkaya, Oana Alexandra David, Seda Dural, Paige Erickson, Alexey M. Ermakov, Berna Ertuğrul, Emmanuel Abiodun Fayankinnu, Maryanne L. Fisher, Ivana Hromatko, Elena Kasparova, Alexander Kavina, Hareesol Khun-Inkeeree, Fırat Koç, Vladimir Kolodkin, Melanie MacEacheron, Irma Rachmawati Maruf, Norbert Meskó, Ruzan Mkrtchyan, Poppy Setiawati Nurisnaeny, Oluyinka Ojedokun, Damilola Adebayo, Mohd S. B. Omar-Fauzee, Barış Özener, Edna Lúcia Tinoco Ponciano, Igor V. Popov, Muhammad Rizwan, Agnieszka Sabiniewicz, Victoriya I. Spodina, Stanislava Stoyanova, Nachiketa Tripathi, Satwik Upadhyay, Carol Weisfeld, Mohd Faiz Mohd Yaakob, Mat Rahimi Yusof and Raushaniia I. Zinurova
Additional contact information
Marina L. Butovskaya: Center of Cross-Cultural Psychology and Human Ethology, Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia
Valentina N. Burkova: Center of Cross-Cultural Psychology and Human Ethology, Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia
Ashley K. Randall: Counseling and Counseling Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-0811, USA
Silvia Donato: Department of Psychology, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 20123 Milan, Italy
Julija N. Fedenok: Center of Cross-Cultural Psychology and Human Ethology, Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119991 Moscow, Russia
Lauren Hocker: Counseling and Counseling Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-0811, USA
Kai M. Kline: Counseling and Counseling Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-0811, USA
Khodabakhsh Ahmadi: Behavioral Sciences Research Center, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran 19395-5478, Iran
Ahmad M. Alghraibeh: Department of Psychology, King Saud University, Riyadh 2458, Saudi Arabia
Fathil Bakir Mutsher Allami: Physical Education and Sport Sciences, University of Misan, Amarah 62001, Maysan, Iraq
Fadime Suata Alpaslan: Department of Anthropology, İstanbul University, İstanbul 34452, Turkey
Mohammad Ahmad Abdelaziz Al-Zu’bi: Department of Early Childhood, Faculty of Educational Sciences, Zarqa University, Zarqa City 5468, Jordan
Derya Fatma Biçer: Department of Business Administration, Sivas Cumhuriyet University, Sivas 58140, Turkey
Hakan Cetinkaya: Department of Psychology, Ankara University, Ankara 06100, Turkey
Oana Alexandra David: Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Babes-Bolyai University Cluj-Napoca, 400015 Cluj-Napoca, Romania
Seda Dural: Department of Psychology, Izmir University of Economics, İzmir 35330, Turkey
Paige Erickson: Department of Psychology, University of Detroit Mercy, Detroit, MI 48221-3038, USA
Alexey M. Ermakov: Faculty of Bioengineering and Veterinary Medicine, Don State Technical University, 344000 Rostov-on-Don, Russia
Berna Ertuğrul: Department of Anthropology, İstanbul University, İstanbul 34452, Turkey
Emmanuel Abiodun Fayankinnu: Department of Sociology, Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko 001, Nigeria
Maryanne L. Fisher: Department of Psychology, Saint Mary’s University, Halifax, NS B3H 3C3, Canada
Ivana Hromatko: Department of Psychology, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Elena Kasparova: Department of Pedagogy and Problems of Education Development, Belarusian State University, 220030 Minsk, Belarus
Alexander Kavina: Department of History, St John’s University of Tanzania, Dodoma P.O. Box 47, Tanzania
Hareesol Khun-Inkeeree: School of Languages and General Education, Walailak University, Thasala District, Nakhon si Thammarat 80160, Thailand
Fırat Koç: Department of Anthropology, Hitit University, Çorum 19030, Turkey
Vladimir Kolodkin: Faculty of Media Communications and Multimedia Technology, Don State Technical University, 344000 Rostov-on-Don, Russia
Melanie MacEacheron: School of Social & Behavioral Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-0811, USA
Irma Rachmawati Maruf: Post Graduate Notary Law Program, Pasundan University, Bandung 40113, West Java, Indonesia
Norbert Meskó: Department for General and Evolutionary Psychology, Institute of Psychology, University of Pécs, 7624 Pécs, Hungary
Ruzan Mkrtchyan: Department of Cultural Studies, Faculty of History, Yerevan State University, Yerevan 0025, Armenia
Poppy Setiawati Nurisnaeny: State Intelligence College, Bogor 16001, Indonesia
Oluyinka Ojedokun: Department of Pure & Applied Psychology, Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko 001, Nigeria
Damilola Adebayo: Department of Pure & Applied Psychology, Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko 001, Nigeria
Mohd S. B. Omar-Fauzee: School of Education, Universiti Utara Malaysia, UUM Sintok, Kedah 06010, Malaysia
Barış Özener: Department of Anthropology, İstanbul University, İstanbul 34452, Turkey
Edna Lúcia Tinoco Ponciano: Institute of Psychology and Center of Social Studies, University of the State of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 20943-000, Brazil
Igor V. Popov: Faculty of Bioengineering and Veterinary Medicine, Don State Technical University, 344000 Rostov-on-Don, Russia
Muhammad Rizwan: Department of Psychology, University of Haripur, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 22620, Pakistan
Agnieszka Sabiniewicz: Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Smell and Taste Clinic TU Dresden, 01069 Dresden, Germany
Victoriya I. Spodina: Department of History and Ethnology, Ob-Ugric Institute of Applied Researches and Development, 628011 Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia
Stanislava Stoyanova: Department of Psychology, South-West University “Neofit Rilski”, 2700 Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria
Nachiketa Tripathi: Department of Humanities & Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati, Guwahati 781 039, Assam, India
Satwik Upadhyay: Department of Humanities & Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati, Guwahati 781 039, Assam, India
Carol Weisfeld: Department of Psychology, University of Detroit Mercy, Detroit, MI 48221-3038, USA
Mohd Faiz Mohd Yaakob: School of Education, Universiti Utara Malaysia, UUM Sintok, Kedah 06010, Malaysia
Mat Rahimi Yusof: School of Education, Universiti Utara Malaysia, UUM Sintok, Kedah 06010, Malaysia
Raushaniia I. Zinurova: Institute of Innovation Management, Kazan National Research Technological University, 420015 Kazan, Russia

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 13, 1-35

Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic has spread throughout the world, and concerns about psychological, social, and economic consequences are growing rapidly. Individuals’ empathy-based reactions towards others may be an important resilience factor in the face of COVID-19. Self-report data from 15,375 participants across 23 countries were collected from May to August 2020 during the early phases of the COVID-19 pandemic. In particular, this study examined different facets of empathy—Perspective-Taking, Empathic Concern, and Personal Distress, and their association with cross-cultural ratings on Individualism, Power Distance, The Human Development Index, Social Support Ranking, and the Infectious Disease Vulnerability Index, as well as the currently confirmed number of cases of COVID-19 at the time of data collection. The highest ratings on Perspective-Taking were obtained for USA, Brazil, Italy, Croatia, and Armenia (from maximum to minimum); on Empathetic Concern, for the USA, Brazil, Hungary, Italy, and Indonesia; and on Personal Distress, from Brazil, Turkey, Italy, Armenia, Indonesia. Results also present associations between demographic factors and empathy across countries. Limitations and future directions are presented.

Keywords: COVID-19; empathy; Interpersonal Reactivity Index; individualism; Power Distance; Human Development Index; Infectious Disease Vulnerability Index; cross-cultural (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
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