An Exploration of the Development of Empathy in a Clinical Sample of Preschoolers in Relation to Child and Family Factors

In the current literature base of social-emotional development in early childhood there exists a paucity of research of empathy development due to the complicated nature of empathy in young children. The present study utilizes a preexisting dataset from a local therapeutic preschool program, and its methods include visual analysis, correlations, and independent samples t-tests. Results of the present study found that clinical behavior patterns negatively correlate with empathy development. Further, statistically significant group differences exist in affective empathy for children whose parents have a mental health diagnosis. However, results regarding adaptive skills were not found to be statistically significant. The present study contributes and expands the current literature base by exploring empathy development among a clinical sample of preschool-age children. The present study is also unique in its incorporation of specific family factors.

Name thesis:degree_name

PhD

Level thesis:degree_level

Immediate Access

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

School Psychology

Year dc:date.available

2013

Author dc:creator

• Venesky, Lindsey G

Contributors dc:contributor

• Kara McGoey
• Laura Crothers
• James Schreiber
• Kimberly Blair

• Behavior
• Empathy
• Family factors
• Preschool
• Psychopathology

Language dc:language

English

Repository record dc:identifier

https://dsc.duq.edu/etd/1307

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dsc.duq.edu:etd-2323