It Is Hard to Read Minds without Words: Cues to Use to Achieve Empathic Accuracy
When faced with the task of trying to “read” a stranger’s thoughts, what cues can perceivers use? We explore two predictors of empathic accuracy (the ability to accurately infer another person’s thoughts): use of stereotypes about the target’s group, and use of the target’s own words. A sample of 32...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2021-05-01
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| Series: | Journal of Intelligence |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2079-3200/9/2/27 |
| _version_ | 1797533852830269440 |
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| author | Sara D. Hodges Murat Kezer |
| author_facet | Sara D. Hodges Murat Kezer |
| author_sort | Sara D. Hodges |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | When faced with the task of trying to “read” a stranger’s thoughts, what cues can perceivers use? We explore two predictors of empathic accuracy (the ability to accurately infer another person’s thoughts): use of stereotypes about the target’s group, and use of the target’s own words. A sample of 326 White American undergraduate students were asked to infer the dynamic thoughts of Middle Eastern male targets, using Ickes’ (Ickes et al. 1990) empathic accuracy paradigm. We predicted use of stereotypes would reduce empathic accuracy because the stereotypes would be negative and inaccurate. However, more stereotypical inferences about the target’s thoughts actually predicted greater empathic accuracy, a pattern in line with past work on the role of stereotypes in empathic accuracy (Lewis et al. 2012), perhaps because the stereotypes of Middle Easterners (collected from a sample of 60 participants drawn from the same population) were less negative than expected. In addition, perceivers who inferred that the targets were thinking thoughts that more closely matched what the target was saying out loud were more empathically accurate. Despite the fact that words can be used intentionally to obscure what a target is thinking, they appear to be a useful cue to empathic accuracy, even in tricky contexts that cross cultural lines. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T11:21:32Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-f5a29fb864be4933b871bba409c88800 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2079-3200 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T11:21:32Z |
| publishDate | 2021-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Intelligence |
| spelling | doaj.art-f5a29fb864be4933b871bba409c888002023-11-21T20:03:24ZengMDPI AGJournal of Intelligence2079-32002021-05-01922710.3390/jintelligence9020027It Is Hard to Read Minds without Words: Cues to Use to Achieve Empathic AccuracySara D. Hodges0Murat Kezer1Department of Psychology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403-1227, USADepartment of Psychology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403-1227, USAWhen faced with the task of trying to “read” a stranger’s thoughts, what cues can perceivers use? We explore two predictors of empathic accuracy (the ability to accurately infer another person’s thoughts): use of stereotypes about the target’s group, and use of the target’s own words. A sample of 326 White American undergraduate students were asked to infer the dynamic thoughts of Middle Eastern male targets, using Ickes’ (Ickes et al. 1990) empathic accuracy paradigm. We predicted use of stereotypes would reduce empathic accuracy because the stereotypes would be negative and inaccurate. However, more stereotypical inferences about the target’s thoughts actually predicted greater empathic accuracy, a pattern in line with past work on the role of stereotypes in empathic accuracy (Lewis et al. 2012), perhaps because the stereotypes of Middle Easterners (collected from a sample of 60 participants drawn from the same population) were less negative than expected. In addition, perceivers who inferred that the targets were thinking thoughts that more closely matched what the target was saying out loud were more empathically accurate. Despite the fact that words can be used intentionally to obscure what a target is thinking, they appear to be a useful cue to empathic accuracy, even in tricky contexts that cross cultural lines.https://www.mdpi.com/2079-3200/9/2/27empathic accuracyinterpersonal sensitivityintergroup understanding |
| spellingShingle | Sara D. Hodges Murat Kezer It Is Hard to Read Minds without Words: Cues to Use to Achieve Empathic Accuracy Journal of Intelligence empathic accuracy interpersonal sensitivity intergroup understanding |
| title | It Is Hard to Read Minds without Words: Cues to Use to Achieve Empathic Accuracy |
| title_full | It Is Hard to Read Minds without Words: Cues to Use to Achieve Empathic Accuracy |
| title_fullStr | It Is Hard to Read Minds without Words: Cues to Use to Achieve Empathic Accuracy |
| title_full_unstemmed | It Is Hard to Read Minds without Words: Cues to Use to Achieve Empathic Accuracy |
| title_short | It Is Hard to Read Minds without Words: Cues to Use to Achieve Empathic Accuracy |
| title_sort | it is hard to read minds without words cues to use to achieve empathic accuracy |
| topic | empathic accuracy interpersonal sensitivity intergroup understanding |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2079-3200/9/2/27 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT saradhodges itishardtoreadmindswithoutwordscuestousetoachieveempathicaccuracy AT muratkezer itishardtoreadmindswithoutwordscuestousetoachieveempathicaccuracy |