Jamil Zaki is a professor of psychology and an expert on empathy. He sees empathy as a kind of psychological superglue that connects people. Jamil: Empathy is like a spotlight; we should be more intentional about where we focus it. The War for Kindness, building empathy in a fractured world comes out this month.
For a long time, scientists believed our capacity for empathy remains more or less fixed throughout our lives. But research by Jamil Zaki, a psychology professor at Stanford, shows that empathy is actually a skill we can cultivate. Jamil explains that there are different types of empathy — three, to be exact! — and we can learn to be more discerning about when we apply them. Maya and Jamil also discuss the dangers of caring too much, and how we can show compassion for others while avoiding burnout.
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