)V1531_) RETURNING MATERIALS: PIace in book drop to LJBRARJES remove this checkout from w your record. FINES wil] be charged if book is returned after the date stamped below. I " .'.-‘ ".31.. 15¢ . I ST‘T. _ 2.;a f 'rmfimwm l K @II 33? ” UIIW Copyright by CAROL LOUISE HATCHER 1983 THE DEVELOPMENT OF EMPATHY IN TEACHERS OF THE EMOTIONALLY IMPAIRED A LIFE HISTORY STUDY BY Carol Louise Hatcher A DISSERTATION Submitted to Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY College of Education 1983 ABSTRACT THE DEVELOPMENT OF EMPATHY IN TEACHERS OF THE EMOTIONALLY IMPAIRED A LIFE HISTORY STUDY BY Carol Louise Hatcher Empathy, the ability to feel what another feels, plays a considerable role in successful interpersonal relationships. It is particularly important in teaching the emotionally impaired where teachers play an increasing role in the emotional adjustment of the children they serve. Researchers believe empathy to be a trait some persons evidence more than others. The purpose of this life history field study was to widen the perspectives surrounding empathy development. The lives of eight teachers of the emotionally impaired (EI) were explored, described and compared. Each EI teacher was engaged in a series of life history interviews aimed at gathering biographical information from birth to the present. Using the biographical information along with the empathy scores achieved by each participant on the Affective Sensitivity Scale Form D., developed by Werner, Schnieder and Kagan 1977, the researcher drew qualitative inferences regarding life experience and its influence on participants' empathic abilities. Carol Louise Hatcher Patti-Cipants openly shared their stories. These ranged from that of a middle Class young woman who reported little experience with emotional Pain to the stories of those who experienced abuse and abandonment as children. Reaffirmed through this study was the concept that empathy development is multi-dimensional in nature. Those participants scoring in the high empathy range on the Affective Sensitivity Scale reported c0ping with feelings of social rejection for long periods during maturation. In these cases empathy skill seemed to have survival value. Participants scoring in the low empathy range reported fewer periods of emotional pain and suffering than those who scored in the high empathy range. High scorers reported experiences with empathic role models who deliberately taught them what the behaviors of others meant. Participant stories suggest learning, emotional pain and social survival to be basic elements in the empathy develOpment process. For My Boys Shaka and Kobi And Especially For Seldon ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS My thanks go to the eight participants of this study who spent many hours sharing their life stories with me. They opened their homes, classrooms and hearts to me in a manner which will never be forgotten. I hope that the sharing of their story was as helpful for them as it was for me. To Chuck Blackman who has acted as supporter and guide during the researching and writing of this document I am sincerely grateful. His phone calls and the many hours spent together in conversation concerning the personal meaning of this research has kept me on task and enthused about each finished chapter. His friendship and special concern have been deeply appreciated. Tb Jim Buschman who has acted as ethonographic advisor during this study I extend my thanks. His ability to articulate what an ethnographic document requires has been admired and gratefully respected. To my friends and family who have allowed me time alone for the last few months in order to complete this work I also extend my thanks. I know it has been difficult for them. Communication at some periods particially came to a step. For their love and patience I am truly grateful. Special thanks to my friends on Bailey Island, Maine where a good portion of this document was written. These special friends offered me a quiet place to retreat while I wrote. During breaks from writing I 11' Ito walked on the rocky beach and through lush green woods. This beautiful place inspired me daily. The good food and clean air invigorated me making extended periods of writing possible. The warm love and encouragement I received will never be forgotten. To Seldon who has traveled with me on the long difficult climb from physical disability to total mobility I want to say, not just thank you but "We have made it." His countless repetitions of encouragement are priceless. My children, bless them, have allowed me to work hour after hour without interruption. They have cheered after each completed chapter. They will be happy to have their mother available to them again. Thank you boys, I love you. And to Jeff who generously waded through the first drafts of this document, I am grateful. Jeff has weathered each storm precipitated by this endeavor. He has been patient and kind when I did not feel that way. He has been a friend, as well as a gentle critic. I admire his talents and have felt privileged to receive his guidance, and steadfast support. Finally, a special thanks to Jan for the long hours of typing and retyping. Her gentle positive attitude made the completion of this endeavor possible. iii THE RESEARCHER AS INSTRUMENT The methodology of this research closely involves the perceptions of the researcher. A researcher who has experienced one set of experiences would look at the interview data collected here much differently than another. It becomes very important that the reader understand the nature of the investigator's experience so that the interviewer's perspective is clear. The investigator in many ways becomes the instrument of research. The cultural framework, the childhood experiences, the work history and adult experiences of the investigator become the filter through which the research data pass. The reader may learn more about the investigator of this research by turning to Appendix G., which contains a short summary of her life experiences. iv LIST OF TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLES LIST OF FIGURES CHAPTER I II INTRODUCTION Purpose of the study. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Background. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Research Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Delimitations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . General Outline of th Study. . . . . . . . . . . . THE LITERATURE The Importance of Empathy . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Nature of the Relationship . . . . . . . . Attempts to Define Empathy . . . . . . . . . . Measuring Empathy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Development of Empathy . . . . . . . . . . Who Are These Empathizers? . . . . . . . . . . Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Life History Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . Life History Defined . . . . . . . . . . . . . Life History Application . . . . . . . . . . . Merits of the Life History . . . . . . . . . . Some Criticisms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Life History and Theory. . . . . . . . . . Historical Use of the Life History . . . . . . Reliability, Validity and Interpretation . . . Life History Data Collection . . . . . . . . . Relationship Between Narrator and Investigator Assessing the Life History . . . . . . . . . . Analytical Methodology . . . . . . . . . . . . Mandelbaum's Procedures for Analysis . . . . . V Page ix H O VO‘UU-fiWN . 9 .10 .13 .15 .19 .21 .22 .24 .25 .26 .27 .28 .31 .32 .34 .35 .36 .38 .40 .42 One Life History Study Revisited. . . . . . . . . . . summary 0 O O O O O O O O O O . O O . . O O O O O CHAJVFEHK III LIFE HISTORY METHODOLOGY Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Research Design. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Validity Concerns. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Selection of Subjects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Instrumentation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Data Collection. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Data AnaIYSiSo C O O O O O O O O O O O O I O O 0 Interview Analysis. . 00.0000... Analysis of Affective Sensitivity Scale Scores. IV THE PARTICIPANTS OF THIS STUDY IntrOduction O O O O O O O I O O O O O O O O O O Loran. O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 0 Anne Lynn Mike Dimensions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Loran's Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Loran . . . The Affective Sensitivity Scale Loran - Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dimensions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Anne. 8 Story. 0 . o o o o 0 o o p o o o o 0 Anne . . . The Affective Sensitivity Scale. Anne - Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dimensions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Lynn's Story. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Lynn . . . The Affective Sensitivity Scale. Lynn - Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0....‘OoOoooggoooOoooo Dimensions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mike's Story. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mike . . . The Affective Sensitivity Scale. Mike - Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Chris. C O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 0 Dimensions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Chris's Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Chris . . . The Affective Sensitivity Scale Chris - Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vi Page 0 .44 O .47 49 . .49 . .51 . .51 O .57 . .58 . .59 . .60 . .60 . .61 . .69 . .69 . .71 . .78 . .83 . .84 . .85 . .90 . .91 . .95 . .95 . .97 . 102 . 107 . 109 . 109 . 111 . 121 . 126 . 128 . 129 . 130 . 138 . 139 CTLAPVPER. \7 APPENDIXLIX Ellen. O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 0 Dimensions. . . . , Ellen's Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ellen . . The Affective Sensitivity Scale . Ellen - Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Donna. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dimensions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Donna's Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Donna . . . The Affective Sensitivity Scale . Donna - Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bruce. 0 C O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 0 Dimensions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bruce's Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bruce . . . The Affective Sensitivity Scale . Bruce - Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Participant Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . synthESis O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 0 DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION summary 0f the StUdy. O O O O O O O O O O O 0 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Participants Can be Separated into Three Groups The Lives of High Empathizers . . . . . . Importance of Personal Mastery. . . . . . Empathy Deve10pment Theory. . . . . . . . . . Importance of Home Life . . . . . . . . . Importance of Modeling. . . . . . . . . . Importance of Child-Caretaker Interactions . . . . . . . . . . . . . Importance of Suffering . . . . . . . . . Importance of Emotionality. . . . . . . . Importance of Identification with A Group Empathy Deve10pment as Seen in this Research. Implications. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Implications for Theory . . . . . . . . . Implications for Philosophy . . . . . . . Implications for El Teacher Selection and Training . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Implications for E1 Teacher Classroom Behavior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Recommendations for Further Study . . . . . Interview Follow Up Letter. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . consent Form. C O O O O O O O O I O O O O O O O O O I O Page . 144 . 144 . 146 . 152 . 154 .159 . 159 . 161 . 169 . 171 . 173 . 174 . 175 . 184 . 185 O 190 . 193 202 . 202 . 207 . 207 . 219 . 219 210 . 212 . 212 . 213 . 213 . 214 . 215 . 216 . 216 . 216 . 217 . 219 . 220 . 221 . 225 . 226 Page APPENDIX B Interview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .227 APPENDIX C Interview Progress Summary Sheet . . . . . . . . . . . . .241 APPENDIX D Categories and Classes Worksheet . . . . . . . . . . . . .242 APPENDIX E Mandelbaum—Langness Category Analysis Worksheet. . . . . .244 APPENDIX F Reflections The Researcher's Personal EXperience while Conducting the Life History Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .246 APPENDIX C About the Researcher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .254 BIBLIOGRAPEIY. . O O O O O O O O O O I O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 0257 viii LIST OF TABLES Table Page 1. Participant Affective Sensitivity Scores . . . . . . . . . . . 201 ix 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 10. 11. 12. 13. I4. 15. 16. LIST OF FIGURES Affective Sensitivity Scale Scores Form PartiCipant - Mike. 0 o g g o o o o Affective Sensitivity Scale Scores Form Participant — Loran . . . . . . . . Loran - A Map of Life Travels . . . . . Affective Sensitivity Scale Scores Form PartiC1pant - Anne. 0 o o o o o o 0 Anne - A Map of Life Travels. . . . . . ‘Affective Sensitivity Scale Scores Form Participant Lynn. . . . . . . . . . Lynn - A Map of Life Travels. . . . . . lnrformal Empathy Checklist. . . . . . . Affective Sensitivity Scale Scores Form Participant - Mike. . . . . . . . . Affective Sensitivity Scale Scores Form ‘Participant - Chris . . . . . . . . Chris - A Map of Life Travels . . . . . Attitudes Towards Use of Empathy in the Affective Sensitivity Scale Scores Form Participant - Ellen . . . . , , , , Affective Sensitivity Scale Scores Form Participant - Donna. o 0 O o I o o . Classroom Page .63 .77 .79 .92 103 104 123 124 125 139 140 153 154 155 168 Figure Page 17. Donna - A Map of Life Travels. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170 18. Affective Sensitivity Scale Scores Form D PartiC1pant - Bruce. 0 O O I O O O O O O O C O O O O O O O 185 19. Bruce - A Map of Life Travels. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186 20. Affective Sensitivity Scale Performance and Related Life Experiences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200 xi CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION A substantial body of empirical data demonstrates the impact of em- pathy in both the therapeutic and educational realm (Aspy 1975, Barrett— Lennard 1962, Dixon 1961, Harback 1976, Mbustakas 1966, Rogers 1975). Empathy, the ability to feel what another feels, is found to play a major role in the success of psychotherapy as well as in many interpersonal situations from child rearing to teaching (Rogers 1975, Truax and Carkhuff 1967). Investigators have shown that teacher empathy increases reading performance, school attendance, IQ scores, and self concept (Aspy 1965, Cbmbs 1969). "When the teacher shows evidence that he/she under— stands the meaning of classroom experiences for the student, learning improved” (Aspy 1975, p.12). Empathy is particularly important for the successful teacher of the emotionally impaired who must be able to understand the student's unsureness, insecurity, and feelings of inadequacy (Green 1972). Here the ideal teacher-student relationship and the ideal therapeutic rela- tionship show great similarity (Tyler 1964, Morse 1965, Redl 1965, Rabinow 1964, Scheurer 1971). Empathy can increase academic and emotional growth and also encourage positive behavior change (Aspy 1975, Truax and Altman 1967, Stravsky 1957). Some researchers believe empathy to be a trait which is more evident in some persons than others (Dymond 1952, Kagan 1977). Role theorists, as well as psychoanalytic and behavioral theorists, contend that empathy developes through role modeling and experience (Rogers 1975, Mead 1934, Schachtel 1955). Other researchers feel empathy can be developed through specific empathy training (Rogers 1975). Counselors, therapists, teachers and parents have participated in empathy classes (Aspy 1975, Fish 1970, Levy 1964). There is no definitive answer to the question of how empathy develops (Buchheimer 1963). There is however, significant agreement regarding the importance of empathy development research (Rogers 1975, Buchheimer 1963). Buchheimer (1963) urges researchers to go beyond the preliminary concepts of empathy that exist so far and widen the perspective surrounding empathy development. Toward this end, the work described in this dissertation is an attempt to study empathy in its full human richness. Herein, the lives of eight teachers of the emotionally impaired have been carefully examined in order to understand more fully the development of individual empathic capacity. PURPOSE OF THE STUDY The general purpose of this study will be to explore, describe and compare the self-reported life histories of eight experienced teachers of the emotionally impaired (EI teachers) from the mid-Michigan area. Conclusions, regarding the influence of particular life experiences on the development of empathic capacity in these teachers, will be drawn in concurrence with objective empathy scores as measured by the Affective Sensitivity Scale, Form D (Kagan, Verner 1977). Eight EI teachers will be selected randomly from the EI teacher pop- ulation of four mid-Michigan intermediate school districts. A focused, moderately structured interview will be carried out with each individual in order to gather biographical information from birth to the present. The average interview time will be approximately 8-10 hours. Each sub- ject will also complete the Affective Sensitivity Scale Form D. Using the biographical data gathered through interviews and scores achieved by subjects on the Affective Sensitivity Scale Form D, the researcher will draw qualitative inferences regarding life experiences and their in- fluence on the subject's empathic abilities. THE PROBLEM Teachers of the emotionally impaired play a substantial role in the emotional adjustment of the children they serve. Even though some students receive outside psychotherapy, a large percentage of children placed in E1 classrooms do not. The teacher's ability to wear two hats, one as therapist and one as academic instructor, is a necessary component in altering the behavior patterns of ET students. In times of limited budgets, the E1 teacher's dual role increases. When the teacher wears his/her therapeutic hat, he/she must behave as a competent therapist. The teacher must be able to talk about feelings and attitudes and to behave in an empathic manner. EI teachers often behave empathically without special training. Their empathic behavior appears to reflect a natural sense of intuitive understanding. They sense when students are hurting, when they feel confused, anxious, alienated, scared, and doubtful about their self worth. There is evidence to suggest that empathy is possessed in different degrees by different people (Dymond, 1948). The question is: What makes some EI teachers more able than others to understand students who are emotionally impaired? How did they come to understand their students so perceptively? Perhaps they have experienced life events which have predisposed them to an accurate understanding of the students they serve. BACKGROUND Evidence indicates that genuineness, nonpossessive warmth, and accurate empathy on the part of the helping person are positively related to therapeutic outcomes (Staffer, 1970). Carl Rogers (1975) contends that attitudes of genuine liking, and sensitive empathy help to create a climate which produces constructive personal growth and change. Studies indicate that psychotherapists who provide high levels of empathy cause improvement in their clients while those offering low levels cause deterioration (Barrett-Lennard 1962). It is important for the BI teacher to know his/her students and to understand empathically the student's unsureness, insecurity, and feelings of inadequacy. With this under- standing, the teacher is able to respond empathically in the classroom. Independent research by both Aspy (1975) and Combs (1969) indicates that the teacher's empathy is positively related to students' attendance rates, IQ gains, and attitudes about self. Dymond maintains that some peOple "appear to be very sensitive to cues as to how others are feeling and reacting while others appear to be grossly unaware of the thoughts and feelings of others” (Dymond, 1950, p. 344). Grendlin concluded in 1962 that at all times there is going on in the human organism a flow of experiences to which the individual can turn ,.u ,r u:- a" O ‘4... IE? .. 0» “1| i2; ,’ C" ‘ I '. s e.- 3 . again and again as a referent in order to discover the meaning of his experience. Others have furnished evidence that the development of empathy is a result of particular life experiences (Dymond, Hughes and Raabe, 1952). Halpern suggested in 1960 that early experiences with empathy (pleasant/unpleasant) will influence not only the child's total empathic development but the type of people or the types of human situations in which he/she will be most and least empathic. RESEARCH OBJECTIVES The researcher sought to discover what life experiences have influenced the development of eight teachers of the emotionally impaired, particularly the development of empathic ability. The thrust of the research was to form a picture of each participant's life and the world in which he/she lives and to draw conclusions regarding individual life experiences and empathic sensitivity. Finally an attempt was made to draw inferences regarding empathic development from the triangulation of case-study data with individual scores of empathic ability as measured by the Affective Sensitivity Scale Form D. DEFINITIONS For the purpose of this study, empathy will be conceptualized as the ability to place oneself in the role of another person. It represents one's ability to comprehend events as another person sees them, to appreciate them as though one were that person. Teachers of emotionally impaired children will be defined as those teachers who are certified to teach children diagnosed as emotionally impaired o 1" an .l, i u ”0.. ”K 4. x Emotionally impaired students (EI) are those students who have been certified by an Individual Educational and Planning Committee to be emotionally impaired. Life History Method will be defined as an extensive method of collecting and anlyzing material related to an individual and his life through personal interviews. A focused, moderately structured interview will be defined as an interview in which the content, exact wording of questions, context and sequence of questions are generally spelled out but left up to the discretion of the interviewer while a specific topic is explored. The Affective Sensitivity Scale (A.S.S.) refers to Form D of the Scale developed by Schneider, Kagan and Werner (1977) which has been found to discriminate between high and low empathizers. The A.S.S. consists of a series of filmed encounters between two or more persons. After witnessing each scene, examinees answer multiple choice questions about each person in the scene, selecting responses which are most like what participants in the encounter were really saying to themselves. DELIMITATIONS The study will be limited to the life history study of eight teachers of the emotionally impaired. The concern is what life experiences have influenced the deve10pment of each teacher's unique capacity to behave empathically. The study is limited to case study analysis of each teachers's self reported life history and to analysis of affective sensitivity scores as achieved by each teacher on the Affective Sensitivity Scale Form D. 'V' A. GENERAL OUTLINE OF THE STUDY The intent of this study will be to examine the life histories of eight teachers of the emotionally impaired in order to discover what life experiences have influenced the development of empathic sensitivity. Chapter I delineates the research questions and provides background and definitions for the study. A review of the literature related to empathy as well as a review of the life history approach appears in Chapter II. A discussion of the life history methodology is presented in Chapter III. Chapter IV contains the self-reported case records of the eight life history participants along with a presentation of each participant's Affective Sensitivity scores (empathy). Chapter V contains the Summary of the study along with Conclusions, Implications and Recommendations for future research. A discussion of the researcher's personal experience with the life history method may be found in the Reflections portion of the Appendix. CHAPTER II THE LITERATURE This review will examine the literature in regard to the concept of empathy as well as review the literature concerning life history. Researchers have been captivated by the concept of empathy for over 40 years. Theorists have attempted to define the nature and dynamics of the empathic relationship. Others have attempted to measure the empathic skills of individuals. The impact of empathy upon therapy outcomes, child rearing and successful teaching have been studied. Research con- tinues to support the importance of empathy in many social and psycholog- ical processes. Still, the very core of the empathic response, and its development which is the t0pic of this research, remains an enigma. Individual re- searchers have described the empathic person, have monitored specific empathic responses and have attempted to train others to be more empa— thic. Theory models have been detailed to explain the development of empathy; nevertheless, its development has not been easily tied to a specific theory. The question of how empathy develops still remains an open question. The literature on empathy will be considered in six areas: the im- importance of empathy, the empathic relationship, its definition, its measurement, a theoretical discussion of its deve10pment and a discussion of who researchers consider the good empathizer to be. The literature points up the fact that empathy and its components remain more or less intangible to the empirical researcher. Empathy has been found difficult to define, difficult to measure, and difficult to research, particularly its development. The life history method appears to be an appropriate approach to empathy development study, lending itself to the richness and depth of the human empathic response. This review will consider the life history methodology as it is treated by its supporters and critics. Its style, data collection process, and analysis are explored. Finally, a notable life history work is reviewed. The method of study is discussed, documenting the potential contribution of life history work in the area of human development. IMPORTANCE OF EMPATHY ”The very special way of being with another person called empathy" (Rogers, 1975, p. 3) has been found to be one of the necessary ingre- dients of every learning situation (Rogers, 1975). Aspy showed that a relationship existed between the teacher's empathic understanding of her students and their cognitive gains as measured by achievement tests. Moustakas (1966) postulated that a teacher's ability to listen to verbal and nonverbal expressions of pupil feeling is one of the fundamental methods of achieving student emotional health. Dixon and Morse (1961) reported significant relationships between teacher competency, as determined by pupil and supervisor ratings, and empathic understanding. Combs (1969) found that instructor competency is associated with the "”"v to a "4..- a :n ”'9'“ ... . ....£ Ifzax widhl‘ .4-.. no... ’t‘o..' n... "I . l--~' «SK . I . .5. ‘. . ' I. ' ""Iq... ' u... £“‘Id‘e 773w .' 1...‘. . 1 " 'It 33'}? 10 ability to show concern for pe0ple and for personal reactions rather than for material objects. Truax and Altmann (1967) found a positive relationship between changes in children's behavior and related high therapeutic conditions of nonpossessive warmth, genuineness and accurate empathy. Low therapeutic conditions produced negative change in the nonverbal situation of play therapy. According to Stravsky (1957), teaching is basically an interpersonal relationship as seen from a psychotherapeutic view. With its prOper techniques and devices, anxiety is reduced and controlled and learning promoted. A pilot study by Barrett-Lennard (1960) indicated that teachers regarded as ”outstanding" by their supervisors had a greater degree of "congruence”, empathic ”unconditional positive regard” than teachers rated less effective. Similar findings were reported by Aspy (1965). THE NATURE OF THE RELATIONSHIP Carl Rogers discovered that one of the most powerful ways of helping a client was by simply listening. Later through a conversation with a friend, he learned to listen for the feelings. There is, however a great deal of individual ability in this area. Dymond postulates that ”some persons appear to be very sensitive to cues as to how others are feeling and reacting while others appear to be grossly unaware of the thoughts and feelings of others” (1950, p. 344). Insight into the thoughts and feelings of others seems to be dependent upon the ability to take the role of others. 11 Greif and Hogan, as well as Dymond, suggest that empathy can be ex- plained through role theory. Mead (1934) suggests that practice at role taking leads to social sensitivity and the emergence of the self concept and self control. The self concept subsequently enables one to carry on a whole series of different relationships with different people (Greif and Hogan, 1973). Fiedler and Senior (1952) suggest that it is the actual similarity between a therapist and his client which lends itself to a sense of empa- thic understanding. Fiedler (1953) indicates that this assumed similari- ity is suggestive of a positive feeling by the therapist toward his patient. While some feel that empathy between individuals increases with similarity, Cronbach (1956) showed that similarity between the adult judge and judgee combined with the adult's tendency to assume similarity resulted in spuriously high empathy scores. The adults who looked socially sensitive were often just accurately describing themselves. In Schachtel's work "Memory and Childhood Amnesia" he postulates that projection plays a role in empathic understanding. A person cannot have an inner understanding of another's feelings except in terms of his own experiences or that of a similar feeling. When responding empathic- ally, the projection of the person's own feelings merges inseparable with the perception of the other person's feeling (Schachtel, 1955). ”Empathy is a complex, demanding, strong yet subtle and gentle way of being” (Rogers, 1975, p. 5). It can be learned from other empathic persons and can be developed through training. Therapists, parents, and teachers can learn to become empathic if their teachers and supervisors are themselves individuals of sensitive understanding (Aspy, 1975); PT 12 (Guerney, Andronico and Guerney, 1970); (Bergin and Solomon, 1970). Empathy can be learned most rapidly in an empathic climate. Many theorists (Hogan, Flawell, Mussen, Eisenberg - Berg) maintain that empathy, sharing another's emotional response, is a prerequisite of prosocial behavior and is a motivational process which mediates between one's perception of others needs or distress and prosocial acts. Feshbach found however, that neither understanding the feelings of another person nor the ability to take the role of another insured an empathic response. She says that ”One may not be predisposed to use that ability....or the affective response may be blocked or poorly articulated.” (Feshbach 1975, p.26). Two particular ways of understanding the nature of empathy were examined by Fish: (1) The possibility that accurate empathy may be no more than a matter of the therapist's verbal style and (2) The notion of self knowledge as the means of knowledge of others (1970, p. 64). The view that empathy is the result of self-awareness is characterized in the psychotherapy field where analysts themselves undergo psychoanalysis as a requirement. It is believed that analysts are better able to discrimi- nate between their own projections and accurate perception of their clients as well as between their appropriate feelings and countertrans- ferences. This ability to discriminate clearly between feelings is crucial to the ability to respond empathically (Fish, 1970). Levy (1964) found evidence of the relationship of empathy to self- awareness. In her study she found a significant relationship between the ability to recognize other people's vocal expressions of feelings and the ability to recognize these feelings in a tape recording of one's own 13 voice. This finding suggests it is the awareness of one's own emotional cues which sensitizes one to the meaning of similar cues in others. Fish (1970) studied 43 beginning psychotherapists who wrote descrip- tions of the ways in which they experienced ten different emotions which were scored for emotional self-report variables. Tapes of the thera- pists' eight sessions of therapy were rated for empathy and clients of 24 of the therapists also rated their therapists' empathy. Judges' ratings of the empathic style with which a therapist described his emotional experiences were found to be positively related to judges' ratings of therapists' empathy levels in therapeutic sessions and consistent with the view that empathy is the result of self-awareness. Fish concluded that style of emotional self-report may reflect the kind of self-aware- ness which enables one to understand others and to be empathic (1970). ATTEMPTS TO DEFINE EMPATHY Many definitions of empathy have been put forth. Among the first definitions was Dymond's. She defined empathy as the faculty of being able to see things from the other person's point of view, ”the imagina- tive transposing of oneself into the thinking, feeling and acting of another and so structuring the world as he does" (1948). Carkhuff (1965) contends that the minimal empathic response is one which is interchangeable with that of the other person. Scheuer defines empathic understanding as ”ability to accurately experience another's private world and to sense the immediate affective quality and intensity of another's inner feelings. An overall sensitiv- ity resulting from the awareness of another's unexpressed feelings in a 14 given situation. The antithesis of intellectual understanding which connotes the objectivations of another person" (1971, p. 723). Aspy defined empathy in its use in our greater society. We understand it in our own common phrases: ”I know what ya mean.” "I'm with ya, man.” "Get inside his skin." "Walk a mile in his shoes" (Aspy, 1975, p. 10). Rogers defines empathy in a manner which makes its meaning quite clear. "Empathic understanding means entering the private perceptual world of the other and becoming thoroughly at home in it. It involves being sensitive, moment-to-moment, to the changing felt meanings which flow in this other person, to the fear or rage or tenderness or confusion or whatever that he/she is experiencing. It means temporarily living in his/her life, moving about in it delicately without making judgments, sensing meanings of which he/she is scarcely aware" (1974, p. 4). Affective-cognitive definitions stress that the listener need not experience the identical feelings of the other yet, according to the Accurate Empathy Scale of Truax, an empathic response should convey both the nature of the emotion being shared as well as its intensity. The listener's voice tone should reflect the emotion being responded to. FEshbach defines empathy in children as ”shared emotional responses which the child experiences on perceiving another's emotional reaction." (Feshbach 1975, p.26). She delineates three facets to this concept, two cognitive and one affective. Cognitive components are the ability to discriminate and label the affective states of others, and at a more ad- vanced social comprehension level, the ability to assume the perspective 15 and role of another. In the affective domain, she says the observing child must be able to experience the negative and positive emotion being witnessed in order to share that emotion. Kagan and his associates developed an Operational definition of em— pathy which allowed the measurement of behaviors which are likely to be included in any definition of empathy. Instead of using the word empa- thy, Ragan defines a more limited concept, affective sensitivity. It is defined as ”the ability to detect and describe the immediate affective state of another, or in terms of communication theory, the ability to re- ceive and decode affective communication” (Kagan, Krathwohl, and Farquhar, 1965). MEASURING EMPATHY There have been numerous attempts to develop a measure which will assess empathy accurately. In 1948, 1949, and 1950, Dymond and her colleagues developed a mea- sure of empathic ability using rating forms. These forms have since been questioned on methodological grounds. Hastorf (1954) and Bender (1952) questioned whether her device measured the quality of empathy at all. Chapin developed the Social Inslght Test (1949). It seems to be more closely tied to the realm of social and interpersonal relations than to the dimension of empathy (Cough, 1965). Cassell then developed the Test of Social Insight (1963). Review- ers, Black and Bordin, found the test to lack validity and having little to do with an empathic or perceptive capacity for understanding others. Barrett-Lennard developed the Barrett-Lennard Relationship Inventory (1962) which attempted to measure the empathic relationship between two 16 parties. It took the form of a questionnaire filled out by both parties of a therapeutic relationship. Hogan (1969) developed an empathy scale of 64 self-report items deve10ped by comparing the responses of 57 men with high ratings and 57 with low ratings for empathy across the combined item pools of the California Psychological Inventory and the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory. In 1961 Truax deve10ped the Measurement of Empathic Understanding. It is commonly known as the Accurate Empathy Scale. His work attempted to Operationalize Rogers' definition of empathy as an interpersonal pro- cess. The method required raters be provided with an audio or video re- cording of some dyatic interpersonal situation. The scale itself consis- ted of nine levels of empathic development. The first level indicated complete lack of awareness of others feelings while the highest level imr plied that the subject understood even the innermost thoughts of the other. Later (1969) Carkoff developed the Scale for the Measurement of Empathic Understanding using essentially the same method as Truax. Some differences occur in the operational definitions of the levels of empathic understanding of which he has only five. Subjects are said to demonstrate empathic responsiveness in interpersonal situations. The Truax and Carkhuff rating approach consists of employing trained judges who apply criteria to observed interactions between persons. There have been some serious criticisms leveled against both scales. Some researchers claim that the scale measures a rather global "good" therapist quality. Researchers question just what is being measured and whether what is rated is empathy. The mechanics of the method are 17 difficult, time consuming and costly. Avery and Danish (1976) point out that raters trained by different researchers may not be in agreement in the definitions of different levels. Researchers at Michigan State University sought to develop a more adequate measurement (Kagan, 1962). They developed a multiple choice response protocol in which subjects were shown videotaped segments of actual counseling interviews and required to select responses that identified the affective state of the client. In 1977 Form D of the Affective Sensitivity Scale was developed. Although early versions of the scale were found to be reliable and a valid measure of training effects and low empathy, the scale needed improved technology and correction of some psychometric problems. The new scale Form D included the use of parallel forms, sub- category scoring, a broader range of stimulus material and extensive normative data for many of the helping professions. Form D scenes were taken from interactions between doctor and patient, friends, teachers and students. Group settings as well as counseling and psychotherapy were represented. Vignettes include men, women, blacks, whites in both inter- viewer and interviewee roles. The scale still follows the multiple choice format, however it includes a rationally based set of subscale areas for scoring instead of one total score. The scale has been found to be a reliable measure, stable over time with a test-retest reliability after one week of .64. It has been found to be internally consistent. Its index of homogeniety *using Cronbach's alpha for an N of 2,000 is .74. The scale has been found to distinguish between persons identified as high and low empathizers and is sensitive to the effects of training in interpersonal L... b ‘ I‘ ~ ‘ \ I‘D all ‘ 01.. e s 0‘ .1.- . . I ¢ .2 n.- N‘ 57 n '- ... a o 18 communication skills. Significant differences have been found among groups from different professional or educational areas and even between the same groups at different levels or training (Werner, 1977). Using the Michigan State Affective Sensitivity Scale, Kravas devel— oped a simulation device (TASS) to measure affective sensitivity in tea- chers. Videotaped vignettes of teacher—pupil interactions in actual and simulated classrooms were presented to subjects who selected from multi- ple choice items the affective state of the subject viewed (Kravas, 1974). Bernard Guerney and his associates devised an instrument for measuring empathic interaction between parents and child. Since children more often express their feelings through the medium of play, a process was developed to assess the interpersonal communication between parent and child in play sessions. A group of eight mothers and their young children served as subjects. Mbthers were asked to engage in a half hour play session, observed by two coders through a one-way mirror. The sessions were also tape recorded. A quantitative measure of the overall behavior of the mother in unstructured play with her child was deve10ped in the form of a rating scale. The bipolar Play Session Interaction Scale scored parents on seven points. Scores are assigned in five-minute intervals, and the average of the scores then calculated, providing an overall ranking of the parent's empathy in a given session. This device ”proved open enough to allow ample room for differences among mothers to stand out clearly, yet precise enough in terms of structure and setting to allow for ‘meaningful comparison between individuals" (Guerney, 1963, p. 53). 19 THE DEVELOPMENT OF EMPATHY G.H. Mead (1934) first conceptualized the social psychological concept of role theory, In it, human conduct is perceived as a product of the interaction of role and self. Role can be defined as "a patterned sequence of learned actions or deeds performed by a person in an interaction situation” (Sarbin, 1954, p. 225). Self then is defined as "the phenomenal experience of identity, an inference arising from a per- son's experiences with things, body parts and other persons” (Sarbin, 1954, p. 238). Role theory perceives "the personality as a population of self- other patterns and their interpersonal organization. When human orga- nisms respond to each other over time, the activity of each becomes a stimulus pattern for a more or less stabilized response pattern in the other, providing the motivational component remains essentially unchanged" (Dymond, 1948, p. 228). Each individual incorporates the acts of both self and others thus evolving a picture of himself as a distinct personality. Role theory envisions social interaction as reciprocal action between persons where these actions are organized into roles. A person's ability to anticipate or construe the feelings, expectations and informational requirements of others increases his ability to interact successfully in his environment. Mead contends that practice at role taking leads to increased social sensitivity with the emergence of the self concept and self control. Dymond (1952) feels that the ability to empathize depends on the role-taking ability of the person. It is possible, she suggests, as the child proceeds in his ”socialization he increases the number and range of 20 his contacts with others. He is theoretically incorporating more and more roles. These incorporated self-other patterns allow him to adjust his behavior to others by means of taking their roles incipiently and so modify his behavior to get a desired response from the other" (Dymond, 1952, p. 203). On another note, Halpern (1960) approaches the development of em— pathy from a psychoanalytical behavior viewpoint. He suggests that infantile empathy is the basis for the later ability to put yourself imaginatively in another's place. It is his position that the special emotional linkage between mother and child manifested in the child's ability to sense the tension, anxiety or contentment and love of the mother is the first empathic experience. Depending on whether or not the child has pleasant or unpleasant experiences with this empathic communication with mother, the child will develOp empathy compatibly. This initial experience with empathy will influence the type of people or type of human situations in which he will be most and least empathic (Halpern, 1955, p. 33). He regards three basic parts in the empathic process; perceiving, reacting, and being aware of internal cues. If the infant is rewarded for perceiving, reacting or being aware, he may be expected, according to learning theory, to develOp an openness to empathic communication. On the other hand, if the infant is punished for reacting emotionally, if he is rewarded for not noticing, for not reacting, the infant's tendency to empathize will be extinguished. The infant, depending on his pleasant or unpleasant experiences with empathy could develop a complete openness or complete rejection of the empathic process. {Y‘ -El 1.! 21 Aronfreed, learning theorist, explains that empathy is acquired early by conditioning or association. This is accomplished through repeated pairing of a child's feelings of pleasure or distress with someone else's expression of the corresponding feeling. Martin Hoffman's theory empahasizes the cognitive and affective aspects of empathy. The central idea is that an empathic reaction is an internal response to cues about the affective states of someone else. This reaction depends heavily on the actor's cognitive sense of others as distinct from himself. The cognitive sense changes dramatically as the individual passes from infancy to adulthood. Hogan has this to say: "My own guess is that empathic tendencies have been prepared for biologically as a consequence of man's evolutionary history as a group-living, culture dependent animal. If so, then empathy would be a natural emergent and its development may be facilitated by four factors. First, there is undoubtedly an intellectual component of empathy. Second, empathy may be encouraged by parents who attempt to inculcate into their children humanistic values such as consider- ation for the rights of others. Third, empathic tendencies can almost surely be modeled: thus empathic parents tend to raise empa- thic children. Finally, it seems to me that a degree of suffering is necessary before one can resonate to the suffering of others” (Hogan, 1975, p. 16). WHO ARE THESE EMPATHIZERS? Good empathic therapists are characterized by Halpern (1960) to be those who have the ability to use intuitive emotionalized receptivity accurately. This ability is a direct outgrowth of the therapist's experiences with infantile empathy. The more a therapist has had to defend himself as a infant against painful empathic communication the less likely he is to use an intuitive approach successfully. There is considerable feeling that empathic ability is related to family experiences. Dymond, Huges and Raabe (1953) suggest that early .I .. .r... . ~a.'eo .3355: k;- v- . a . '7‘:.! I 5. 5: 22 family relations which have been satisfying render the individual more able to invest in others and to feel rewarded by such investment. These individuals develOp a level of security from which they can afford to invest in others. According to Dixon and Morse (1961), teachers who, because of their own life history, are concerned about being rejected may be more able to closely identify with children experiencing the same rejection. Dymond (1948) found empathic people to be less guarded, more flexible, less hostile, more optimistic, and more spontaneous. She found empathic persons to be more controlled in their emotionality than non- empathic persons while richly enjoying their emotionality. SUMMARY In looking at the literature, empathy is seen as a very important element in the classroom. Researchers have found that teacher empathy can improve academic as well as social skills in students. Empathy appears a rather illusive quality having been defined in a number of ways Over the last 20—30 years. Researchers agree, however, that empathy is definitely a very special way of relating to others and it does make a remarkable impact on therapy clients as well as students. The feeling of being understood promotes good mental health and encourages intellectual growth. Numerous attempts have been made to try to measure empathy. Most of these measurements have been used in the therapeutic situation between client and therapist. Holding the most promise is the Affective Sensi- tivitz Scale developed by Kagan and his associates. In its present form, it can distinguish between high and low empathizers and is appropriate I W .l ~11 '- 'w .I :N ... In «N. E‘” ‘ a a . v.1 . . nIJ It. . a 0.. u. U 0 ‘ A ll. . w I n I. . C.‘ n - o n . . A at n u 0 o . . . n .«J .3. n . ..... ..& 4| .. . J‘- ‘b 23 for use with a number of helping professional groups. It will be used as the measure of empathy in the present study. The development of empathy has been explained by role theorists in a social-psychological sense. The individual learns empathic behavior from interacting with an increasing number and range of others. Through these contacts, he incorporates more and more roles. These self-other patterns allow the individual to adjust his behavior to others by means of taking their roles. Halpern's psychoanalytical behavioral model suggests that empathy is learned in the first mother-infant contacts where the infant responds to mother through a special sense. Depending on whether or not the infant receives pleasant or unpleasant experiences with the communication determines what types of people and the types of human situations in winch he will behave most and least empathically. Hogan suggests that empathy development depends on a combination of factors: a cognitive element, exposure to an empathic model; encourage— ment and praise for empathic behavior, and an element of felt suffering. Researchers have found that family experiences determine the empathic abilities of the individual. Individuals are most likely to bEhave empathically towards others who are similar. A broad history of eXperience increases the individual's ability to behave empathically in an increased number of situations. Good empathizers have been found to be outgoing, less guarded, more flexible, less hostile, more optimistic and more spontaneous than non- emPathic persons. Interestingly, they have been found to have a rich enJoyment of their own emotionality. ... u" is: ‘5 t OOAQA D:.u:s;\ *"“-'a: ova-n4.» . tittrv 1 21'. 833‘ ‘w . ..“3‘n" he. . .J he 3' ' . "£321. 24 'Perhaps the intangible quality of empathy has caused researchers to pursue its understanding for so long. It continues to hold a position of importance in almost every social and psychological process. Research continues to explain its nature and development. Empirical research however, does not lend itself to the depth and richness of this special human response. In the following pages lie a description of the life history method, a method holding enormous potential for empathy deve10p- ment study. LIFE HISTORY INTRODUCTION The individual is acknowledged to develop over time through a series of experiences and in relation to the significant culture in which he belongs. His attitudes and feelings are unique to him yet reflective in a much broader sense to others within his society. A method of learning about the inner experiences of individuals is needed in order to under- stand the comprehensive picture of how and why a particular group of individuals behave in a certain manner. This can be done by carefully following an individual representative of a particular group along the continuum of his life, carefully recording facts and systematically analyzing these important data. The inside story of a life in a certain culture and at a certain time is understood. What circumstances impinged upon this individual and what choices he made in regard to his attitudes and feelings about these circumstances are illuminated. A.greater understanding of how human beings respond to life in certain cultural groups, and perhaps a sense of the commonality of man aside from individual circumstance and ability, is possible. It may be ...! I 25 possible to predict human behavior better and in an altruistic sense make life better. The promise of the life history is that it can allow us a very personal inside view of the individual. LIFE HISTORY DEFINED "Life history studies document the inner experiences of individuals. The method strives to locate the individual first in his or her life experiences and secondly within the broader sociohistorical framework in which he or she lives” (Langness, 1965, p. 20). Very frequently life history is identified with the methods of oral history, autobiography and psychobiography. Ultimately the life history is concerned with the subjective meanings of individuals; how the individual interprets, understands and defines the world around him/her. ”In the life history is revealed, as in no other way, the inner life of the person, his moral struggles, his successes and failures in securing his destiny in a world too often at variance with his hopes and ideals” (Faraday and Plummer, 1979, p. 776). Bogdan writes, ”The autobiography is unique in allowing us to view an individual in the context of his whole life, from birth to the point at which we encounter him. Because of this it can lead us to a fuller understanding of the stages and critical periods in the process of his deve10pment. It enables us to look at subjects as if they have a past with successes as well as failures, and a future with hOpes and fears. It also allows us to see an individual in relation to the history of his time, and how he is influenced by the various religious, social, psychological and economic currents present in his world. It permits us to view the intersection of the life history of men with the history of their society, thereby enabling us to understand better the choices, contingencies and options Open to the individual” (Bogdan, 1970, p. 4). 26 "The life history is, I believe, the way a person conceptualized the stream of experience that constitutes his life as he knows it, in accor- dance with the demands and expectations he and others impose on the act of relating that life" (L. Watson, 1976, p. 98). It may be thought of as a process that blends together the consciousness of the investigator and the subject. LIFE HISTORY APPLICATION Life history has been used effectively to complement ethonographic description and idiographic portrayal, from the ”inside". It depicts what it is like to participate in a particular culture. It can be used in an exploratory fashion for generating concepts, hunches and ideas, as a basis for formulating questions, and as a method of linking existing theory. Social scientists have used life histories to focus on or answer particular kinds of questions concerning culture, cultural change, as well as theoretical issues in culture and personality. Faraday and Plummer (1979) found the life history technique to be singularly appropriate to their research because of the substantive areas to which it is most suited. Allport comments on the multitude of uses this source of data has served. He says, ”If we want to know how people feel, what they experience and what they remember, what their emotions and motives are like, and the reasons for acting as they do, why not ask them? This is the simple logic of the introspectionist's position that commends itself to many in spite of the scorching displeasure of behaviorists and objectivists" (Allport, 1942, p. 37). 27 According to Langness (1965), the life history should be exploited to the point of confirming old facts, offering new ones, or explaining the reasons for differences of opinion about ethnographic facts where such discrepancies occur. Where it is not used as a basis for inferences tied heavily to external constructs, theories, or measures, it can be used as a commentary of the individual's very personal view of his own experience as he understands it. The individual's personal motives must be assessed using clinical methods. As Becker (1966) concludes, ”To understand why someone behaves as he does you must understand how it looked to him, what he thought he had to contend with and what alterna- tives he saw open to him.” The life history technique has become a research tool of enormous potential. ”It provides a method of testing and refining personality theory on the lives of individual human beings, living or dead, famous or not (Richard Noland, 1978, p. 17). It has the special ability to impart another life and by extension another way of life. It is able to illuminate broad social formations and by its quality as a textured body of material can be untangled and rewoven by the investigator or reader (Gelya Frank, 1979). MERITS OF THE LIFE HISTORY One of the benefits of studying the life history of an individual is that the individual is revealed to us by his own choice. Here the social scientist has a natural self-contained source of information about sub- jective experience, the inside scoop, in which it is possible to bring 28 out the coping, creative aspects Of a person's behavior as he attempts tO deal with the confusions, ambiguities, and contradictions Of everyday life. Richard Noland states, "A psychobiographer must have some kind Of access to the inner life Of his subjects. This means an autobiography, memoirs, letters, diary, or with living subjects an in-depth interview. One of the unique values Of good psychobiography is its almost fictional capacity tO focus on the interaction between ego identity and social process” (Noland, 1978, p. 18). There is always a discrepancy between cultural rules and the actual behavior exhibited. ”It is important tO know what the accepted range Of variation is, and the life history is a good method of investigating this aspect Of a culture” (Langness, 1965, p. 21). The life history can be successfully used to confirm old facts, Offer new ones or to explain the reasons for differences Of Opinion about ethnographic facts. The life history is still the most cognitively rich and humanly understandable way Of getting at an inner view Of culture” (Mandelbaum, 1973, p. 200). SOME CRITICISMS The study Of lives through the life history has been utilized as a source of information about man and his condition for over fifty years. However, it has not yet been well developed in the social sciences though a good many anthropologists, psychologists, political scientists and sociologists have written about its importance. It has traditionally occupied a marginal role in comparison to more structured Observation, structured interviewing, and testing procedures whose purposes are generally experimentation and hypothesis testing (L. Watson, 1976). 29 Researchers point out that the life history is difficult to appraise, for each research document represents the personality, interests and motivation Of the investigator. Barbara Allen states, "Written history is ideally Objective and unbiased. Spoken history on the other hand includes the unsystematized, biased, fragmented bits Of personal memories that have not room in academic history books...and reflect individual views of real facts rather than the facts themselves. It tends to be more subjective and evaluative" (Allen, 1979, p. 115). Faraday and Plummer (1979) write that there are a multitude of problems inherent in the method. They list of greatest importance the fact that it is methodologically unsound and practically inefficient. They strongly object to the study Of only one case in detail. They indicate problems with reliability--of knowing the larger sample Of which the case is representative--and the limited power of generalizability. In their minds more information can be gained by statistical methods. They find, "It is clearly not very good at testing or validating existing theory though it might be useful in finding a falsificatory case. It is quite good when combined with a general orientation in theory which enables one to see how the theory might make sense of that field as a whole" (Faraday and Plummer, 1979, p. 186). They conclude, ”The life history can be used as a firm base for throwing up theories around that particular area--some of which may be highly specific to that area" (Faraday and Plummer, 1979, p. 785). Researchers Freeman and Rrantz (1980) suggest that the literature of life histories consists of extended narratives, either in the first or third person, following the lives of individual persons. Typically these works lack an adequate conceptual framework for analysis as well as an 30 .account Of how the life history was collected. "Many investigators have spoken enthusiastically of the potential that life histories hold; yet these same writers have Observed uneasily that the promise appears to have been unfulfilled and unclear. First, those who reject them have seen them as interesting stories sometimes possibly Of literary value but, because Of Observer and narrator bias, have not generalizability and thus no real value for the social sciences. Second, those who accept them have seen them as data that might have some scientific value if presented as an Objective analysis” (Freeman and Krantz, 1980, p. 1). They find life history studies to fail most Often at integrating adequate theory with a comprehensive narrative. Gelya Frank (1979) suggests that a preponderance of life history works are only briefly set in a cultural or historical context or not analyzed at all. It is her position that investigators and readers alike have eXpected a life history to speak for itself and have relied upon material to be self evident. It is rare that any systematic attempt has been made to differentiate the kind Of material to be included against the kind of material which should not. She does modify her criticism however, ”The self-evidence of the life history makes it difficult even to conceive Of a way to analyze it.” Others have been concerned with the lack Of analysis represented in life history documents. Mandelbaum says, ”Most social scientists who have pointed out the great potential of the life history approach for their respective disciplines have seen as its chief difficulty the lack of accepted principles Of selection of suitable analysis concepts to make up a coherent frame of reference” (Mandelbaum, 1973, p. I77). 31 L. L. Langness felt that anthropologists who recorded life histories ‘were not very clear about what to do with a life history in the way Of an anthropological analysis. L. Watson agrees, "There has been no agreement regarding a frame of reference for actually interpreting life history data as such” (Watson, 1976, p. 96). Allport's (1942) appraisal of the use Of personal documents in psychology ended with a recommendation that more conceptual, analytical work with such materials be encouraged. Edinger (1964) notes "the most notable lack in modern political biography is that it has not an explicit, conceptual framwork for the selection, organization, and presentation of data" (Mandelbaum, 1973, p. 1979). In general, life history critics and supporters point out a past deficiency of analysis and interpretation in life history work. THE LIFE HISTORY AND THEORY Faraday and Plummer (1979) suggest that the most important role of the life history in theoretical work is the part it plays in the explora- tion and generation Of theory. The technique is grounded in a pragmatist approach to knowledge in which the ultimate test of truth is experience. They contend that by applying a combination Of grounded theory and analytic induction of grounded theory one can slowly build up a comparative analysis of different life histories. They say, ”In order to build up a theoretical understanding that is grounded upon the empirical world, a first hand acquaintance with that world becomes necessary. Through the life history technique one is able to build up miniature sensitizing concepts, and small scale hypotheses which can subsequently be transferred to a statistical deductive method" (Faraday and Plummer, 1979, p. 778). 32 Frank feels that the life history Offers a relatively unspecialized technique for collecting materials relevant tO any set Of concerns about human existence in society, by locating the individual person's life as a cross section in space and time. The material collected in the life history should be taken as evidence for answering any questions the researcher has posed. In its practice the life history demands analysis and abstraction. HISTORICAL USE OF THE LIFE HISTORY One Of the earliest uses Of the life history by social scientists was in the study Of the American Indian. Historical accounts of the lives Of many famous and not so famous Indians are scattered throughout the literature. These accounts tend to appear highly fictionalized. Radin's (1913, 1920, 1926) Crashing Thunder was one Of the first to give a rationale for the life history. His purpose was to have some representative middle-aged individual of moderate ability describe his life in relation to the social group in which he had grown up. Radin was aware how difficult it was to get an inside view Of a culture and showed with his work that a life history narrative could add much to an ethno- logical account. Thomas and Znaniecki's work, The Polish Peasants in Europe and America (1918-1920) is also considered a turning point in the critical use Of biography in sociology and psychology. In 1935 Dollard's Criteria for the Life History was a major attempt to provide some theoretical underpinning for the use Of life history data. Dollard formulated seven criteria for the study Of life histories, of which the first six stipulate in various ways that the subject must be understood in his social and cultural context. The seventh criterion "II- I’ l "cub-4 ~ “In-0.»! vinysrvd .. '.'- ' --OQ. . . v-Oeoi ‘ LE ‘C.II ' I M: o. u u... |.. ram "3"'; "'vu u: . 15:5. W \J ’p I'." I l . I'm 33 stipulates that the life history material be organized and conceptualized. Dollard's book did much to stimulate interest in life history. DuBOis", The People Of Alor (1944) demonstrated the use Of life histories, along with other data, to answer particular questions about the relationships between individual personality, child rearing and the organization Of society. Here psychoanalytic theories were used to interpret the informant's behavior, dreams and performance on projective tests. Charlotte Buehler (1968) employed the life history to look at the overall structure Of the course of human life. She emphasizes that each life has a structure, and that it can be understood as a system with consistent properties and potentialities. She proposes that most lives can be evaluated as in some way expressing a fulfillment of the orga- nism's potentialities. The work of Leighton and Leighton, Gregorio, The Hand Trembler A Psychobiological Personality Study of a Navaho Indian (1949) stands out as one Of the most thorough life histories ever produced and from the standpoint Of investigators one Of the most honest in pointing out gaps in data. L.L. Langness (1965) produced significant work in relation to the use of life history. His work, The Life History in Anthropological Science, highlights the difficulties as well as the assets Of life history work. He concludes that life history is a ripe untapped social science methodology. 34 RELIABILITY, VALIDITY AND INTERPRETATION Some researchers have been concerned with the many problems of reliability, validity, and interpretation that are involved in the use of life histories. Terry Anderson states that "there are common historical errors in psychohistory. They are basing an interpretation on sparse and biased evidence, using biographical data selectively, and explaining complex events or behavior monocausally” (Anderson, 1978, p. 15). Kluckhorn (1945) surveyed the use Of personal documents in anthropology. He recognized that many problems of reliability, validity, and interpretation are connected with life histories. But he saw their potential advantages for studies Of social change, as clues to implicit themes, as documentation on roles, and as demonstration of socialization and enculturation. He recognized that the method allowed entry into understanding personality, gaining a view of the ”emotional structure" of a way of life, understanding variations within society, and a view of the ”common humanity" among peoples. Watson (1976) feels that an essential aspect of interpretation is the researcher's willingness to enter into a true dialogue with the other party. He, like Others, feels that it should be based on mutual agreement and a contract in which both parties try to understand the basic issues Of concern. According to L. L. Langness (1965) there are three techniques for checking the reliability of anthropological data as they are Obtained in the field. They are observation, checking one account against another, and asking the same questions of the same informant repeatedly over time. The same is true when checking the reliability Of the life history. ”.1 r:" 00‘ I..- o.. .ts‘t ‘3“! | 3 3’” \ \‘ikq 35 LIFE HISTORY DATA COLLECTION Frank states that "the unspecialized life history technique is not only a method but a form" (Frank, 1979, p. 84). She feels that in the study Of personality development, data should be gathered on any and every topic that appeared to be significantly related tO the individual's growth and development. She collects data in the order in which events have happened, attempting to mirror the developing personality accurately and in detail, framing it in its environment, society and culture. The reader will be provided with an ”inside” to the subject's experience. Primary to this method is an inductive, exploratory model which allows subjects to speak for themselves. Carl Rogers (1945) suggests that the nondirective interview is an unbiased method in which to study the significant and dynamic motivations in the life of the individual. He states, ”It appears to me that the most promising use of non-directive techniques will be in the realm Of personality research and anthropolog- ical study because the subject's attitudes may be determined thereby at deeper and deeper levels without introducing the bias Of the interview" (Carl Rogers, 1945, p. 200). He summarizes his position saying that, ”The attitudes of acceptance and permissiveness upon which the interviewer bases his work are enriched by specific techniques which avoid making the client defensive and eliminate the personal bias which the worker might otherwise impose on the interview” (Carl Rogers, 1942, p. 253). Mandelbaum agrees, suggesting that there are special advantages in having an empathetic, existential understanding Of the person being studied. This allows subjects to speak for themselves. 36 There is disagreement among life historians whether or not questions should be focused and selective or Open permitting the subject to talk freely. Faraday and Plummer (1979) used an inductive, exploratory model allowing subjects to speak for themselves. They approached their subjects with a research bargain indicating the areas in which they were interested and asking that they collect their stories. In return, they promised faithfulness to their accounts and the complete protection of their identity. Lewis (1961) claims that with the aid of the tape recorder, unskilled, uneducated, and even illiterate persons can tell about them- selves and relate their observations and experiences in an uninhibited spontaneous and natural manner. However, WOlfson's research with_§peakers of United States English indicates that the free, nondirective techniques that anthropologists frequently use may be confusing for the speaker and may even be taken by the subject to indicate the investigator's incompetence to conduct research, since the conventions of a proper interview are not being observed. If the subject considers the investigator incompetent, it is not unlikely that the subject will exercise more than ordinary discretion in making disclosures. RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN NARRATOR AND INVESTIGATOR The taking of a life history is entirely voluntary. Both investi- gator and narrator work together developing a relationship which is absolutely unique to this situation. This special relationship encour- ages the deepening of revelations about oneself and the other person. ”As many persons have Observed, the field worker in a foreign society is 37 a person between two worlds--neither simply an actor nor just a specta- ‘bor. Similarly, the narrator who gives a life history may be doing something for which his culture has no prededent. Thus, both persons ‘meet in a limbo situation that prompts them to reflect upon themselves and their society in new ways" (Freeman and Krantz, 1980, p. 8). Neither participant has any way of knowing what will be revealed about the other during the process of creating the life history, nor do they have any idea of what the end results will be nor their implications. During the past 50 years of life history work, little has been written about the relationship between narrator and investigator. Inves- tigators have Often been hard pressed to draw the line between friend and research subject. The published research seems cold and abstract when compared to the intimate relationship the investigator has developed with the subject. Gelya Frank suggests that "the investigator relies in a primary way on personal resources in understanding the subject of the life history as another person, that in some sense the life history may represent a personal portrait Of the investigator” (Gelya Frank, 1979, p. 85). In the same sense the reader attempts to understand the subject by looking for similarities in himself using this as an interpretive frame. ”When we say that we understand another person, we temporarily take over what we perceive Of that person's identity. For an instant we abandon our own position ”here" and go over to the other person's position, taking it in and making it our own” (Gelya Frank, 1979, p. 75). Because of this identification phenomenon, the life history has often been presented as a document that can be understood for itself in 38 its own terms on the premise that every reader already has a sense of how tn) understand another person through his or her own life experiences. Frank's view is that life histories have tried to rework the sub- ject's literal narrative editing out repetitions and other passages deemed unimportant, ambiguous or contradictory in order to demonstrate some pattern which the author has perceived. The text in these instances is treated as an absent person. Its textual nature is taken for granted and not analyzed. Any analysis has tended to come after the document has been recorded and edited. Frank cautions that we try to assess whether the life history represents the life of another individual in the way we think it does. Freeman and Krantz contend "that life histories represent a distinc- tive class of data requiring a different and distinctive style Of analysis. In its entirety the life history is distinctive, revealing three important characteristics which cannot be duplicated by other social science data; 1) a configuration of experiences in a continuous narrative made vivid by concrete detail, 2) a compelling quality, and 3) the process of taking the life history which is an integral part of a complete life history” (Freeman and Krantz, 1980, p. 4). ASSESSING THE LIFE HISTORY The limited acceptance of the life history may be because investiga- tors have omitted or underestimated the crucial role of the observer. Freeman and Rrantz (1980) liken the importance of the Observer to the photographic artist who produces a portrait of his subject by controlling the lighting and background of the photograph or who modifies the compo- sition of the portrait by selective cropping. The researcher, Devereaux, 39 maintains that the behavior of the subject along with any disturbances produced by the observer, as well as the behavior of the Observer inclu- ding his anxieties, his defense maneuvers, and his research strategies, influence the nature of the data collected. Another problem with accep- tance rises from the proclivity of social scientists to evaluate life histories in terms Of the traditional standard criteria Of generaliza- bility and representativeness, as pilot studies needing further valida— tion. These criteria can be misleading when judging a life history. Kluckhohn (1945) formulated four criteria for assessing the adequacy of a life history; 1) a comprehensive narrative of a person's life, 2) a description of the conditions and ways in which the researcher obtained the life history, including an evaluation of the trustworthiness of the data, 3) a discussion of how the subject's life history integrates with known information about his group, and 4) interpretations Of the life history based on a coherent and nonparochial scheme. Researchers Freeman and Rrantz find Kluckhohn's criteria inadequate for assessing a life history today, claiming that conventional social science perspectives continue to be inadequate for dealing with life histories. They note that few published life histories contain an in depth discussion of the methods used for data collection, while virtually making no mention of the investigator and his work. Other researchers support this concern, cautioning life historians against excessive editing, warning that without investigator comments and interpretations the work has little if no meaning. Life histories pose puzzling problems for the social scientist. There is no longer a distinction between method and content, between 40 Observer and Observed or between editor and narrator. The results are a combination of all of these. ANALYTICAL METHODOLOGY The problem of analyzing the multitude of data accumulated is seen in different lights by social science researchers. All agree however, that the life history has much potential if a methodology can be develop- ed for analyzing the data. Langness suggests that "the analysis of a life history with its accounts of interaction with other attitudes toward the roles played, rationalizations for either accepting or rejecting certain roles, and the number of roles played by a given individual, would be a most effective way of getting at the relationships between members of the group as well as at problems of motivation” (Langness, 1965, p. 27). Roles are seen as behavior accompanying a status and can easily be analyzed out of a life history and then compared with the behavior patterns of Others of the same status. Watson attempts to list categories on which to ground an anthropo- logical life history from a phenomenological perspective. He feels that ”too often the integrity of an autobiographical account is violated in the very act of interpretation" (Watson, 1976, p. 98). Historically, investigators have attempted to integrate life history material into general theories of behavior, selecting those data which fit the major principles they are investigating. However, concern with objectivity led to approaches aimed at minimizing observer error. The approach involves minimizing or explaining away observable bias as far as possible. Allport recommended this approach, in which the data of life 41 histories are used to illuminate general principles or concepts in the social sciences. Sidney Mintz, in Worker in the Cane (1960), gives the reader a good view of how his material was accumulated and makes an excellent attempt to use analysis. However, he makes no pretense of how representative his case is and presents his material mainly on the basis of its intrinsic human interest. He adds that if he were to follow up the life history he would want to collect perhaps a dozen life histories from persons of similar sociocultural characteristics. ”While a dozen might not satisfy some standards for an adequate sample, a dozen studies would undoubtedly further enrich Mintz' perceptive analysis of the single life history" (Weddell, Mandelbaum, 1973, p. 205). Faraday and Plummer say that "the problem of analysis is hence the extent to which the sociologist progressively imposes his or her second order constructs upon the understandings of the subject or the extent to which the subject's own rational construction of the world is grasped and apprehended in its purest form” (Faraday and Plummer, 1979, p. 786). The most restrictive analysis would be the exploration of a predetermined theoretical thesis. At the other end of the continuum, there is a second method of exploration dubbed systematic thematic analysis. Here the subject is allowed to speak for him or herself while the sociologist slowly accumulates a series of themes partly derived from the subject's account but partly derived from sociological theory. Researchers can move through any stage on this continuum as long as they publicly acknowledge how far they are contaminating the data by interpretation. 42 MANDELBAUM'S PROCEDURES FOR ANALYSIS Mandelbaum has refined the procedures for analysis of a life history showing that the life history can be of scientific value when concepts, as well as procedures, are well grounded including continuous adjustment and periodic adaptation. In 1955 Redfield noted that an intellectual form for the study Of life history was needed. The approach should be able to ”raise new questions and problems such as the changing states of mind in the span of life, the prospective quality Of a person's life, the influence of ideals on behavior, and the differences among what a man thinks ought to happen, what he expects to happen and what he actually does” (Mandelbaum, 1973, p. 179). Mandelbaum's scheme does exactly this. He concludes that "what a man adds up to, he builds up in stages but no one stage explains the man. In each stage he developes some qualities that are new, and in each he uses capabilities, attitudes and memories of his earlier experiences” (Mandelbaum, 1973, p. 180). Keeping this in mind, he developed three comprehensive and highly usable procedural suggestions for categorizing the profuse data collected on the life history. They are: 1. The dimensions or aspects of a person's life. Dimensions made up of experiences that stem from a similar base and are linked in their effects on the person's actions. They provide categories for understanding the main forces that affect a life. Mandelbaum outlines one category as the individual's organic and somatic development (biological aspects). Another category might be cul- tural. Here dimensions include the mutual expectations, understandings and behavior patterns held by the people surrounding the informant as he grew up as well as those within the society in which he participates. 43 This can include the emotional experiencing of reward and penalty in maintaining or changing behavior. The social dimension is concerned with the person's relations, choices, and decisions which have not been culturally stipulated. It includes an individual's behavior which has occured by personal choice and may be characteristic of the individual's social group. The psychosocial dimension concentrates on the person's subjective views in their constancy and in their successive phases. It focuses on the subjective feelings and attitudes of the individual. Even though individually experienced these feelings are likely to be similar in some degree to those of others in the individual's culture and society. 2. The principal turnings and the life conditions between turnings. During a life there are periods which are marked by major transi- tions and changes. These turnings are accomplished when a person takes on a new set of roles, enters into new relations with a new set of people and acquires a new self concept. A turning can occur after a single event or may be more self selected. These major transitions tell something about the main parts of a life. They illustrate important roles, social relations, and self concept. 3. The person's characteristic means of adaptation. Personal adaptations are changes that have a major affect on a person's life and on his basic relations with others. Each individual changes his ways in order to maintain a sense of continuity whether this be within his social group, or in relation to his own self image. Per- haps his very survival is at stake. Personal adaptations can be both a source of social adaptation and also a response to it. :‘I I I“ -5 ‘.l I. “Q. ‘ .I ,o .:~:. Inn... 1 .o.¢ a-..» \ '~ It? I"... ._.4- h o It ob e‘q ‘.‘ u 44 In his comments regarding Mandelbaum's work, L. L. Langness suggests that a further category be added to dimensions, turnings and adaptations. This category he labels "consequences” reflecting the consequences of an individual's behavior. He submits that consequences of ones acts are as significant as any one behavior and often determine the individual's choice of behavior later on. Researchers have supported Mandelbaum's work, acknowledging the difficulty in systematically analyzing life history data and recognizing that for the life history to reach its full potential, conceptual frame- works must be developed. Charlotte Buhler found his work to be highly stimulating, scholarly, and valuable (Mandelbaum, 1973, p. 198). Others felt that his methodological refinement would resurrect the neglected field of life history. ”Mandelbaum simply reminds us once again that it is after all the human individual life that underlies the social and the cultural, playing a major although not always discernible part in the social cultural configurations and processes” (Mandelbaum, 1973, p. 204). ONE LIFE HISTORY STUDY REVISITED Psychologist Edward Klein and his associates at Harvard used the life history method to research the Seasons of a Man's Life. Using a small group of five researchers representing four occupational groups the lives of 40 men were studied over a period of years. Each researcher had the support of an individual supervisor as well as participation in a biweekly faculty seminar. In these seminars, overall theory, research theories and findings, including the work Of Erickson and Jung, supplied important concepts for the emerging research. IS éEIZT .1 I.. “‘ 1". m... . 33 Ha 45 Klein and his associates felt that they were charting new methodo- logical ground, discovering that Over the years they had become social psychological biographers. The life history method allowed them to collect a fuller description of a man's life than available through other research methods, allowing direct comparison of a man to others within his occupational group as well as comparison of the four occupational groups studied. An important element of their research technique was the use of research supervisors. Supervisors reviewed each case with interviewers regarding background, personality dynamics and the interviewing process. This was particularly important in helping interviewers build supporting environments which enabled interviewees to speak candidly. The use Of supervisors is believed to have helped control for bias in the study. Interviews of 10-22 hours in length spaced over a period of 2-3 months were conducted emphasizing the researchers' interest in human development in adulthood and how this is affected by circumstances at work, in the family, personal commitments and changes in the larger society. Each man was told he would meet in weekly sessions over a period of a few months. The conversations would be tape recorded so that the researcher could be more involved in the interview process. Tapes were later transcribed for analysis. Only members of the research team ever heard or saw them. Once transcribed the interviews were coded to insure anonymity. After the completion of the interview, one formal psychological test was administered. Participants were assured that its rationale would be explained or any questions answered after it was conducted. .p-v II. I u... o... ,q f... 1.. 'It. V... :9‘ a -,v.‘.‘ D ON 46 A research contract was drawn up between interviewer and interviewee. Here a strong collaborative intent was stressed, "...that you and I together will try to get a picture of your life; the world you live in, what you do, how you experience it, and how things are changing. It is not our purpose to put you under a microscope but rather for both of us to be working at a common task, learning together about your life" (Klein, 1981, p. 317). This helped the interviewee feel more relaxed and helped in the initial rapport stages Of the interview. It became apparent that adults are more than interested in the development of their lives and would raise questions between interviews that would then be reflected in the next sessions. At least three things were also offered each man. First, an Oppor- tunity to learn about one's own development, ”how you got there, and where you want to go.” Secondly, after the formal talks were completed, the researcher offered to answer any questions and offer any thoughts about what he/she might have learned about the interviewee. Thirdly, the researchers agreed to show each man what was written, ”that it would not be so much about you as a separate individual but how your life and that of others reflects common patterns" (Klein, 1981, p. 318). Finally, suggestions were elicited for improving anything they had written. Klein and his associates found it was best to start the interview at the point where the man was now in his life, interviews were conducted with no standard interview format but with ten predefined areas to be covered. They started with work, occupation, and career. Later other areas were brought in. These included family, marriage, lifestyle, and 47 children. Family of origin focused on parents and memories Of early relationships, discussion of social class included income, residential area, and style of living. Researchers talked about the man's ideology, affiliation, identity, membership and reference group under the topic of ethnicity and religion. In the political area, questions were asked about local, state and national political affiliation, general political ideology and specific attitudes toward civil rights, poverty and war. Leisure time activities included recreation, cultural interests and how he spent weekends and vacations. Questions regarding his social networks, personal and familial as well as friendships and acquaintances, were asked. Lastly, interviewees were asked how they saw the past, the present, the future and their connection. Over a period of years, a systematic case analysis method was developed using coding procedures and worksheets which led to a set of guidelines to describe and organize the man's life in a number of areas. The areas were social background and family origin, schooling, sexual history, family or procreation, fatherhood, occupations and social class, military service, work history, relations with men, leisure interest, death, illness, disturbance and bodily decline, psychological difficul- ties, crisis, and contact with mental health professionals, religion and philosOphy of life, current life issues, and states of the interview. SUMMARY In summary, the life history offers a comprehensive method in which to study the individual within his society. It has been used to ... 9.. h 5 . s~ .0 48 complement ethnographic description and idiographic portrayal as well as to test and refine personality theory. Its greatest merit is its ability to give researchers an inside view of an individual and his culture. Over the last fifty years, the life history has been used to study the lives Of many individuals; however, the method has not yet reached its full potential. Researchers have failed to develop methods for analyzing the enormous amount Of data accumulated during the taking Of the life history. Critics have delineated some Of these failures. Nevertheless, the method has many social science supporters who believe it to be a techni- que which can explore and generate theory which can later be transferred to a statistical deductive method. Its reliability, validity and inter- pretation can only be as good as the researcher conducting the research. There must be careful adherence to objective data collection and report- ing, as well as later disclosure of how the data were collected. Methods of collection need to be carefully planned, and carried out. Relationships between the narrator and the investigator need to be cultivated and protected. Analysis of the life history requires meticulous rigor. Mandelbaum's procedure of the categories of dimensions, turnings and adaptations incorporating Langness' suggestion of consequences holds much potential. Klein and his associates have proven that life history work can be meaningful and thorough, contributing much to the social sciences. CHAPTER III LIFE HISTORY METHODOLOGY The purpose of this study is to explore, describe and compare, through case study and life history interviews, the self-reported life experiences of eight teachers Of the emotionally impaired from the mid- Michigan area. Inferences regarding the influence Of particular life experiences on the deve10pment Of participants' empathic capacity are drawn in concurrence with objective affective sensitivity (empathy) scores as measured by the Affective Sensitivity Scale Form D (Werner 1977). OVERVIEW Eight teachers of the emotionally impaired were selected randomly from a pOpulation Of sixty-six EI teachers in the mid-Michigan area. These teachers were asked to participate in life history research, telling their story from birth. A collaborative relationship deve10ped between researcher and subject during the life history gathering process. Each subject was engaged in a series of interviews for a total of eight to ten hours. A focused, moderately structured interview procedure, to be described later, was deve10ped for use during this research, incorporating the work of Sullivan (1954), Saslow (1945), Chapple (1945), Owens (1963), Charles (1963), Klein (1980), Spradley (1979), and Weiner (1981). Descriptions of life events were based 49 50 on a developmental sequence; the feelings that each participant experienced during crucial life events and the consequences Of their personal adaptations to these events were explored. Audio recordings were made Of each interview. Interview content was transcribed and evaluated as the study proceeded, and the interview focus was changed where it was necessary to Obtain relevant information. Written summaries were kept of each interview, along with an interview journal recording the interviewer's personal experience in relation to the interview process. Subjects completed the Affective Sensitivity Scale, viewing the video portion Of Form D and completing the multiple choice section at some time during the interview process. The test was brought to the interview site via video cassettes or film. Scoring was done by the researcher subsequent to completing the interview analysis for all participants. Data from life history interviews were evaluated and analyzed as the data collection proceeded, using Mandelbaum's scheme for life history analysis and adding a fourth category as suggested by Langness. The categories were, Dimensions, Principal Turnings, Adaptations and Consequences. In the last stages of data analysis, an holistic view of each subject was drawn by triangulating life history data with affective sensitivity scores (empathy). Descriptive life summaries were written for each subject. These summaries were then used to draw inferences concerning the deve10pment of empathy in the lives of the participants. 51 RESEARCH DESIGN The researcher used a two dimensional approach triangulating qualitative and quantitative data. On one dimension the researcher used an historical case study design. Eight volunteer EI teachers were interviewed by the researcher in order to Obtain as much relevant information as possible regarding the research question. A detailed account Of each teacher's life experience, feelings, dates Of events or sequence of events was completed over a period Of at least eight interview hours. The second dimension incorporated subjects' test scores on the Affective Sensitivity Scale Form D. These scores gave the researcher a quantitative estimate Of each EI teacher's empathic capability. Thus the researcher was able to look at both the historical background and the empathic ability for each subject. VALIDITY CONCERNS At the inception of this research, the researcher had a number Of validity concerns. Did the use of historical case study provide information which is directly applicable to the question: What life experiences have influenced the development of empathy in RI teachers? The life history Offered a rich in—depth study of human development. Participants willingly shared their stories. In most cases participants themselves attempted to find answers in their histories as to what made it possible for them to work with El children while others could not or chose not to. Each participant shared his/her story openly. In only one case did the interviewer feel that an informant was withholding. This 52 participant avoided personal feeling statements, keeping the life history closely to a description Of events and a description of others. The discussion Of life events ranged from early infancy to the present. Informants retrieved clear information concerning events and feelings. The deve10pmental progression of the interview appears to have made this possible. Participants did not avoid discussion of emotionally difficult events. At times participants expressed overt emotion; some even cried during the retelling Of a painful experience. Confidentiality was assured participants from the beginning of the study. A research contract gave participants a written assurance of such protection. The researcher, as an insider (EI teacher), was able to build trusting relationships with informants which facilitated honest communication. Since the research took place over a period of four or five contacts, informants had a chance to reflect over each previous interview, and elaborate on issues they thought about between sessions. In many cases participants were able to predict what was to be talked about before an interview and had already given it considerable thought. These interviews tended to be rich in information. Most interviews required little direction from the interviewer; participants only needed assurance that they were going in the right direction and a little directed support that what they said was meaningful and important to the research. Each participant understood that the researcher was genuinely interested in his/her story. The researcher believes that informants represented their life story honestly and that each story exhibited actual occurrences in the lives of participants. Interview data were validated when cross checked with the maps each participant drew of their life travels. The researcher found 53 no discrepancies between interviews. Nonverbal cues indicated that informants were honest and Open in regard to their story. The researcher fostered an Open relationship through early disclosure of her own teaching experience (qualifying her as an insider) and establishing herself in a learning, investigatory role. All participants were interested in being helpful. Because the interviews were either held in their homes, classrooms or at locations of their choice, informants felt comfortably in control. The interview covered as much of the subject's life as was possible and was detailed in terms of how each subject felt about each event. A typical response is reflected in the words Of one subject, "I think you know everything about me now, from birth on up. I didn't keep any secrets. I can't think of anything major that happened I didn't tell you." By interviewing over a period of time fatigue did not interfere with the collection of life history data. Although audio recording was considered a possible deterent to data collection this did not prove to be so. Participants almost nonchalantly agreed to the taping procedure. In one case a participant asked that the recorder be turned Off during a discussion in which she was about to use foul language. The biggest problem in this regard was a technical one: tapes recorded in classrooms were hard for the researcher to understand. In all cases the tape transcription process was to be difficult, time consuming, and tedious. The tapes however proved to be distinctively precise. The Affective Sensitivity Scale Form D uses a broad range of stimulus vignettes including informal interaction between friends, teachers with students and group settings. Test-retest reliability is 54 .64 after one week while its index of homogeniety using Cronbach's alpha for an N of 2000 is .74. The scale is reliable, stable over time, internally consistent and able to distinguish between persons identified as high or low empathizers. Face validity is reported to be good. People who have taken the test generally felt that there was a high correlation between their test results and their own perceptions of their life experiences. (Werner 1977). Werner found that people did better on items from familiar settings. He also notes that peOple using English as a second language found it hard to read the questions and answer them in the alloted time period. Most scenes involved middle class white Americans discussing problems within their own cultural framework. As reported by Werner (1977), Form D is able to distinguish high empathizers from the general pOpulation. It is a valid measure of some component of empathy. Test authors are not yet sure which of many empathic behaviors this might entail. It is likely that these behaviors include an ability to detect and identify the feelings Of other persons, or perhaps the ability to recognize the meanings feelings have for Others or the likely feelings associated with particular experiences or events. Currently scores are achieved on six subscales (Kagan, Schneider, 1983). A total score is achieved by summing all scores. Werner concluded that an high empathizer referent group could be distinguished from the norm group on total scale scores and on most of the subscales. The subscales include Between, Within, Male, Female, Child and Adult. The subscale Between includes all items where the examinee is asked "What was X feeling about Y at this point?" It is concerned with interpersonal awareness, a person's sensitivity to what is going on 55 Between individuals. The test authors have provided no other information concerning this scale. The subscale Within includes all items where the examinee is asked "What was X feeling at this point?" It is concerned with intrapersonal awareness, a person's sensitivity to what is going on Within individuals. The test authors have provided no other information about this scale. The subscale Child includes all items where the examinee is asked how a child (under 18) is reacting. The situations are largely educational and involve subjects of school age. Because of this, test authors hesitate to generalize to sensitivity in children in other settings or to sensitivity to childhood psychopathology since it was not measured. The Adplt subscale includes all items not scored in the Child area. This category has been found to be the most reliable and generalizable because of its size and the breadth of the individuals used as stimuli. The subscale Mplg includes all items in which the examinee is to respond to a male adult or male child. werner discovered that a high score in this area was due to one or more of several factors elucidated in independent interviews. For some in his study, sensitivity had survival value. Individuals "needed to be aware as children what father or some other dominant male in their lives was thinking or feeling in order to avoid punishment, rejection etc." (Werner 1977). Or there was "little anxiety in the interactions with dominant male figures in their current lives” (Werner, 1977). Some individuals, he found, were generally sensitive and able to go beyond sex role stereotyping, seeing the generic problems of men and women. 56 The subscale Female includes all items in which the examinee is to respond to a female adult or female child. Werner found that the factors influencing high male sensitivity also applied to females. There were also some possible reasons for both male and female low sensitivity scores. He suggests that nonawareness of what is going on with a person Of the Opposite sex may be based on a lack of contact in any depth with members of that sex. In some cases it may be based on the use Of defensive strategies developmentally which emphasize the use of denial, projection or making general assumptions about the way individuals of that sex react. He hypothesized that for those individuals who grew up in or currently live in situations where affect is Openly expressed and where each person takes responsibility for his feelings there may be little need for being sensitive to subtle cues for what is going on. There are also those who may not be motivated by their personal or professional life circumstances to see such sensitivity as necessary. The.22£il score represents the summation Of all subscale totals. Werner found it to discriminate between high and low empathizers. Considerable variability of scores has been found within different education and professional populations. Some pOpulations are more likely, however, to have a disproportionate number of high scores while other populations have a disprOportionate number of lower scores. Test authors limit the use of this test to the discrimination of high empathizers. It does not measure: Self-awareness: the capacity of individuals to be aware of how a situation or another person is affecting them on an intellectual, emotional or physiological level. 57 Response skills: those skills including basic listening, interpretive skills and facilitative skills. Memory/continuity factors: the capacity of an individual to associate previous knowledge of a person with his current concerns. Nor can it assess an individual's capacity to understand a person's difficulty in depth. Interactional skills: the capacity of an individual to act in a therapeutic capacity. SELECTION OF SUBJECTS A small sample of eight was selected for the study. It was felt that a sample number larger than eight would be too large to allow in depth study of each participant. A smaller number would decrease the likelihood of selecting a sample with a wide range of empathy skills. A list of sixty-six EI teachers was procured from four mid-Michigan intermediate school Offices. Using a method of random sampling, the researcher placed each name on a slip Of paper, mixed the slips thoroughly and then drew out twelve names. These names were recorded. This list became the subject source. Beginning at the top, the researcher contacted each teacher by telephone explaining the research and soliciting his/her participation. Since the first eight persons contacted agreed to participate the remaining randomly selected names were discarded. Subjects typically responded with enthusiasm. First meeting dates were settled on during this initial contact. A letter followed, confirming the conversation explaining the research and confirming time commitments for both parties (See Appendix A). Subjects were required to be certified in the area of emotionally impaired and to 58 have taught emotionally impaired students in a self-contained classroom. NO subjects withdrew from the study. Both subject and researcher signed a research agreement. Subjects signed that they understood the intent of the research to map out a picture of their life and that they understood the time commitment necessary. The researcher agreed to maintain the anonymity of the subject and to accomodate the participant's time schedule (See Appendix A). INSTRUMENTATION A focused, moderately structured interview was developed to gather data (See Appendix B). The interview guide incorporated the researcher's questions and categories with some selected from the Psychiatric Inter- view by Harry Stack Sullivan, A New Life History Form by George Saslow and Eliot Chapple, The Life Histoty Questionnaire developed by William Owens and Don Charles in their work Life History Correlates of Age Changes in Mental Abilities, the work of Edward Klein and associates in the Seasons of a Man's Life, The Ethnographic Interview by James Sprad- ley, and The Mind Test by Rita Aero and Elliot weiner. Its intent was to provide some limited structure for the researcher. Questions were added or deleted as the interviews progressed and as the data analysis indica- ted. TOpics explored during each interview flowed with the needs of the subject to explore certain events and feelings. Although the guide pro- vided a framework, the interview was carried out as a cordial discussion. The interviewer attempted to build a realistic picture of the subject's experiences from early childhood. Following Klein's example, the interview began with the present, in particular his/her teaching job, 59 and then moved into the past. It progressed from early childhood through adulthood. Interview questions concerned major events in the family and school environment. Situations which had a significant impact were investigated in depth. A subject's sense of self was explored repeatly at each deve10pmental level. Interview progress was recorded on the Interview Progress Summary Sheet (See Appendix C) enabling the interviewer to keep track of topics covered. Subjects were administered the Affective Sensitivity Scale Form D developed by Werner, Schneider and Kagan 1977, at a convenient time during the life history interview. The scale was taken to the interview site via video cassette or film. Subjects viewed the video portion of the test consisting of a series of filmed encounters between two or more persons. After witnessing each scene, they answered multiple choice questions about what the participants in the encounter were really saying to themselves. DATA COLLECTION All interviews were tape recorded. These recordings were then transcribed into typewritten form. Following each interview the researcher wrote a summary of the information gathered. This proved helpful in cases Of audio distortion. After each interview a short entry was also made in the interview journal representing the researcher's interpretation Of informants' nonverbal behavior cues, as well as her own impressions concerning the interview process and her growing relationship with the subject (See Appendix F). The Affective Sensitivity Scale Form D was administered to all subjects during one of the interview sessions. The results were scored 60 using the current scoring standards developed by Jon Schneider and Norman Kagan (1983). DATA ANALYSIS Interview Analysis Following each interview, the researcher wrote a short summary as well as noted in her journal her own reactions to the participant and to the interview. These notes became invaluable when a tape was discovered to have distortions. Interviews were then transcribed into typewritten form, a task which could never be overestimated. Each interview easily filled 60 to 80 typed pages. Transcripts were then checked for accuracy by listening again to each tape. Immersed in the data, the researcher began to generate categories and classes which would help to identify similarities and differences between stories. These eighty classes helped the researcher write accounts of each subject's life and to ask more probing questions of later participants and of the data themselves. (Refer to Appendix D). Subsequently each interview was reread and marked in terms of the Mandelbaum-Langness categories. These again are: Dimensions. These are the experiences that make up the foundation for one's life. They include biological, cultural and social development. They include the mu- tual expectations, understandings and behavior patterns held by the peOple surrounding one as they grow up as well as those of the society in which one participates. Also included are one's subjective feelings and atti- tudes as he/she passes through the successive phases of life. Principal turnings. These are periods which are marked by major transitions and changes. The individual may make adjustments by taking on a new set of roles, entering into a new relationship or may acquire a new self concept. 61 Adaptations. These are the person's characteristic means of adapting to life. Individuals change these ways in order to affect relationships with others or in relation to one's felt self image. Often survival is the reason one makes changes in his/her characteristic form of adaptation. Consequences. These are the reflected consequences Of an individual's behavior. One's acts often determine later choices of behavior. Interview data were placed into Mandelbaum-Langness categories on a category sheet. (Refer to Appendix E). Specific examples as well as quotes were pulled from interviews and recorded. The map of each participant's life's travel was examined after the Mandelbaum—Langness category analysis to check the accuracy of the category determination. They were also used to form later classes and categories. Using all the information generated during data collection and analysis the researcher has summarized the life story of each participant. Analysis of Affective Sensitivity Scale Scores Analysis Of the A.S.S. scale did not begin until all interviews had been analyzed. The researcher wanted to be sure that her perception of the interview data would not be influenced by the test scores. When the scale was deve10ped, vignette participants were asked what they really had been feeling during the filming. These answers became the ”correct” answers for each question. Currently (1983) scoring assigns one point for each correct answer. The number of correct points is counted for each subscale category and a summation of all subscale points taken for a total score. Using standard deviations given in the current test manual, standard scores were figured and then converted to percentiles. These were then compared with scores achieved by groups of 62 subjects in Werner's study who were independently determined to be either high or low empathizers. This scale was shown to distinguish high empathizers from the general population (Werner, 1977). The 1983 scoring procedure divides affective sensitivity into seven subscales. These are: Between: (Interpersonal Awareness). The person's sensitivity to what is going on between individuals. These items where the examinee was asked "What was X feeling about Y at this point?" Within: (Intrapersonal Awareness). The person's sensitivity to what is going on within individuals. These items are ones where the examinee was asked "What was X feeling at this point?" Adult: The person's sensitivity to adults Child: The person's sensitivity to children Male: The person's sensitivity to males Female: The person's sensitivity to females Total: The accumulated scores These scores were compiled and recorded in graph form on individual acetate sheets so that the researcher could study them and make compari- sons using an overlay technique. Since the instrument can be used to discriminate high and low empathic abilities the researcher was able to compare individual scores with high and low empathic ability protocols. Note example (Figure 1). 63 Between Within Adult Child Male Female Total 100 90 8O 75 76 Ji-- n 7O 71 60 65 57 59 40 46 48 46 49 30 A. 20 22 27 29 10 0 Figure 1. Affective Sensitivity Scale Scores Form D Participant — Mike High Empathizers Participant Mike Low Empathizers CHAPTER IV THE PARTICIPANTS OF THIS STUDY INTRODUCTION 0f the eight EI teachers participating in this study two were male. The youngest participant was twenty three while the Oldest was thirty five. Participants represented a variety of ethnic backgrounds! Black, Lebanese, Canadian, Irish, Polish, Jewish, as well as Anglo-Saxon protestants. A number of religious orientations were also represented. They were, Catholic, Baptist, Jewish, Methodist, Jehovah's Witness and Born Again Christian. Participants worked with El students from the pre-school level to young adult. Years of teaching ranged from two years to thirteen. Scores on the Affective Sensitivity Scale ranged from very low at the 10th percentile to the high empathy range at the 82nd percentile. In the following pages the reader will meet the participants of this study. Loran was the youngest of the participants. She grew up in a small rural town. Here her life was filled with happy memories. Her parents provided her with a strong sense of religious conviction. Life in this family was traditional in nature; Loran reports a family philos- phy of helping Others and hurting none. She was successful with her peers and in school. Today she lives at home and teaches in a primary 64 65 self-contained EI classroom in her home town. Loran scored the lowest of all participants on the Affective Sensitivity Scale. Anne is introduced next. Her total A.S.S. score is just a little higher than Loran's but, she did score in the high empathy range on the .Ehili subscale. Anne (20) grew up in a traditional old country family, both parents being Lebanese. She was one of two girls in a family of six children. Anne reports life to be one of success and love. Family life was rich in happiness and emotional support. Her parents strove to give their children a sense of security. The family goal was to accept others and to learn to feel relaxed and comfortable with everyone. Anne reports that her parents always helped others and that she does too. Anne's marriage and career have been very satisfying. Lynn, a young black woman, scored a bit higher than both Loran and Anne on the Affective Sensitivity Scale. She grew up in a middle class black community. Her family based most of its activities around the Baptist church. Lynn was active and successful in school and with peers. During high school Lynn's parents separated and eventually moved into separate bedrooms in the house in order to keep up the charade of marriage. Lynn reports that she did not want anyone to know that her parents had separated. During high school Lynn was introduced to the philosOphy of the Jehovah's Witness. After college, Lynn took a job teaching EI students, married and had a child. Soon after her son's birth she decided to divorce. Today she has remarried and returned with considerable faith to the church of her early childhood. Mike's is the story of an abandoned child. At twelve he was running the streets, stealing, and destroying property. Several significant men entered Mike's life during adolescence. Through them he learned how to 66 control his angry feelings and to apply his energy to sports instead of to crime. At fifteen "he came to know the Lord." He credits this experience with his change towards more positive living. Today he teaches seriously delinquent young men. He applies much of his own experience to his work. Chris's story is the story Of a young woman filled with excitement for life. She grew up in a warm nurturing family of three girls. Her parents were supportive and warm, both sharing in child rearing. Chris attended parochial schools where she was happy and successful. She remembers always feeling sad for children who were different. Early in adolescence she felt quite sure that she could work with difficult children in order to make them better for their parents. She scored high on the Child subscale, high on the subscale area Between (what is going on between persons) and high on the Female subscale. Ellen is the Oldest of all participants. She reported her childhood to be one of good times and fond memories. However, during much of her life her mother was ill with Hodgkin's disease. Ellen reported a need to gain acceptance from others. She believes that she has done things for others in order to gain this acceptance. As Ellen entered adulthood she experienced a series of significant losses. Her response has been an increased awareness of death and a growing fear of personal tragedy. She scored high on the subscale Between (what is going on between indivi- duals), high on the.éflfll£ subscale and high again on the Female subscale. Donna's story is one of personal accomplishment. She was abused by her father as a child. The family was poor. Donna felt persecuted by her school and community because of her poverty, personal appearance, and speech. She was young when she decided to escape her circumstance. She 67 saw a college education to be the only way out of a life she considered painful and unfair. Planning her escape carefully, Donna made her way to college, graduated, married and found a job working with E1 youngsters. Donna achieved a total score which fell in the high empathy range. She scored high on the subscale Between (what is going on between individuals), the subscale Within (what is going on within a individual) and on the Adplt subscale. The last story to be reported is that Of Bruce. Bruce teaches secondary EI students. He grew up in a small rural town. His mother and father Offered a strong nurturing home. Both modeled understanding car- ing behavior. Bruce's father worked with difficult children himself. Bruce was an excellent student, in fact the smartest in his school. When he was nine a critical event occurred. Due to an upset within the com- munity, non-Catholics, particularly Bruce and his family, were ostraciz- ed. Bruce, in fact, was beaten up by a group of angry Catholic youngsters. Other unfair rejections have occurred in Bruce's life. These situations have played a significant part in his attitudes and behaviors today. Bruce achieved scores that fell in the high empathy range on five subscale areas as well as on the total score. These subscales were Between (what is going on between individuals) Within (what is going on within an individual) Adult, Child and Female. The reader should note that in this chapter, participant stories are presented in an ascending order according to scores (empathy) achieved on the Affective Sensitivity Scale Form D. A discussion of each partici- pant's Affective Sensitivity Scale scores and their implications follows each life story. Similarities and differences regarding the eight life 68 histories along with factors which may have contributed to the deve10pment of empathy are identified in conclusion. 69 LORAN Loran, barely an adult at 23, lives with her parents and teaches in the town in which she grew up. In fact she teaches under a past grade school principal of her childhood. Growing up in a traditional midwest middle class family, Loran's experiences were seldom frought with frus- tration or unhappiness. She has many happy memories. Loran's A.S.S. scores seem to support the contention that until recently she has seldom been forced by circumstance to test her beliefs or values and that she has had little motivation to look Outside her world and to examine the behavior of others. On the A.S.S. she falls in the low empathy range. In fact, Loran's scores fall lower than all other participants taking the test. Loran was excited about the interviews, greeting the interviewer each visit with enthusiasm. She seemed able to remember the tiniest detail of her life experience as one can see from the self-charted life history (Figure 3). DIMENSIONS Initially the family's home was in Ohio farm country. As her lfather's professional life grew the family moved to mid-Michigan where he lien the 4-H program for a farming county. Although Loran's mother had a CKDllege degree in home economics, she preferred to stay at home and use 1her homemaking skills there, devoting her time to her four children, two boys and two girls, Loran being the oldest. In this family, traditional roles are important. Women and girls do the cooking and sewing while men and boys work on the cars, and the lawn. 70 All family members are expected to be interested in gardening and 4-H activities. Church attendance at the local Methodist church is eXpected. Church involvement helps to support the family belief system that everything will happen in its own time and that prayer changes things. Explicit middle class values have been expressed by Loran's parents guiding their judgement of themselves and Others. Implicit were the expectations that Loran earn good grades, graduate from high school and go to college. As a girl she was expected to learn to cook and sew and to do "typical girl things.” She was expected to do her part in the family chores without complaining or asking why. The most important value Of all was that she TRY. It was important to be a good kid and to be honest and sincere with Others, "You don't hurt people, you treat people well", says Loran. At the conclusion of one interview, Loran's mother entered the room and asked whether Loran had told me about her brother. She admitted that she had not shared that because she could not remember much about it. Her mother went on to explain that one of Loran's brothers may have been emotionally impaired. She reported that be destroyed furniture and sometimes in fits of rage he had to be held for extended periods. It is interesting in that Loran had many Opportunities to bring this up, l>articularly when asked whether she had known any children who were 5.fkb\ i WEQ. . .{qftm .IC