Sympathy and Empathy: Compassion and Resonance

Sympathy and empathy are often confused, which makes them a subject of debate.
However, not only do these words have different meanings, but one of them is considered an essential element for building strong bonds with others.
In this article, I would like to provide an overview of their differences based on the meanings and roots of these words!

■ Differences in the meanings of the words
First, let's check their dictionary definitions.
Looking up each word in the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary, they are defined as follows:

Sympathy: The feeling of being sorry for someone; showing that you understand and care about someone's problems.
Empathy: The ability to understand another person's feelings and experiences.

A characteristic difference that can be inferred from these definitions is the "perspective."

For example, imagine "seeing a colleague being scolded at work."
If you perceive this situation with sympathy, you feel sorry for the other person, but you do not understand how they are feeling.
On the other hand, with empathy, you have an attitude of trying to connect with the other person and strive to understand how they are feeling and thinking.
In this way, it can be said that sympathy is subjective, while empathy is about trying to see the world from another person's perspective.
Because of this difference, sympathy is considered to be based on one's own understanding and does not include the other person's emotions, whereas empathy is said to include an understanding of the emotions the other person is feeling.
Furthermore, it is pointed out that sympathy remains a superficial understanding of others, while empathy is thought to lead to a deep understanding of others and strengthen social connections.

■ Differences in behavior caused by sympathy and empathy
Both sympathy and empathy are said to influence behavior.
In situations where you feel sympathy, you may offer advice, and the "desire to do something for the other person" becomes stronger. On the other hand, empathy is not about improving the situation, but about striving to understand and connect with the other person, and caring for their well-being.
Empathy is not about problem-solving, but about expressing, "I care about you" and "I am here for you." As a result, it is said that trust is built, and positive changes are more likely to occur for the other person.

■ The roots of empathy
While the definition of empathy, which has such a positive impact on relationships with others and encourages positive change, is said to vary depending on the field and context, its roots are expressed as follows:

“Walking a mile in another’s shoes.”
Literal translation: To walk a mile in another person's shoes.

Empathy is considered to be the effort to understand another person's experience from their perspective, or "putting yourself in someone else's shoes."
In addition, showing empathy is said to be about accepting the other person in a non-judgmental way. The recipient not only feels their sense of alienation dissolve but also gains a sense of connection with others, even if only for a short time, and feels a sense of personal value.

■ Conclusion
In this article, we provided an overview of the differences between the two similar but distinct words, sympathy and empathy, by looking at their meanings, their functions, and the roots of empathy.
Empathy, in particular, is an important element for improving all human relationships, including private ones, as well as in a wide range of professional settings such as education, welfare, medicine, and business.
It is believed that understanding the meanings of these words and being able to put them into practice appropriately plays an important role in respecting each other as human beings in a diverse society.

Let's enhance our empathy and capacity for resonance!