Empathic Accuracy: When does the Perceiver-Target Relationship Make a Difference?

Abstract

This study sought to determine whether a friend-observer who eavesdrops on a friend-interactant's initial conversation with a stranger will be more accurate in inferring the friend-interactant's thoughts and feelings than will either the stranger-interaction partner or a stranger-observer. The empirical answer in this case was `no', suggesting that the meaning context established in the interactants' initial conversation was generic rather than esoteric (i.e. it did not uniquely benefit the empathic accuracy of the friend-observer). The findings also revealed, however, that nearly half of the variance in the perceivers' empathic accuracy scores was accounted for by differences in the overall `readability' of the various targets; and that, contrary to the cultural stereotype regarding the superiority of `women's intuition', there was no reliable sex difference in the perceivers' empathic accuracy scores. The discussion focused on the conditions in which the hypothesized empathic advantage of the friend-observer might be evident.