Empathy across three generations

Stern, Bailey, Costello, Hellwig, Mitchell & Allen (2024) published “Empathy across Three Generations: From maternal and peer support in adolescence to adult parenting and child outcomes” in Child Development. Here are some edited excerpts:

Mothers' empathic support toward adolescents at age 13 predicted teens' empathy for close friends across adolescence (13–19 years).

“This study examined the development of empathic care across three generations in a sample of 184 adolescents in the United States (99 female, 85 male; 58% White, 29% African American, 8% mixed race/ethnicity, 5% other groups), followed from their family of origin at age 13 into their parenting years (through their mid-30s). Mothers' empathic support toward adolescents at age 13 predicted teens' empathy for close friends across adolescence (13–19 years). Participants' empathic support for friends in late adolescence predicted more supportive parenting behavior in adulthood, which in turn was associated with their children's empathy at age 3–8 years. Results suggest that individuals “pay forward” the empathic care they receive from parents, and that skills developed in adolescent friendships may inform later parenting.

Empathy—the capacity to identify others' needs and emotions, and to provide supportive care that meets those needs—is central to the formation and maintenance of close relationships. Parents' empathy is associated with children's secure attachment and self-regulation. In adolescence, empathy and prosocial behavior toward peers are associated with higher-quality friendships, characterized by greater closeness and more effective conflict management. Adolescents' self-reported empathy has been linked to peer-reported romantic desirability and friendship satisfaction, suggesting that empathic behavior may be socially rewarded and reinforced by one's peers. Moreover, empathic capacities in adolescence have been shown to prospectively predict increased life satisfaction 2 years later and enhanced social functioning well into adulthood.

Individual differences in empathic care are consequential for relationship functioning in families, in close friendships, and in the wider social world. “

The present findings provide the first long-term longitudinal evidence for the transmission of empathic care across three generations: from mother to teen to child.

“We observed concordance between mother–adolescent (G1–G2) and parent–child (G2–G3) empathy, replicating previous work, while integrating observational assessments of empathic care across seven time points in adolescence and emerging adulthood. Moreover, findings suggest that interactions with close friends in adolescence may provide a “training ground” in which teens can practice providing care and paying forward the empathy they have experienced from parents. This aligns with the proposed peer-caregiving model of empathic development, in which mutually supportive relationships with peers—particularly during adolescence—may strengthen caregiving skills relevant to future parenting.”

I thought this study was interesting with a large sample for a longitudinal study. I especially like the notion that interactions with friends in adolescence are a training ground and that empathy gets paid forward.