If you take a look at the results of the latest psychological studies, you will see that we have become more narcissistic, feel more isolated, more depressed, less sympathetic, less giving and less empathetic.
Based on the sample of people questioned, we seem to be heading towards a far less kind and supportive era. The causes and the reasons are debated, from our overdependency on the internet and social media to living and working away from our families, changing jobs too many times, not finding the right partners as early as before, and other factors.
A study in this month's Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology took culture into account when it ranked countries on their "empathy levels". Three GCC countries made it into the top 10 of most empathetic list.
Ecuador finished first, followed by Saudi Arabia, then Peru and Denmark, with the UAE in fifth. South Korea, the United States, Taiwan, Costa Rica and Kuwait completed the top 10.
“Cultural practices socialise people to relate to others in different ways. One critical way in which these interpersonal bonds are formed and maintained is via empathy, our emotional reactivity toward others’ experiences,” says the study’s abstract.
“Evidence from an original sample of 104,365 adults across 63 countries reveals that higher empathy countries also have higher levels of collectivism, agreeableness, conscientiousness, self-esteem, emotionality, subjective well-being and pro-social behaviour.”
The survey measured people’s compassion for others and their tendency to respect others’ points of view. It’s no surprise that Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Kuwait made the cut, because they are among the world’s biggest aid donors. The factors that play a role in the level of empathy – such as confidence, tolerance and collectivism – are high in these three countries, even if Saudi Arabia often gets negative publicity. Saudi Arabia is a huge, multicultural place, with many positive facets that don’t get much media attention.
The rest of the Arab world is in turmoil, so people there are probably too busy with their own problems to feel anything for anyone else. Some of my friends who have been working in humanitarian and civic fields for years in the Levant, for instance, noted how “jaded and bitter” some of the citizens have become after decades of oppression and war.
Their observations – which are in no way scientifically proven – are that some people seem to feel even less empathy for their own group than they would for others.
An example, which should not be taken as a generalisation, was when a Saudi colleague launched a project to help Syrian refugee children. She said she found that some rich Syrian families living in UAE were the least likely to want to get involved in any way. The GCC nationals she approached were the most generous. She insisted it had nothing to do with wealth, as all were equally wealthy, so the reasons behind this reaction need proper study.
At the same time, it is important to note there are plenty of Syrians helping other Syrians, and usually those struggling themselves are the most giving.
In a feature article for The National this week, I searched for everyday heroes in Syria – from the Cat Man of Aleppo who takes care of pets left behind by family who have fled, to the families protecting museums by sleeping there and putting sandbags around historic monuments, to women fighting extremists. There are so many others whose real or full names we don't even know and whose sacrifices will probably be forgotten with the passage of time. They haven't lost their empathy for others, despite their own great tragedies.
Another interesting result was that Eastern European countries dominated the least empathetic rankings. Lithuania was least empathetic, and there were seven Eastern European countries in the least-empathetic list of 10.
Given the anti-refugee rhetoric in countries such as Poland and Bulgaria, it doesn’t come as a surprise that they scored low on empathy. A lack of cultural interaction plays a role there.
In a world in need of empathy and compassion, it is great to know we live in a nation that is recognised for that. We should each try to do our part in understanding others, as too often we are self-engrossed and too busy to notice much beyond our own needs.
rghazal@thenational.ae
twitter:@arabianmau
