Social Decision Making, Empathy and Compassion

Abstract: Empathy and compassion are closely related yet distinct psychological states which are variably experienced and expressed by individuals. Empathy and compassion may modified independently by, for example: psychological factors, illnesses, injuries, drugs or toxins; social roles, education and socialization; and the geographic, temporal, and/or biological distances between the empathizer and potential objects of compassion. This paper explores various interactions between these complex emotional response hierarchies and ways in which those interactions effect social decision making. The purpose of this paper is to clarify these interactions and identify areas for further inquiry.