Smith Rhiannon L
Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, 406 Babbidge Rd., Unit 1020, Storrs, CT 06269-1020, USA.
J Adolesc. 2015 Dec;45:103-11. doi: 10.1016/j.adolescence.2015.08.020. Epub 2015 Sep 27.
Although empathetic distress (i.e., taking on a friend's emotional distress as one's own) has been examined as a "cost of caring" especially common among girls, relations with adjustment remain untested. The current study tested associations of empathetic distress with friendship quality, depression, and anxiety. Adolescents (N = 300, ages 12-18) reported on their perceived experience of empathetic distress following a conversation with a friend about problems. The study also considered youths' emotional engagement in friends' positive life events, referred to as empathetic joy. Results indicated that girls reported greater empathetic distress and empathetic joy compared with boys. Findings also suggest that although empathetic distress may have positive implications for youths' friendship adjustment, this may come at the expense of emotional well-being. In contrast, empathetic joy was associated with greater positive friendship quality and fewer internalizing symptoms.
尽管共情性痛苦（即将朋友的情绪困扰当作自己的来承受）已被视作一种“关怀的代价”，在女孩中尤为常见，但它与适应能力之间的关系仍未得到检验。本研究测试了共情性痛苦与友谊质量、抑郁和焦虑之间的关联。青少年（N = 300，年龄在12至18岁之间）报告了他们在与朋友谈论问题之后所感知到的共情性痛苦体验。该研究还考量了青少年在朋友积极生活事件中的情感投入，即共情性喜悦。结果表明，与男孩相比，女孩报告的共情性痛苦和共情性喜悦更多。研究结果还表明，尽管共情性痛苦可能对青少年的友谊适应有积极影响，但这可能是以牺牲情绪健康为代价的。相比之下，共情性喜悦与更高的积极友谊质量以及更少的内化症状相关。
