Extending empathy to abstract strangers

Those who inspire us to be better are able to experience empathy, and they openly affirm their capacity to understand our personal stories.

They don’t overprotect us, but they validate and appreciate who we are, which makes us feel safe to be more authentic and to keep imp...

The empathy gap causes us to misjudge our own emotions and behaviors. Examples include overestimating our ability to stay composed in a stressful event, overestimating the likelihood that we can control our desire for an addictive substance, such as coffee, or underestimating...

Metaphors, like “trickle-down economics” and “red wall,” help frame the issues and also our responses to social and political discussions.

When politicians compare the national economy to a household budget, they want us to think in specific ways about national debt or policies of aust...