Empathy versus experience, and the use of violence among young people

Young people are at risk from acts of aggression both at school, in the family and from their peers. Frequently, the victims themselves begin to manifest aggression as a result of experiencing it from other people. Another determinant of the level of aggression is the mass media or negative role models (eg. making use of humiliating images and words). Empathy is a skill which enables one to recognise another person’s inner states and processes when coming into contact with the person. Thanks to it, one is able to share the emotions of the other person, which reduces the risk of aggressive behaviour. Therefore, it is vital that activities aiming at the development of empathy and reduction of aggression be included into working with young people. Such activities may include sensitizing training, aggression substitiution training, relaxation training or psychoeducational workshops. The aim of the study was to determine the level of emotional and cognitive empathy of aggressive victims as compared to young people experiencing or using aggression