摘要：Empathy studies have revealed new aspects of the concept with various implications in health psychology, psychopathology, education, developmental psychology, and medical care. The study of the biological correlates of empathic relating tend to highlight the effects in several fields, from close interpersonal relationships to professional ones. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, the Vth edition, uses empathy as a significant dimension to characterize the personality disorders, which are no longer separated from the other previously categorized as Axis I disorders. The objective of the present paper was to come with a literature review focused on the new directions opened in health psychology and developmental psychology as suggested by the discoveries from empathy studies, followed by a synthesis intended to help its understanding and to come up with interventions aiming at empathy development. Previous studies, starting from supporting development in the first years of life, continuing with the analgesic effects of empathic relating, or on the activity of the immune system will be discussed. An analysis in the context of mental disorders may help identify the dimensions to be targeted in interventions, so that the person may harmoniously interact with others. In the context of somatic disorders, empathy helps in understanding the person’s suffering, especially when she does not have the means to express it adequately. Moreover, empathic care may be used for pain relief in close interpersonal relationships, helping in mobilizing the organism’s resource to face a challenge.
