Empathy development from birth to three: Advances in knowledge from 2000 to 2025

Abstract

Empathic abilities serve important functions in social life, supporting the formation and maintenance of social bonds and motivating people to help others. Studying the early development of empathy is valuable, both for advancing theoretical understanding of empathy and for designing interventions to promote it. The past 25 years have seen increased interest in studying empathy development from birth to three, leading to substantial advancements in knowledge and theory, as well as to some ongoing debate. Here we review these developments. First, we provide an integrative overview of the main bottom-up and top-down processes involved in empathy, and the different responses they can yield. We then review accumulated knowledge regarding each of these component/subtypes of empathy during infancy and early childhood, by addressing: (i) The early development of vicarious emotional arousal; (ii) Cognitive empathy – understanding others’ emotions; (iii) When does other-oriented empathy emerge? An ongoing theoretical debate is presented, including the main points of disagreement and critical evaluation of empirical evidence; (iv) Development of more sophisticated forms of concern; and (v) Individual differences in early empathy. We conclude with a summary and important challenges and open questions for future research.