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(I feel your pain) Are You Missing Empathy?

washingtonpost.com — A great number of people suffer from EDD. (empathy deficit disorder) People who suffer from EDD are unable to step outside themselves and tune in to what other people experience. Unlike sympathy -- which reflects understanding of another person's situation, but viewed through your own lens -- empathy is what you feel when you enter

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  • petsheep, on 12/27/2007, -3/+33"-- empathy is what you feel when you enter the internal world of another person. Without abandoning your own perspective, you experience the other's emotions, conflicts or aspirations. That kind of connection builds healthy relationships -- an essential part of mental health....By focusing on developing empathy, you can deepen your understanding and acceptance of how and why people do what they do and you can build respect for others. This doesn't mean that you are whitewashing the differences you have with other people or letting them walk over you. Rather, empathy gives you a stronger, wiser base for resolving conflicts and trumps self-centered, knee-jerk reactions to surface differences." (from the article)
    • salomejones, on 12/27/2007, -6/+2By the very definition of disorder, it is not a disorder if the majority of humans have it.
      • bruce86, on 12/27/2007, -0/+3Wrong, Disorders are define by the interference of everyday life, in work, social, or familial matters.
        • salomejones, on 12/28/2007, -0/+2I see you've perused a few issues of Psychology Today. Keep reading.
          • bruce86, on 12/30/2007, -0/+1more like majored in psychology. Keep trying.
    • sponeil, on 12/27/2007, -8/+2Did you mean to say the majority of humans, or the majority of men? ;-)
      • Homura, on 12/28/2007, -0/+2If I said "Do you mean the majority of humans, or the majority of men? ;-) Would you find it offensive?

        It seems you can make jokes full of misandry, but it seems fine, because it's just a "joke". If I made a joke full of misogyny you'd freak out. As I type this, I find out that digg's spell check has "misogyny" but not "misandry". This is nuts.

        Screw you. I'm tired of this.
        • Homura, on 12/28/2007, -0/+1I meant "the majority of women", but I think it's self-evident what I meant.

          Fight back all you want. Bury me over and over. You can't hide from the truth too long. Then again, you've probably been sprinting from it your whole life.
    • defektiv, on 12/27/2007, -0/+4i suffer from the opposite. i'll be the guy sitting on the edge of the chasm of doom while everyone runs around killing each other in self-induced paranoia, head buried in palms and wondering why the end hasn't come already.

      you get to the point where you understand why people act the way they do but also that some just don't want to know anything else. kind of a helpless feeling. almost shame except you can't seem to put any blame within yourself for not trying.
    • mightydavefish, on 12/27/2007, -0/+5I honestly think this is a condition most of the right wingers seem to have.
      No empathy, no sympathy, no compassion. Just ME ME ME.
    • eld4nt3, on 12/28/2007, -0/+5Before EDD, we just called them assholes.
      Oh wait... they still are assholes.
      • Cimlite, on 12/28/2007, -0/+2Yeah, only now... the assholes will call you out when you call them what they are.

        EDD is to assholes what ADD is to undisciplined/overstimulated kids.
    • joshjoneswas, on 12/28/2007, -0/+1I don't give a ***** about this article. It couldnt have taken any effort to write it. I'll bet I spent more effort reading it than they did writing it. I'm so hard working and no one else is.
  • EatingPie, on 12/27/2007, -9/+38In "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep," empathy is what differentiated human beings from androids. Bladerunner references this with the Voigt Kampf test, and the androids show no empathy or remorse until Roy's final act.

    PKD Rest in Peace.

    -Pie
  • GRTWHT, on 12/27/2007, -10/+78A nice 'clinical' sounding way of describing the most basic problem of US society: most people don't give a crap about anyone but themselves.
    I would rather describe this behavior with one word: SELFISH.
    The truly sad part of this is that it gets more common every day and will probably be our ultimate downfall.
    • implied, on 12/27/2007, -9/+50i'll probably get dugg down for this, but I think alot has to do with day care. Children are being shipped off for more and more hours per day and not developing loving relationships with their parents. The workers at these day cares can only provide so much "love" for children that are not their own, and therefore the kids grow up with an altered family life.. Just a thought...
      • sonnybobiche, on 12/27/2007, -1/+28Actually, you are more right than you know. A politically incorrect fact: psychopathy/sociopathy/EDD is VERY strongly correlated with absence of the father in the household (but oddly not the mother) during formative years.
        • BOFH2, on 12/27/2007, -0/+11so this is due to daycare or absent fathers?
          • superal1394, on 12/27/2007, -2/+16they go hand in had. Households where the father is absent usually send kids to daycare.
          • LeeSoong, on 12/27/2007, -1/+8" A fatherless child becomes a mother's embarrassment. "
            - or something like that. Even a so-so dad is better than no dad, no guidance, no discipline...
      • BOFH2, on 12/27/2007, -3/+5over generalization is not the way to go. All Americans do not exhibit selfish behavior all the time(everyone in the world is guilty of it at some time). I think where general apathy about things comes from the reactions that are received when people try and help others but do not do exactly what the person receiving the help wants. That is the selfish part, be glad that someone is willing to help.
    • fleischner, on 12/27/2007, -21/+9Yeah, right. Oh, and we also happen to make more charitable contributions than any other country on the planet. Look it up, you tiny-brained self-loathing nitwit.
      • lajaw, on 12/27/2007, -3/+14I wonder if we give monetarily so we don't have to do it physically?
    • inajeep, on 12/27/2007, -1/+6I believe this affliction is a global issue and not just with US. It's also unintelligent to lump everyone in the US together like that since it inevitably be shown that the entire US does not had EDD. The amount that Americans give personally shouldn't be brushed aside like it's nothing.
    • GRTWHT, on 12/27/2007, -1/+4For those that are attacking me for my comments, note that I'm not saying this is universal, just "most people" - that means anything over 50%, a simple majority. If you think that's not true, you must lead a very sheltered life.
      • notthemama, on 12/27/2007, -3/+1But saying most people implies anywhere from 51% to 99%. It completely disregards what could be a lot of highly empathic people. How do you think that makes them feel?
        Regardless, you have no idea how many people in the US are empathically stunted, so you can't say most. Now, if you can link a study that shows over 50%, then you can.
        Until then, just say lots.
        • GRTWHT, on 12/27/2007, -0/+7Fine, you get Kevin to fix the comments so I can edit it and say lots and I'll change it.
          Based on my experiences throughout my life, I believe that it is a majority, but I could be wrong.
    • dnields, on 12/27/2007, -6/+1Being selfish isn't bad, per se. Sometimes you have to look out for #1. That isn't the issue here. I don't have to feel sorry for you, even if I know exactly what you are going through because I've been there myself. Now, if you are a completely unfeeling sot that is a different story. I'm not saying that you should shun everyone and think of nobody but yourself, I am only pointing out that Sympathy does not equate to Empathy (as this article leads people to believe)
    • Sererena, on 12/27/2007, -0/+11I'd say it's more Western society, First World countries in general that have this problem, not just the US....

      Actually no... scratch that... the world is full of selfish people, it's definitely NOT limited to a single country. It's probably the leading cause of most, if not all of the world's ills.
      • salomejones, on 12/27/2007, -0/+4Precisely...this is not a western condition, this is a human condition---and may be said to be one of the foundations of THE human condition. Whether it is bad or good is a bit subjective, as the comments clearly show---what is certain is that it's too common to be labelled a "disorder".
      • lrdntwnd, on 12/28/2007, -0/+1The world may indeed be filled with selfish people, but it seems that our culture in particular endorses and celebrates this kind of selfishness and lack of empathy. It's perceived to be better to have a large house and tons of stuff than to have meaningful relationships with your neighbors and friends and family. It's because of this that Americans seem so afraid of each other (to where we lock our doors all the time and such). I think it is a problem that can be observed globally, but I think it is especially prevalent in America (and possibly some other "western" countries).
    • pe5t1lence, on 12/27/2007, -1/+2You forgot the other"classical" terms for this. I.E. Jerk, dick, and ***** (in addition to arrogant, egocentric, and narcissistic). Seriously why is everything a f-ing condition these days? Oh well, at least this means they will start making a pill to cure it. Hooray! no more assholes, except for me. F- you pillheads! :-P
      • addingyears, on 12/27/2007, -0/+3Well ... I take pills to prevent me from experiencing mood swings that range from delightfully energetic and upbeat to furiously angry and overwhelmed ... and wouldn't you know it, the furiously overwhelmed would last months, as opposed to a week or two if joy and energy. and adding insult to injury, I'd just worry through the joy and energy time about when the anger and overwhelmed time would start.

        I also take pills so i can support my family, as having ADD prevents me from focusing on my work long enough to actually finish it.

        But all that said, I still doubt being an ***** should be prettied up with a convenient diagnosis and pharmacological treatment. If someone's an *****, someone else should beat the ***** out of them. It's the best medicine.
  • sonnybobiche, on 12/27/2007, -3/+33EDD/Antisocial Personality Disorder is essentially psychopathy or sociopathy. If you ever wondered how it's possible for someone to be an assassin or serial killer, this is it.
    • Pissoff, on 12/27/2007, -3/+8I disagree, there is a prize that they value more than they value a random life.
      • djbon2112, on 12/27/2007, -0/+13At least for an assassin, you're correct.
  • Waskonator, on 12/27/2007, -1/+141This problem doesn't affect me, so I don't care.
    • AgentKPB, on 12/27/2007, -1/+4Isn't that apathy?
    • suzyqqzz, on 12/27/2007, -2/+1Hilarious!
    • defektiv, on 12/27/2007, -5/+4The number one reason people like bush are in power. This is the attitude that disgusts me to be perfectly honest. I'm not going to dig you down or anything as I believe in the freedom to say what you want. I just absolutely deplore that attitude.
      • AgentKPB, on 12/27/2007, -1/+8For some reason I want to punch your face.
      • Waskonator, on 12/27/2007, -1/+3It was sarcasm. It's people with sheltered minds like yours that are so dense to their surroundings that they don't stop to question reason every once in a while. Sorry to be so simple but: open your ***** eyes.
        • defektiv, on 12/28/2007, -0/+1and it's close-minded of you to think, of the huge number of people that peruse this site, that everyone will come to that conclusion. Especially when you simply say, "This problem doesn't affect me, so I don't care."

          Yeah, let's just assume everyone understands exactly what I say on a forum in which emotional conveyance via text is impossible without some sort of dictation to at least infer so. (That was sarcasm.)
    • gandhirs, on 12/28/2007, -0/+0I like your paradox (you don't lack empathy and you don't have empathy with those who lack it).
    • SpacePoet, on 12/28/2007, -0/+1Actually, it probably affects you more than you know, but you would have to be able to bring yourself out of your bubble to see that, so you'll never see it, quite the conundrum.
  • dxgg, on 02/05/2008, -16/+3So now we're supposed to feel sorry for these low-level (and sometimes not so low) abusers? That's exactly what these narcissists need...yet another excuse to put their needs ahead of everyone else's.
    • Destardi, on 12/27/2007, -0/+11Exhibit 1 - jxhndxe would be a perfect example of the kind of person this article describes.

  • dgh1973, on 12/27/2007, -15/+9Dear lord... we'll give an acronym to any imagined problem people "suffer" from these days won't we. It's probably just a big scam by drug company lobbyists.
    • Zapkiller, on 12/27/2007, -2/+2indeed
    • Pissoff, on 12/27/2007, -2/+11Many suffer from Intrawebtardationocosis, they simply have to respond to intelligent comments with garbage.

      There is medication available, but it does not stop the spread of herpes and it may give you diarrhea.
    • notthemama, on 12/27/2007, -0/+3Well, it could be, except that the solution given in the article wasn't to use drugs.
    • kamikazecow, on 12/27/2007, -0/+5Its a very real thing, my grandfather (a psychologist) has been telling me about for many years, but he called it an emotional blank. In short it is caused by neglect of the child (like letting them cry for hours on end and the parents simply ignores them) at an early age. Since they receive no empathy, they close up and cant give it anymore because it is too painful to have to deal with it in such a screwed up family. There is a bit more too it, but thats the gist of it.
  • page2, on 01/17/2008, -2/+26I know exactly how those people feel.
  • cmuwriter, on 12/27/2007, -2/+3Better watch the ***** out for Deckert.
  • JasonCox, on 12/27/2007, -4/+37I'm Deanna Troi and I approve this message.
  • MikeFallopian, on 12/27/2007, -8/+53"Empathy is what you feel when you enter the internal world of another person"
    Funny, I always thought that was called sex.
  • deathlip, on 12/27/2007, -1/+12I first experienced empathy when I first did mdma.
    • sonnybobiche, on 12/27/2007, -0/+2Perhaps that's why it's classified as an empathogen.
  • phallus4you, on 12/27/2007, -8/+7I used to not be able to empathize, and then I found my little friend marijuana.
    • zimmermans, on 12/28/2007, -0/+1Really? Weed makes me largely apathetic. I just wanna zone out and do nothing.
    • eld4nt3, on 12/28/2007, -0/+4Have you ever empathized... ON WEED?
  • Rapsting, on 12/27/2007, -19/+26It's not that I don't care about others, it's just that I don't care about our species as a whole. I don't care about the survival of our species - We're a destructive, violent, and generally stupid bunch of animals, and the Earth would be much better off without us.
    • Colitas13, on 12/27/2007, -15/+12Shut the ***** up, please.
    • lajaw, on 12/27/2007, -8/+15So leave already.
    • djbon2112, on 12/27/2007, -11/+8***** dugg. We may be the most intelligent species on the planet, but we're also the stupidest.
    • cmuwriter, on 12/27/2007, -13/+7(Thinking of ***** invented by humans) Yeah, we had to be pretty ***** dumb to invent the iPod, coffee cups, flash drives, scotch tape, dictionaries, cameras, language, juice bottles, computers, paper, police scanners, televisions, cars, airplanes, clock radios, buildings, society. Yeah pretty ***** stupid.
      • Rapsting, on 12/27/2007, -5/+6What about our failed ability to solve our society's waste problem? Constant war? The damage we've done to this planet that is going to take hundreds of thousands of years to heal? The Pacific plastic waste patch that is miles in diameter? Oil sands? Creation and mainstreaming of products that kill us? Fuel inefficient cars? What about Evangelicals? The great failure of public education? The soon to collapse economy? Destruction of the rainforest, which essentially acts as the Earth's "lungs"? Chernobyl? Building near areas that are extremely prone to natural disasters? How about causing mass extinctions?

        Yeah humans are ***** smart to let their own technology repeatedly turn against them. We as a speicies are truly not mature enough to take on the responsibility of technology.

        With that said, I'm going to go back to using my computer, eating junk food, and playing keyboard.
        • Colitas13, on 12/27/2007, -1/+5You expect too much, too early. Sure, we make huge mistakes but that is nature; practice makes perfect, does it not? He said and I quote exactly "Earth would be much better off without us". Okay, how? what determines Earth being better off without us? Less carbon dioxide in the atmosphere? hmm, not quite I think. I think that way of thinking is narrow minded. How about the fact that the Earth has created a specie that can use written language, protect it self against predators/virus with its technology, and explore space? I surely think that puts us ahead of other species ...because after all (unless if you are religious, or I don't know...) isn't that what the universe and life is all about? progression and destruction... it is an odd cycle. I think Earth without us would be quite boring.
        • cmuwriter, on 12/27/2007, -3/+5I love how you bash human achievement, yet you use facts gathered by technology – facts which could be dubious because we're not too smart – to base your argument. When you're done playing your ***** keyboard, which by the way was invented by a ***** human, you can shove it up your ***** you ***** *****. You're a hypocrite, the worst kind in all the world. You could use another human invention, the mop bucket, to drown yourself.
      • WileEPeyote, on 12/27/2007, -0/+2dugg you down because you used the iPod in the same sentence as the discovery of language. It's just a phone folks.
        • cmuwriter, on 12/28/2007, -0/+1Actually an iPhone is a phone, an iPod is for music and other media, you *****.
    • xsquirrel378x, on 12/27/2007, -10/+6humans are cancer
      • wiggles, on 12/27/2007, -1/+5So do your part to help the planet. Please don't reproduce.
    • Envark, on 12/27/2007, -5/+14"...and the Earth would be much better off without us."
      Without us, there would be no one to determine whether or not the Earth was better off.
      • xsquirrel378x, on 12/27/2007, -3/+3thats a bad thing how? the amazon would sustain life, monkeys and other animals wouldnt have to sit in cages to get experimented on, mass breeding and slaughter of animals wouldnt have to take place, exploitation of animals for our amusement at the zoo would be no longer, sea life would be better without oil spills and human pollution, do we really need to decide whats best for the earth?
        • WileEPeyote, on 12/27/2007, -0/+3And since the chimps are making spears they can take over and do the same stupid ***** we've done.
      • MacEnvy, on 12/27/2007, -1/+1There probably would be eventually ... maybe a cephalapod of some sort.
    • notthemama, on 12/27/2007, -1/+13I think *someone's* got a bad case of the Thursdays!
      • ecidnac, on 12/28/2007, -0/+1I never could get the hang of Thursdays...
    • derek20cali, on 12/27/2007, -1/+2Become an hero!
    • SpacePoet, on 12/28/2007, -0/+1Does this mean that you just don't do anything then for the better or worse for your fellow man? I can respect your view as long as you are not part of the problem, hypocrite and all that... The more people that slide into the state you are in, the worse off it will continue to get.
  • rda1441, on 12/27/2007, -17/+6I'd read the article, but I don't give a crap.

    Just more of the 'if more people liked me, i'd be so much better..." blah blah blah. If you don't like what is going on in your life, get up off your butt and do something about it. Certainly, don't bother telling me, because I don't care, neither does anyone else. If they say they do, they are lying.
    • geddon, on 12/27/2007, -2/+9Congratulations! You've just been nominated for the "American of the Year" award! You are now eligible to win a round-trip vacation to Liberty Island, home of the world famous Statue of Liberty, where you and your family will participate in a moment of television history: Rewriting our old, rusty pledge to read: "BLAH BLAH BLAH!!! GET OFF YOUR LAZY ASS, BECAUSE WE DON'T CARE!!!"
      • rda1441, on 12/27/2007, -2/+4Cool. Sounds like fun!
        • ZenMojo, on 12/27/2007, -1/+1You're a sociopath, so you won't really know until you get there.
  • reuscel, on 12/27/2007, -5/+27Can't people just be selfish assholes without having a "disorder" attached to it? It sounds like it gives the Trumps, Cheneys and Bushes of the world a convenient excuse for being heartless douches.

    I can just see this scene unfolding on a city street.
    "Spare some change, sir?"
    "Sorry, I have EDD."
    "Oh, sorry to bug you sir. Carry on."
    • ender7074, on 12/27/2007, -10/+4Dont forget the Clintons, Obamas, and Edwards too. Oh I forgot, their saints right?
    • rda1441, on 12/27/2007, -1/+5If you care so much, send me money., I have EDD and need therapy to overcome it.
    • notthemama, on 12/27/2007, -1/+5You could be right but at least this gives people a way to tell a selfish ***** what he is without actually swearing at him. Plus, once a selfish ***** is told he's got EDD, he might figure out that it's the cause of his relationship problems and take the trouble to learn some empathy.
      • Niightwitch, on 12/27/2007, -0/+1You can't "learn" empathy - you either have it or you don't just like you can't "learn" to have a conscience.
        • alexkorova, on 12/28/2007, -0/+1Well, it depends, you can definitly train your empathy. And keep in various degrees of control.
    • ZenMojo, on 12/27/2007, -0/+9EDD is a polite way of saying "You're a sociopath." It's not that a new term was needed to describe it, it's just that the old term had negative connotations (although this doesn't remove the negativity, it just disguises it).
    • aethelberga, on 12/28/2007, -0/+2Wait until Big Pharma starts saying they have a medication for EDD.
  • DIGGADEEP, on 12/27/2007, -1/+8"Daniel Goleman, author of Emotional Intelligence, asks why we aren’t more compassionate more of the time. Sharing the results of psychological experiments (and the story of the Santa Cruz Strangler), he explains how we are all born with the capacity for empathy -- but we sometimes choose to ignore it."
    http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/view/id/200
  • dnields, on 12/27/2007, -13/+8People aren't missing empathy. People are confusing sympathy with empathy, even this article does.
    Empathy is when you are understanding of another's situation or feelings and being able to relate that to a personal experience.
    Sympathy is a feeling or an expression of pity or sorrow for the distress of another.
    They are not one in the same and the other does not need to involve the other.
    In other words, I can understand how you feel and what you are going through, but I don't have to feel sorry for you and show pity.

    • KrazyA1pha, on 12/27/2007, -3/+3As the article clearly states, it's not about feeling sorry for someone, it's about feeling their pain. KNOWING someone's pain because you have been in a similar situation and FEELING that pain by directly putting yourself in their mindset are two different things. The former appears to be what you are describing as empathy (a sort of cold, distant empathy), the latter is what the article is describing (a very personal and close empathy).

      I believe it is you who is confusing definitions here.
    • gummih, on 12/28/2007, -0/+1When ever I hear of someone having an accident, where it's described specificly what happened, like someone loosing a finger when it got cought in something - when ever I hear of those types of things I feel pain, not very strong but still actual pain in my thighs (I'm feeling it right now just for writing the discription of it). Is that common, I know my sister is like that too but I haven't really given it much thought.
  • loggia, on 12/27/2007, -12/+3I have this friend who doesn't seem to understand how much suffering he's caused other people. Maybe this is what he has.

    Look at his picture below - you can kind of tell he "doesn't get it."

    http://snipurl.com/1vw17
  • wire02, on 12/27/2007, -7/+1Its not that I don't care...its just...meh
  • Zapkiller, on 12/27/2007, -9/+4Damn she's right... I guess I should follow her advice and try think about what all my victims felt like when I was cutting a nice deep slice in their flesh..
  • dungbeetle, on 12/27/2007, -3/+11How about having too much empathy? I used to be that way and it was so tiring feeling everyone's pain with them. I understand that not caring for anyone at all is bad, but to care for everyone isn't good either.
  • copprman, on 12/27/2007, -2/+14One word: Monkeysphere
    • pe5t1lence, on 12/27/2007, -0/+1Neat theory
    • lyssword, on 12/27/2007, -1/+3dugg for something new to learn. typing the word into wikepedia.
  • giddytonk, on 12/27/2007, -9/+25I wonder how many Republicans have this disorder.
    • ender7074, on 12/27/2007, -11/+3About half as many as the Democrats.
    • evil-doer, on 12/27/2007, -2/+9yeah, the repubs get mad at you for saying it. but they also get mad at ANYONE that cares for other people, other animals, or the environment. selfishness is what rules them, and fear of anything not like them. id have to say the vast majority of people who call themselves republicans have this. at least the holdout ones that are STILL behind bush and the neocons, those are 100%
    • sonnybobiche, on 12/27/2007, -3/+2Hey, thanks for politicizing this.
      • bruce86, on 12/27/2007, -1/+3Look up Right wing authoritarianism, Psychology has been pwning republicans for years.
    • anachronaut, on 12/27/2007, -0/+3I read a study a while back -- something my father had saved from an economics journal; he was a lifelong Republican and economics professor and had a rather radical change of heart a few years before he died -- detailing the fact that conservative politics, in general, are inherently based on self-interest and/or outright greed. It was quite fascinating and eye-opening (and a little above my head in some regards, as I'm no business major), and I really wish I'd kept a copy of it so that I could better reference it now instead of just making an oblique comment regarding it.

      I've long been of the opinion that lack of empathy and greed, hand-in-hand, are the major factors behind ALL of mankind's problems with one another.
    • Homura, on 12/28/2007, -0/+1Not all republicans are like the majority of nuts who follow the GOP.

      They are a minority, but not all of them are idiots. Seriously. I'm not saying this to defend myself. I'm doing this for common sense. I'm not even a republican.
  • bukiyou, on 12/27/2007, -3/+9yeah. too much empathy is bad.

    I probably have too much empathy now, which is the total opposite of what I used to be. I break into tears whenever I read the newspaper, whenever someone needs help. Sure, I have great interpersonal relationships but the constant pain is not worth it. Now I see people suffering and I see the mechanisms of what's going on and understand there's no point in me trying to get them out of a rut they don't want to.

    Take care of the people who matter to you. They're the ones who'll cry for you, not the world.
  • trancelicious, on 12/27/2007, -1/+8legalize MDMA and you'll have a cure!
  • mrzack, on 12/27/2007, -3/+4They be PSYcopaths. about .005% of the world population are pyschopaths.
    • sonnybobiche, on 12/27/2007, -0/+3That number sounds pretty lowball.
  • luet, on 12/27/2007, -1/+4Opposite of altruism
  • Pause, on 12/27/2007, -1/+6Where I'm from they call it "Not giving a *****".
  • halfnormalform, on 12/27/2007, -10/+2Iff none of us were selfish, all the empathy in the world wouldn't create cars, computers, food, clothing, etc.
    • ZenMojo, on 12/27/2007, -0/+3If all of us were selfless, um, yes we would.
    • lyssword, on 12/27/2007, -0/+7This has nothing to do with being successful or creative. It has to do with the fact that you are an ***** or not.
    • itisfritz, on 12/27/2007, -1/+2So we all need to look at the immediate needs of others instead of ourselves? What if some one shoots me in the stomach and steals my money and then drives away in my car? Am i supposed to "understand" that they need it more because they grew up in a broken home and have EDD?
  • rustintable, on 12/27/2007, -3/+3I have been saying for a long time now that we should be selectively breeding people for empathy. This is in contrast to those who say we should be doing this for intelligence.

    I even thought of a way to do so. Lets only let empathetic people use web based technologies like google. So you have to be continually tested for empathy to use it.
  • johnfritz, on 12/27/2007, -0/+2Nowhere is what Mr. LaBier refers to as "EDD" (read Not Giving A ***** About Anyone But Ones Self) more prevalant than in the workplace.
  • mon11uk, on 12/27/2007, -1/+1I think my mother-in-law might be suffering from this...just kidding!
  • 5xSTUN, on 12/27/2007, -3/+11Not only are we lacking empathy, there are active campaigns against it. Conservative pundits have been hammering home their medieval philosophy that anyone not born into wealth and privilege isn't worth giving a damn about.
    • MillenniumX, on 12/27/2007, -0/+1I was wondering when someone would use this to try and "prove" that liberals had a monopoly on sanity.
  • digitallysick, on 12/27/2007, -1/+11I like how everything is a "disorder" , so you don't like or care for people, that means you have a disorder? Could it be that most people don't care for you, so over time you pick up those traits and learn to be the same way?
    • sonnybobiche, on 12/27/2007, -0/+1That's not what's being referred to when someone is termed a psychopath/sociopath. Some psychopaths are born into loving families, but something is broken *up there*. A sociopath couldn't love someone even if he genuinely wanted to.
  • marc54, on 12/27/2007, -0/+4Most web designers have EDD.
  • ZenMojo, on 12/27/2007, -1/+13EDD is sociopathy. Unfortunately, it's not politically correct to call people sociopaths to their face (not that it stops me), so we have to come up with new terms for public discussion.
    • leerayIG88, on 12/27/2007, -1/+1A person said that to me once. Some weird reason they never woke up. :-
    • sonnybobiche, on 12/27/2007, -0/+1Antisocial Personality Disorder, in psychiatric circles.
  • lyssword, on 12/27/2007, -1/+11I hate assholes. I hate people who "don't give a *****" about anyone but in fact try to make other people's lives miserable. I view them as kids who have never got to use more of their brain than what they had to use when they were 12.
    • ProducedRaw, on 12/27/2007, -0/+2This is hypocritical. Use your empathy and try to see things from their point of view. People do not act they way they do just because they want to be assholes. Theres always more to it. Half the comments on this article are similar to yours - "I hate people who hate people". The irony is killing me!
      • lyssword, on 12/28/2007, -0/+3Even if I completely understood the reason (which is probably impossible), it just doesn't change much. Those "assholes" they don't want to learn, they don't want to better themselves, they would certainly not listen to any advice, in fact they "don't give a *****". Sure, "they" get depressed sometimes, but "they" don't know why and don't want to find out. They just look for a way to put blame on someone else.
        I know that "the universe is so hostile and impersonal" but still, we are humans and we wouldn't be better than other animals if we didn't learn to communicate. Life would not likely be the same if everyone was selfish, even though economic theory says that people would advance through "economy" (trading for money/w ever) I don't think people would get that far to develop monetary system without major cooperation and sacrifices.

        /rant
        • ProducedRaw, on 12/28/2007, -0/+1I know what you're saying. It gets to me sometimes too, I'll admit. The way I see this is that the only way we can make a change is to lead by example. Even if everyone around is an idiot it doesn't mean that we should hate them for it. On the contrary if we stand our ground and refuse to become like them regardless of how messed up they act it just might jolt some of them back to sanity. I feel your pain, brother.
        • lyssword, on 12/28/2007, -0/+1Thx for the words of support and I agree with you. I probably feel more frustration than hate, I guess. I'm not saying everything should be utopian-like, but I would feel much better if people had some basic respect and understanding of each other.
        • lyssword, on 12/28/2007, -0/+1I meant to say "if certain group of people had some basic respect and understanding", because there are certainly huge numbers of people who don't become complete jerks.
  • fartbuttes, on 12/27/2007, -2/+8Great, another made-up disorder for the drug companies to sell us more crap we don't need.
    Disorder Formula:
    [Vague and highly subjective behavior already covered under an established school of psychology, e.g. "sociopathy"] + [Clever acronym] = YOU HAVE A DISORDER
    **BREAKING NEWS** Scientists have recently discovered that not everyone is exactly the same and that different people have different brain chemistries giving rise to the curious phenomenon called "personality" and sometimes these personalities are not exactly in line with the norm.
    • sonnybobiche, on 12/27/2007, -0/+1When your personality keeps you from behaving in accord with social norms (e.g. not stealing *****), maybe treatment is a valid option?
      • fartbuttes, on 12/28/2007, -0/+1Obviously. I don't think I ever said otherwise? The point is most people are NOT complete social deviants and we live in a society obsessed with correcting problems that really need no correction, or problems with very simple solutions that do not involve medication - which, rest assured, there will be medication for "EDD" if it takes off as the new ADD. Solution for EDD? Social education in schools! Stop making kids feel isolated in the classroom. Incorporate more team projects and leadership skill-building into the curriculum. Ever see a standardized test include a section about team work, office best practices, or leadership? Of course not, it sounds ridiculous. But today even kids who wouldn't normally have "EDD"-like problems may be developing them because of the kind of society we live in - how do you empathize with someone on MySpace? Why would I want to care about what someone is doing when I can call their cellphone at any time? There is always going to be a small fraction of the population who need special attention and treatment, yes. But the Washington Post article echoes the kind of leading, incorrect thought-processes I hear all too often these days: that if there's something missing in your life, or something doesn't feel right, it's all your fault and you have a disorder, and this leads to self diagnosis and bandwagon psychology. And who has all the answers? Why the pharmaceutical companies of course.
    • kitkatsavvy, on 12/28/2007, -1/+1hehe you are soooooooo right dude! they seem to 'classify' every single line of thought as something 'wrong'..its pathetic..and yes we all know the drug companies make ***** of cash trying to stuff up our brains even more! they have no proof of anything being 'wrong' at all! they arent even able to translate our inner voice words in our head to the outside of our brains yet..they have a LONG LONG way to go before they prove anything
  • DemsFTW, on 12/27/2007, -4/+8there's a community of EDD carriers. We call them republicans.
  • Toshibi, on 12/27/2007, -2/+5I once was empathic and in tune with the feelings of those around me. Years of working with the public has turned this off. Now, my motto tends to be "I don't give a *****!". I say it almost like a mantra. Also, I found that when I spent more time caring about others, they used you as their confessional, and really couldn't give two ***** about your feelings. All in all, being empathic may make you a better person, but it will drag you through the dirt.
    • lyssword, on 12/27/2007, -1/+7Empathy is not bad just save it for people who give "at least two *****" about you :)
  • antileet, on 12/27/2007, -2/+6TAKE SOME ECSTASY! :)
    Put a smile on, everybody come on... put a smile on ;P
    • leerayIG88, on 12/27/2007, -2/+2Sorry, say no to drugs. Drugs are bad.
      • ProducedRaw, on 12/27/2007, -0/+1Do you drink alcohol? How about coffee? Maybe you like chocolate every now and then. What about the time you got those hydrocodone's when you got your wisdom teeth pulled out? Drugs are drugs. Drug abuse is bad.
  • triskele, on 12/27/2007, -3/+4...to find out what happens when people stop being polite...and start getting real...

    I hated the show, but this is how I feel about the article. Explaining away every behavioral variation as a disorder is *****. Some people are just assholes. Some are driven to self-absorption by stress from various sources (sometimes their fault, sometimes not). And there are those who are so damn nice it makes you wonder what they're hiding.
    • sonnybobiche, on 12/27/2007, -0/+2Some people really like to wash their hands and collect random ***** off the street. We say they have Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. When your behavioral abnormality keeps you from living a normal life (not being able to love anyone can be pretty crippling), it's called a disorder.
      • triskele, on 12/28/2007, -0/+1This a genuine question, but digg me down if you want. What became of people with various psychological disorders before those classifications/diagnoses were made via "modern" psychology/psychiatry? I'd imagine persons with severe (and in some cases violent) disorders were jailed and/or lobotomized, and I may be way off there, but what became of people with disorders such as EED, OCD, ADHD, or other disorders that are not life threatening or physically debilitating.
  • hobophobe, on 12/27/2007, -0/+13The notion that these people are not able to feel the pain of others is absurd. That condition is very, very rare. Instead what this doctor is describing is a coping mechanism that individuals tend to acquire towards others because they have already imposed the same barriers upon themselves.

    That man who won't feel his wife's distress at having too much responsibility already burdens himself with not feeling his own needs correctly. He compensates for his lack of proper self-care by his 'sports' and 'vegging.'

    Similarly, the guy who expressed no desire to tackle global warming feels inadequate and powerless over it. Rather than making the effort he, quite naturally, copes by rationalizing as a simple matter, his own mortality. He has woven his life into a fiction where upon his death nothing that is currently real continues to exist (this is known as solipsism).

    And the woman who supposedly thinks all Muslims are terrorists? I have no doubt that she is continuously skeptical of anyone's motives. She has abandonment issues that have caused her to be mistrustful of even her most intimate friends and family. But it wasn't her parents that abandoned her. She abandoned herself. Rather than standing up for herself, she chose to follow a Randian path of selfishness.

    More often than not peoples' lack of empathy is attributable to their own psychological issues and not some generic disorder. Over the course of their lives they have sacrificed their own feelings too often to empathize with themselves. It's no wonder they can't do so with others.

    But there is a cure. They can start to empathize with themselves. They can look back at the choices they made that led them to where they are and understand why those decisions were so harmful to them, how and why they shut themselves down.

    And through that process of learning to accept their past and make peace with their earlier selves, they can gain understanding and empathy for others.

    Of course, they have to want to take that step. The fact that they are seeing a psychotherapist certainly speaks of their wish to change. Having them explicate a character from a film or novel may also be a good route to opening them up to empathy.
    • vikki77, on 12/27/2007, -0/+4I agree, most cases of EDD are methods of self-preservation. People put up barriers to keep themselves from hurting when they can't deal with the pain.
    • sonnybobiche, on 12/27/2007, -0/+2Unless you've personally interviewed and diagnosed these people, you can't really say either way. The behaviors described in the article are not definitive of antisocial personality disorder, but they are certainly stereotypical of it. And as for its prevalence - it's pegged at around 5 percent of males, making it about 10x as common as schizophrenia, so it's not as rare as one might hope.
    • yougene, on 12/27/2007, -0/+1I agree with op. You call it EDD, I call it a case of narcissism and repression.
    • kaevne, on 12/27/2007, -0/+1Thank you for your reply. The "psychotherapist" who wrote this article needs to go back to intro psych.
    • TheHim, on 12/28/2007, -0/+1Thanks for your excellent comment, i see it the same way.
    • lsccbean, on 12/28/2007, -0/+1"That man who won't feel his wife's distress at having too much responsibility already burdens himself with not feeling his own needs correctly. He compensates for his lack of proper self-care by his 'sports' and 'vegging.'"

      "Rogers (1959) maintains that the human "organism" has an underlying "actualizing tendency", which aims to develop all capacities in ways that maintain or enhance the organism and move it toward autonomy. This tendency is directional, constructive and present in all living things. The actualizing tendency can be suppressed but can never be destroyed without the destruction of the organism (Rogers, 1977). The concept of the actualizing tendency is the only motive force in the theory. It encompasses all motivations; tension, need, or drive reductions; and creative as well as pleasure-seeking tendencies (Rogers, 1959). Only the organism as a whole has this tendency, parts of it (such as the self) do not. Maddi (1996) describes it as a "biological pressure to fulfill the genetic blueprint" (p106.) Each person thus has a fundamental mandate to fulfill their potential."

      "The human organism's "phenomenal field" includes all experiences available at a given moment, both conscious and unconscious (Rogers, 1959). As development occurs, a portion of this field becomes differentiated and this becomes the person's "self" (Hall & Lindzey, 1985; Rogers, 1959). The "self" is a central construct in this theory. It develops through interactions with others and involves awareness of being and functioning. The self-concept is "the organized set of characteristics that the individual perceives as peculiar to himself/herself" (Ryckman, 1993, p.106). It is based largely on the social evaluations he/she has experienced."

      "A distinctly psychological form of the actualizing tendency related to this "self" is the "self-actualizing tendency". It involves the actualization of that portion of experience symbolized in the self (Rogers, 1959). It can be seen as a push to experience oneself in a way that is consistent with one's conscious view of what one is (Maddi, 1996). Connected to the development of the self-concept and self-actualization are secondary needs (assumed to likely be learned in childhood): the "need for positive regard from others" and "the need for positive self-regard", an internalized version of the previous. These lead to the favoring of behavior that is consistent with the person's self-concept (Maddi, 1996)."



  • NightEmber79, on 12/27/2007, -1/+5Finally, being a dick gets it's own medical classification
  • 4eloBek, on 12/27/2007, -2/+2well no *****... i guess a new way to lobotomize people is invented... again and make lots of cash in the process for psychoanalysts.
  • phre3k187, on 12/27/2007, -0/+5Who cares?
  • insomniac8400, on 12/27/2007, -4/+2Sounds like having empathy is the disease.
  • Cowboy1015, on 12/27/2007, -2/+4Another way these pharmaceuticals to make more money... another sickness invention... WTF!!
    ADD, EDD, Restless Leg, Restless Fingers, restless whatever... digg addiction...
    • bruce86, on 12/27/2007, -0/+1These disorder are highly over diagnosis, which you can blame drug companies for. But don't blame them for creating the disorder. If you ever met someone with severe ADD, not just some misdiagnosed dude on the street, You'll realize that they have real trouble with concentration and it frustrates THEMSELVES. Its real, and those people view these medication as a god send as they can final get through a day in school.
      • yelow, on 12/27/2007, -0/+1bs.

        I have rather bad add and drugs don't make it better, the will to make it better makes it better.
        • bruce86, on 12/28/2007, -0/+0Thats not true. ADD medication has been shown to work better than placebo. It as has been to shown to be just as effective as Behavioral therapy.
    • hunkster2010, on 12/28/2007, -0/+1Speaking as someone who actually has Restless Leg Syndrome, trust me it's not made up.
  • LeeSoong, on 12/27/2007, -0/+3What is worse: Ignorance, Apathy, or Fatalism ?

    I don't know, I don't care, and it doesn't matter anyway !
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