European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - July 31, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Azine new research aug Geata that the amount of time a father Amanda with Hla children la one of the  of empathy in adulthood.  you teach a child compassion by Daniel Goleman new York times the forces that Mold a child into a caring adult Are coming into sharper focus with new findings that question assumptions held by parents and psychologists alike. Empathy the ability to share in another s emotions or feelings has become the focus of intense scientific study because it is among the most socially desirable of personality traits the Bedrock of both a sense of Justice and of concern for the welfare of others. In recent years the research has produced a number of surprising findings. For example quarrelsome and unruly children Are As Likely to become caring adults As Are their Well behaved playmates recent studies have found. Likewise having warm Loving parents has been seen As essential to fostering empathy. But children of parents who Are highly nurturing yet fail to set limits on behaviour or encourage self sacrifice tend to be lacking in compassion a new study has found. And despite earlier evidence that the relationship Between Mother and infant is a vital Factor in learning compassion new research suggests that the amount of time a father spends with a child is one of the strongest predictors of empathy in adulthood. The finding is from the first study of empathy that tracked Young children into adulthood Quot this is the first Chance anyone has had to use longitudinal data to test some of the theories on childhood factors in empathy Quot said Richard Koestner a psychologist at Mcgill University in Toronto who headed the research Effort. Koestner s study involved 75 men and women who had been part of a study at Vale University in the 1950s in which As 5-year-Olds, their teachers and mothers had rate a their family life behaviour and personality. Of All the factors studied including parental affection and a child s Una ugliness at school the single most powerful predictor of empathy in adulthood was How much time the children s fathers spent with them. A a Quot wet were amazed to find that How affectionate parents were with their children made no difference in empathy Quot said Koestner whose findings Are reported in the journal of personality and social psychology. Quot and we were astounded at How Strong the father s influence was after 25  spending More time with their children May give fathers Quot More opportunities to be responsive to their children s emotional needs and so Model empathy for them Quot he said. Quot and it May be that those fathers who Are More willing to spend that much time with their children Are More empathic  other experts on childhood and personality suggested that it was not time spent with the father that influenced the child s empathy As an adult but rather what the Contact with the fathers showed about the family life. Quot perhaps it s not just that dad is there rewarding or modelling empathy but that High father involvement is a Marker of a More harmonious family Quot said Michael Lamb chief of the Section on social and emotional development at the National Institute of child health and development. Quot it Means the father wants to be involved and the wife wants him there. Probably the worst situation for kids is marital  child experts agree. Quot it s probably not time with the father in itself that is so important for empathy but what it reflects a family where there is a joint commitment by parents to their children Quot said Maroin Radke Yarrow Laboratory chief of the child development Section at the National Institute of mental health. Quot the amount of time with the father is really aft indicator of something  several other factors in the children a lives surprised Koestner and his co researchers As having virtually Tyr Impact on the children a empathy in adulthood. For instance How warm parents were with their children had no relationship with adult empathy contrary to findings of earlier studies. In a study of parental warmth and empathy conducted by Mark Barnett at Kansas state University in 1980, people who were highly empathic remembered their parents As having been much warmer than did those who had Little empathy. The new study suggests that those findings had less to do with the actual amount of warmth than with the adult children s tendency to reshape or selectively recall childhood in a favourable Light. While warmth has great value in rearing children psychologists no longer see it As the essential element in developing an empathic child. Quot warmth is the background that makes other things parents do effective but warmth alone is not enough to develop empathy Quot said or. Nancy Eisenberg a psychologist at Arizona state University. Quot in fact warmth a one can encourage selfishness in a child. Children also need a firm parental hand setting limits and  tuesday july 31, 1990 the stars and stripes Page 13