| While there are many theoretical and empirical studies of empathy, the construct of self-empathy only recently appeared in the literature and has not been systematically reviewed or measured. The purpose of this pilot study was to define, operationalize and measure the construct of self-empathy, for the first time, from a perspective based on the Relational model of development. This study examined the psychometric properties of a new measure of self-empathy created by the author, the Self-Empathy Scale (SES). The SES was found to be internally consistent and the data showed preliminary evidence for the construct validity of the SES. As predicted, the SES was significantly positively correlated with self-esteem, and significantly negatively correlated with interpersonal guilt and childhood abuse and neglect. Contrary to predictions, the SES did not correlate with affective and cognitive components of empathy. These results are discussed along with suggestions for future research. |
