[BBB#2] The War for Kindness: Building Empathy in a Fractured World by Jamil Zaki

"The People Have Chosen EMPATHY", reads the video screens flanking President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris during a drive-in pep rally in Delaware on Saturday night. Indeed, empathy has become a popular topic in management studies, and it is the central topic of this week's book.

Not to be confused with sympathy or compassion, empathy is about understanding and sharing the emotions of others. The author believes that empathy is a positive thing for humans to possess, citing evidence that individuals who empathize with others often benefit themselves in the process. The author also discusses at length about how we can become a more empathetic species, even (or especially) to those we vehemently disagree with. In today's highly polarized climate, the author believes that it is of paramount importance that empathy prevails.

Here are three ideas from the book I found particularly interesting:

• Caring too much: One salient issue which opponents of empathy would point to would be the detrimental effects of caring too much about others - a phenomenon that is all too familiar to those in the caring profession. The author highlights the difference between empathetic distress and empathetic concern, and some strategies one might adopt to better manage one's approach to caring for others.
• Hatred versus contact: Contact theory, which is where individuals are placed in the same environment as those they perceive to be from a different tribe with the aim of increasing understanding of each other, has long been established. This book puts forth fresh evidence to rethink our approach to contact theory to better achieve the outcomes we desire.
• Empathy in the digital landscape: We are constantly inundated with stories about the detrimental nature of online interactions. And that's where this book comes in; it serves a healthy dose of encouraging stories about how individuals have allowed empathy to manifest in a digital environment.

While The War for Kindness discusses arguments in favour of empathy, it is important to consider contrasting opinions as well. One piece which argues against empathy which I really enjoyed reading was Joe Biden Promises Empathy, but That’s a Difficult Way to Lead - WSJ by The Wall Street Journal. I suppose this was where I found the book to be lacking; throughout the book, the author makes an implicit assumption that empathy was a positive trait to possess, although I am still not entirely convinced.

Still, The War for Kindness has given me a thought provoking perspective on the subject of empathy. Written with clarity and passion, The War for Kindness is an inspiring call to action, and it is up to us to accept the challenge.

Want the book? Get it now on The Book Depository.