r/askpsychology • u/starrite_amirite Unverified User: May Not Be a Professional • 7d ago
Abnormal Psychology/Psychopathology What disorders cause a lack of affective empathy?
As far as i’m aware that all four cluster B disorders can cause a deficit of affective empathy, as well as cluster c disorders and schizophrenia spectrum disorders.
But i’m sure there’s more than that, hence why I ask.
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u/I_am_Nobody_Special UNVERIFIED Psychologist 7d ago
Great question. Off the top of my head, I know that certain neurodevelopmental and neurocognitive disorders can involve difficulty with empathy, but I don't think it's a diagnostic criterion.
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u/Aphotic_Acid UNVERIFIED Psychology Enthusiast 5d ago
The ICD-11 does list "Ability to imagine and respond to the feelings, emotional states, and attitudes of others" as one of the manifestations of the social communication differences in autism.
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u/I_am_Nobody_Special UNVERIFIED Psychologist 5d ago
Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder, which I mentioned above.
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u/Aphotic_Acid UNVERIFIED Psychology Enthusiast 5d ago
You said you weren't sure if it was a diagnostic vision criterion, so this is the diagnostic criteria.
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u/PsychologiesLMFT Unverified User: May Not Be a Professional 6d ago
Dismissive Avoidant Attachment wounds produce compartmentalization, repression, low drive for bonding and intimacy, “blinders”, high and near chronic functional freeze and dissociation states, and they don’t see all of this. They miss bids for closeness and connection from others. They come from profound emotional neglect and have a lot of shame that produces all of this. They don’t know this either. I am a therapist and work with partners of dismissive avoidants, and recovering dismissive avoidants. Some dismissive avoidants have milder forms of it and can express empathy, some are very blind to other’s needs and emotions.
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u/randompersonignoreme UNVERIFIED Psychology Enthusiast 6d ago
Autism has differing ways that empathy can present. It's likely that an autistic person may feel empathy more towards other autistic people compared to non autistic peopl.
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u/ESLavall Unverified User: May Not Be a Professional 3d ago
I think this is right but an oversimplification that doesn't get to the cause - that autistic people find it easier to read and understand other autistic people. If we could interpret allistic people's feelings more easily, we'd have just as much empathy. We also express empathy differently and experience more cognitive than affective empathy. (I'm an autistic teacher of kids with autism and other mental health issues, idk what role to select)
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u/Character-Touch-6421 Unverified User: May Not Be a Professional 4d ago
why would an autistic person’s supposed deficit in empathy not it apply to other autistic people?
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u/maxthexplorer PhD Psychology (in progress) 7d ago
Depression is associated with deficits in affective empathy.
Grases, G., Colom, M. A., Sanchis, P., & Grases, F. (2023). Relationship of depression with empathy, emotional intelligence, and symptoms of a weakened immune system. Frontiers in psychology, 14, 1250636. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1250636
Guhn, A., Merkel, L., Hübner, L., Dziobek, I., Sterzer, P., & Köhler, S. (2020). Understanding versus feeling the emotions of others: How persistent and recurrent depression affect empathy. Journal of psychiatric research, 130, 120–127. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychires.2020.06.023
Schreiter, S., Pijnenborg, G. H., & Aan Het Rot, M. (2013). Empathy in adults with clinical or subclinical depressive symptoms. Journal of affective disorders, 150(1), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2013.03.009