Empathy And Listening

Empathy involves seeing and feeling things the way another person does, experiencing another person's perception. It is the most important element in accurate person perception. Perception of another determines whether or not we might want to communicate with that person. It can be difficult because person perception is a dynamic and changing process and the perceiver is part of the process. The other will react and be affected by our behaviour. We can work towards developing our sensitivity and responsiveness to others. Floyd suggested that empathy is a key factor in effective listening and communication and in healing conflicts and other problems. Accurate perception provides insights and helps with effective relationship building.

Empathic listening, according to Covey, involves seeking to understand the speaker. It may involve a paradigm shift, listening with the intention of understanding at a deep level rather than to be understood. Listening between the lines heightens sensitivity and awareness to the message the other person is trying to communicate. It means resonance, identification, experiencing some kind of reflection of the other person's emotions, a feeling into the other person. It is rewarding for the speaker and the listener too. It is also encouraging. The listener communicates caring and acceptance. It strengthens positive interpersonal relationships.

Establishing rapport with another person also depends on contextual factors like setting and environment. The questions who, why, where, when and how should be answered. Our communication with other people depends on our perception of them, our history, their emotional state. Marketing in different cultures requires a cultural empathy to come to terms with the differences and to establish a market position. Feedback is an important part of the communication process. It will help decide whether our perceptions are right or wrong.

Before any improvement can be made in personal perception we must admit that our perception may be inaccurate and subjective. Accurate perception enhances communication in both long-term and short-term relationships. It also applies to situations like interviews, reviewed by McComb and Jablin, where person perception is important. The employee should perceive the employer as agreeable, helpful and constructive and they should both perceive work performance in the same way. Perceiving our own behavioural responses to situations in another person is seen as an expression of stability.

Empathic listening is not critical. It is a willingness to be accepting, permissive and understanding. It is sometimes called reflective response. Pearce and Newton suggest empathy is the basic mode of significant communication between adults. Such sensitivity is required in long and short-term relationships.