Measuring Empathic Tendencies: Reliability And Validity of the Dutch Version of the Interpersonal Reactivity Index

Abstract

The Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI; Davis, 1980) is a commonly used self-report instrument designed to assess empathic tendencies. The IRI consists of four separate subscales: Perspective Taking (PT), Fantasy (FS), Empathic Concern (EC), and Personal Distress (PD). The objective of this study was to examine the psychometric properties of a Dutch version of the IRI. The IRI was administered to a Dutch sample of 651 normal functioning adults. The factor structure of the IRI was examined by using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The results of the CFA revealed that there is room for improvement and modification of the original theoretical model. The validity of the IRI was tested using internal criteria (i.e., scale intercorrelations) and external criteria (i.e., correlations with subscales of the EQ-i (Bar-On, 1997), the NEO-FFI (Hoekstra, Ormel, & De Fruyt, 1996), Mach-IV (Van Kenhove, Vermeir, & Verniers, 2001), Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale (Rosenberg, 1965), and the WAIS-III (Wechsler, 2000)). Overall, the internal consistency, construct validity, and factor structure of scores from the Dutch version of the IRI suggest that it is a useful instrument to measure people's self-reported empathic tendencies.

Self-esteem’s relations to empathy and parenting

“…Such correlation was not confirmed by the data from the sample. The cognitive component of empathy, measured by the Interpersonal Reactivity Index, did not show any relation to self-esteem, either, in contrast to earlier studies (Davis, 1983;De Corte et al, 2007). The data from this survey does not let us conclude that there is any significant relation between empathy and self-esteem, as measured by our instruments.…”

“…The strongest significant correlation between the empathy variables (affective and cognitive) and self-esteem is a negative correlation with personal distress (De Corte et al, 2007). Compared to the relationship between self-esteem and empathy, the one between self-esteem and parenting has received much more thorough research (Garber, Robinson, & Valentiner, 1997;Manczak, DeLongis, & Chen, 2016).…”

“…When a multidimensional concept of empathy is being studied in relation to self-esteem, a consistent modest (Davis, 1983;De Corte et al, 2007;Lee & Song, 2015) or strong (Passanisi, Gensabella, & Pirrone, 2015) correlation between cognitive empathy and self-esteem is reported, but not between affective empathy and self-esteem.…”

Fibromyalgia patients and controls are equally accurate in detecting tactile stimuli while observing another in pain: an experimental study

“…Each item is answered on a scale ranging from 1 (‗does not describe me very well') to 5 (‗describes me very well'). This questionnaire is reliable and valid (Davis et al, 1893;De Corte et al, 2007). Cronbach's alpha's in the current study were 0.84 (fantasy scale), 0.68 (empathic concern), 0.72 (personal distress), and 0.32 (perspective taking).…”

“…Index (IRI; Davis, 1983;De Corte et al, 2007). The questionnaire contains 28 items and consists of 4 subscales: Perspective Taking (i.e., cognitively taking the perspective of another, e.g., -I sometimes try to understand my friends better by imagining how things look from their perspective.‖), Fantasy (i.e., emotional identification with characters in books, movies etc., e.g., -When I watch a good movie, I can very easily put myself in the place of a leading character.‖), Empathic Concern (i.e., feeling emotional concern for others, e.g., -I am often quite touched by things that I see happen.‖) and Personal Distress (i.e., negative feelings in response to the distress of others, e.g., -When I see someone who badly needs help in an emergency, I go to pieces.‖).…”