Psychology 101: Is empathy always good?

We often think of empathy as an automatic good—something we should feel more of, not less. But Yale psychologist Paul Bloom argues that this common view deserves closer scrutiny. In this short talk, he challenges the idea that feeling others’ pain is always the best guide for moral action. Instead, he proposes an alternative: “rational compassion.” This lesson invites you to explore the difference between feeling for others and thinking clearly about how to help them—and why that distinction might matter more than we think.

Watch a short talk by Paul Bloom, professor of psychology at Yale and author of Against Empathy. In this clip, Bloom explains why emotional empathy—feeling what others feel—can lead to bias, inconsistency, and even manipulation. Watch the clip and then answer the interactive questions that follow:

Sample answers:

Question 1:

Strong Answer:

Paul Bloom argues that emotional empathy—putting yourself in someone else’s shoes and feeling what they feel—is a poor guide for moral decision-making. He distinguishes this from compassion, which is about caring for others and wanting to improve their lives without necessarily sharing their emotional experience. His main critique is that empathy is biased and selective—we feel it more for people who look like us or who are close to us, and we focus on individual suffering rather than large-scale problems. He also warns that empathy can be used manipulatively to stir up anger or justify harm toward others.

Weak Answer:

Paul Bloom doesn’t like empathy because he thinks it can go wrong. He says it’s better to care about people instead of feeling what they feel. Empathy is not always good and can make people act badly sometimes.

Question 2:

Strong Answer:

I mostly agree with Bloom’s argument. Emotional empathy can be powerful, but it often pulls us toward certain individuals or situations while ignoring others that may be equally or more important. I’ve noticed this in myself—sometimes I feel more urgency to help a single person I know than to respond to larger systemic issues. Rational compassion, as Bloom defines it, encourages us to take a step back and make decisions based on fairness, consistency, and long-term impact. That doesn’t mean we have to shut down emotionally, but it suggests that feeling someone’s pain isn’t always the best guide for helping them—or others. Using compassion with a sense of perspective can lead to more thoughtful and effective moral choices.

Weak Answer:

Yes, I think he’s right because emotions can be confusing. It’s better to just be logical and not let feelings control you. Compassion is better because it’s smarter and helps more people.