Cognitive and behavioral representations of empathy in preschool and primary school age

Abstract

The paper is devoted to development of empathy in children. The particularity of social experience, cognitive and behavioral representations of empathy at different ages is considered. The results of empirical study of characteristics of empathy experience and empathetic behavior scenarios in children of preschool and primary school age (N = 154) are presented. The results prove that at preschool and primary school age the growth of amount and complexity of social experience, as well as the growth of content and differentiation of children representations of human emotions, their reasons and the ways of expression of empathy and sympathy towards different empathetic objects occur.