Estudos e Pesquisas em Psicologia
ISSN 1808-4281
RODRIGUES, Marisa Cosenza SILVA, Renata de Lourdes Miguel da. Assessment of a program of promotion of empathy implemented at primary school. Estud. pesqui. psicol. []. 2012, 12, 1, pp.59-75. ISSN 1808-4281.
Empathy has been linked to inhibition of aggressive behavior, the development of pro social activities and to a better psychosocial adjustment. This paper reports a research intervention with 36 children (5 and 6 years old - 16 boys and 20 girls), attending a public school of early childhood education in Juiz de Fora / MG. The intervention involved pre and post evaluation of a program promoting the development of empathic skills. It was used the Empathy Scale for Children and Adolescents of Bryant (1982), adapted. The comparative results of the stages of pre-and-post program evaluation indicated an increase in empathic skills. It defends the importance of preventive interventions in the educational context and importance of promoting the development of empathy as a protective factor for child development.
: Empathy; Preventive interventions; Childhood education.