EMPATHY-Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI)

EMPATHY-Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI)
Davis‚ M. H. (1980)
 
1. I daydream and fantasize‚ with some regularity‚ about things that might happen to me. (FS)
2. I often have tender‚ concerned feelings for people less fortunate than me. (EC)
3. I sometimes find it difficult to see things from the “other guy’s” point of view. (PT) (-)
4. Sometimes I don’t feel very sorry for other people when they are ha‎ving problems. (EC) (-)
5. I really get involved with the feelings of the ch‎aracters in a novel. (FS)
6. In emergency situations‚ I feel apprehensive and ill-at-ease. (PD)
7. I am usually objective when I watch a movie or play‚ and I don’t often get completely caught up in it. (FS) (-)
8. I try to look at everybody’s side of a disagreement before I make a decision. (PT)
9. When I see someone being taken advantage of‚ I feel kind of protective towards them. (EC)
10. I sometimes feel helpless when I am in the middle of a very emotional situation. (PD)
11. I sometimes try to understand my friends better by imagining how things look from their perspective. (PT)
12. Becoming extremely involved in a good book or movie is somewhat rare for me. (FS) (-)
13. When I see someone get hurt‚ I tend to remain calm. (PD) (-)
14. Other people’s misfortunes do not usually disturb me a great deal. (EC) (-)
15. If I’m sure I’m right about something‚ I don’t waste much time listening to other people’s arguments. (PT) (-)
16. After seeing a play or movie‚ I have felt as though I were one of the ch‎aracters. (FS)
17. Being in a tense emotional situation scares me. (PD)
18. When I see someone being treated unfairly‚ I sometimes don’t feel very much pity for them. (EC) (-)
19. I am usually pretty effective in dealing with emergencies. (PD) (-)
20. I am often quite touched by things that I see happen. (EC)
21. I believe that there are two sides to every question and try to look at them both. (PT)
22. I would describe myself as a pretty soft-hearted person. (EC)
23. When I watch a good movie‚ I can very easily put myself in the place of a leading ch‎aracter. (FS)
24. I tend to lose control during emergencies. (PD)
25. When I’m upset at someone‚ I usually try to “put myself in his shoes” for a while. (PT)
26. When I am reading an interesting story or novel‚ I imagine how I would feel if the events in the story were happening to me. (FS)
27. When I see someone who badly needs help in an emergency‚ I go to pieces. (PD)
28. Before criticizing somebody‚ I try to imagine how I would feel if I were in their place.
(PT)
 
PT = perspective-taking scale
FS = fantasy scale
EC = empathic concern scale
PD = personal distress scale
 
1 = does not describe me well and 5 =describes me very well  
NOTE: (-) denotes item to be scored in reverse fashion
 

Davis‚ M. H. (1980). A multidimensional approach to individual differences in empathy.JSAS Catalog of se‎lected Documents in Psychology‚ 10‚ 85.

Davis‚ M. H. (1983). Measuring individual differences in empathy: Evidence for amultidimensional approach. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology‚ 44‚ 113–126.

Davis‚ M. H. (1983). The effects of dispositional empathy on emotional reactions and helping: A multidimensional approach. Journal of Personality‚51(2);167–184‚

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