Relational values and empathy are closely connected: A study of residents of Vermont’s Winooski River watershed

Ecology and Society: a journal of integrative science for resilience and sustainability

article

Eric J. Hagen¹  Rachelle K. Gould² 

[1] Field Naturalist Program, Department of Plant Biology, University of Vermont;Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources, University of Vermont

关键词: biodiversity loss;    conservation;    empathy;    environmental decision making;    environmental ethics;    environmental valuation;    perspective-taking;    relational values;    transformative change;   

DOI  :  10.5751/ES-13406-270319

学科分类：生物科学（综合）

来源: Resilience Alliance Publications

【 摘 要 】

Relational values are emerging as an important aspect of ecosystem valuation scholarship and practice. Yet, relatively few empirical examples of their expression exist in the literature. In addition, many characteristics of relational values suggest that they may interact with the quality of empathy, but scholars have not explored that interaction. To address both of these gaps, we designed a semi-structured interview protocol to explore relational values among residents of a large (~28,000 ha) watershed in Vermont, United States of America. We used thematic analysis to explore expressions of relational values and how they may relate to empathy. We discuss how relational values interact with empathy and perspective-taking, as the latter two concepts are theorized in social psychology. In our study, every reference (discrete codable expression) of empathy among our participants co-occurred with a relational-values reference. Conversely, 21% of relational-values references co-occurred with empathy. These results support our proposition that the two concepts are closely related, and we thus argue that there is strong reason to consider empathy as a relational value. We conclude by discussing possible implications of the interaction between relational values and empathy for research and practice, notably their promise for informing the global transformative changes regarding sustainable human–nature relationships called for by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services.

【 授权许可】

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