Digital empathy in online education: A comparison study between Portugal and Romania

 Alexandre Duarte, Nova University Lisbon (Portugal)

 Romina Surugiu, University of Bucharest (Romania)

 Madalina Moraru, University of Bucharest (Romania)

 Valentina Marinescu, University of Bucharest (Romania)

https://doi.org/10.3916/C76-2023-09

Keywords

Neuroscience, digital empathy, technology, education, communication, Basic Empathy Scale

Abstract

This study aims to present the extent to which online education influenced the level of empathy displayed by university students. The research relies on a self-evaluated applied survey in two European countries: Portugal and Romania. The participants in this research are 1,085 students enrolled in Communication Studies programs. The purpose of this study is to unfold the connection between gender, exposure to digital technology, empathy level according to the Basic Empathy Scale applied to young adults, and online education self-perception that involves the use of webcams. Empathy can have positive effects on students’ satisfaction and increase students’ outcomes. The shift from a physical environment to a digital one brought significant challenges that most students and teachers were not ready for. The digital environment influences how empathy is expressed. The present research found evidence of a relationship between exposure to technology usage, emotional contagion, and gender. This suggests that understanding the emotions of others might be inhibited during digital education. Also, the most relevant factor of empathy variation in online education is gender. The findings of the present research may contribute to the design of activities or programs that could foster empathy expression during online education for young adults.

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Fundref

This article is funded by national funds through the FCT - Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia within the project UIDB/05021/2020.

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Technical information

Received: 29-12-2022

Revised: 21-01-2023

Accepted: 23-02-2023

OnlineFirst: 30-05-2023

Publication date: 01-07-2023

Article revision time: 23 days | Average time revision issue 76: -6 days

Article acceptance time: 56 days | Average time of acceptance issue 76: 72 days

Preprint editing time: 139 days | Average editing time preprint issue 76: 155 days

Article editing time: 184 days | Average editing time issue 76: 200 days

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