Empathy and expectations of others' willingness to help

Abstract Researchers have linked trait empathy to an individual's willingness to help others. We examine whether trait empathy also predicts people's expectations that others will help them. We posit that highly empathic people are more attuned to the emotional drivers of others' prosocial behavior—an intrinsic desire to help and the discomfort of refusing a help request. Such insight should make empathic people more optimistic that their own requests for help will be granted. In two studies of US-based MTurk survey respondents, we found some support for the predicted association between empathy and estimates of compliance with help requests. Study 1 (N = 207; 40.1% Female; MAge = 30.1; 77.8% White) provided initial evidence for this relationship, and Study 2 (N = 404; 44.5% Female; MAge = 38.2; 69.3% White) replicated this association in a pre-registered, higher-powered study. Mediation analyses suggest this association may result from highly empathic individuals' awareness of others' desire to help. Limitations are discussed.