Empathy, Religious Orientation, and Social Desirability

Summary The Allport and Ross Religious Orientation Scales were administered to 180 undergraduates (84 males, 96 females) who also responded to three empathy questionnaires. Correlations and data associated with religious orientation categories revealed intrinsic religiosity to be directly and extrinsic religiosity to be inversely related to empathy, and social desirability factors apparently did not produce these effects. Recent theoretical arguments concerning a linkage between empathy and religiosity were therefore supported, and the data further suggest that previously reported religiosity-helping behavior relationships may have been mediated by empathic motivation.