Empathic Concern Motivates Willingness to Help in the Absence of Interdependence

Previous research suggests that empathic concern selectively promotes motivation to help those with whom we typically have interdependent relationships, such as friends or siblings, rather than strangers or acquaintances. In a sample of U.S. participants (collected between 2018 and 2020), our studies not only confirmed the finding that empathic concern is directed somewhat more strongly toward interdependent relationship partners, but also showed cross-sectionally (Studies 1a–1b), and when manipulating target distress experimentally (Study 2), that empathic concern predicts higher willingness to help only when people perceive low interdependence in their relationship with the target. In Study 3, we manipulated perceived interdependence with an acquaintance via shared fate, and found that empathic concern only predicted helping motivation when we reduced shared fate, but not when we increased shared fate. These results suggest that when people perceive high interdependence in their relationships, shared fate is the driving force behind their desire to help, whereas when people perceive low interdependence with someone in need, empathic concern motivates them to help. A relationship-building perspective on empathic concern provides avenues for testing additional moderators, including those related to target-specific characteristics and culture and ecology.