Research into Practice. Building Empathy with Stories

Do you know any librarians who don't like stories? Neither do we. We are in a very powerful spot, as school librarians, where we can advise, suggest, and book talk just the right book for a person or class. It's our superpower! But this power goes even further: through the choices of stories that we curate, we are effectively creating the building blocks of a community of readers who then share ideas and build empathy.

"Throughout history, stories have taught us custom, tradition, culture, and diversity. Stories have conjured mental images, sparked imaginations, and tapped into emotions. A good story connects us with the deepest core of our self, with other students, teachers, family, and with all of humanity. A good story takes us anywhere in time and space and introduces us to a wealth of experiences we will never have in real life" (Unkovich 2011).

Do you have a story you read once or had read to you that still impacts you? Mine was Mary Poppins. The way she brought magic and fun to everyday occurrences still reminds me that each day can be what we want it to be, and it is up to us to bring that joy to those around us. Hearing this story read to me by my parents, followed by other influential stories like Charlotte's Web, certainly had a part in making me an empathetic person today.

Empathy is a powerful emotion that can be gained by actively engaging with fiction. These influential stories allow us to connect, feel empathy, righteous indignation, and caring. Providing these stories to either be read alone or in a class setting can help to build a caring community. "Moreover, enhancement of empathic skills through fiction reading can contribute to people's goals of who they want to be in their lives, such as to become a person that cares for other people's welfare" (Bal and Veltkamp 2013). Sometimes one class's empathy and resulting behaviors can have a positive effect on the entire school community. This is one reason the One Book, One School event meets with such success. With guidance from the school librarian, many connections can be made because of that one book. Making available an abundance of additional books for further reading may have an "absolute sleeper" effect. "Absolute sleeper effects occur when the effects of a manipulation do not present themselves immediately, but manifest themselves over time. Absolute sleeper effects in fiction research assume that the effects of fiction reading on empathy will increase over time rather than present itself directly after the experience" (Bal and Veltkamp 2013). A grading period, semester, or even a school year of reading books that invoke empathy may have a lasting cumulative effect.

For younger learners, one can create a multisensory experience during which students' hearts and minds are touched. This sensory experience enables students to identify with characters to thus build their understanding of others and exposes children to universal themes like love and family. This provides the framework upon which empathy is developed.

As Kevin Cordi in an article for Teaching Tolerance said, "Much of my most powerful teaching came from stories. Instead of relying on a textbook, we can encourage students to engage with the history of their country, their communities, and their own lives through stories" (2017). As you begin preparing for another school year, take a look at your collection and pull out some books to offer to your staff to read that first week of school, and beyond.

Works Cited

Bal, Punyasloka, and Martijn Veltkamp. "How Does Fiction Reading Influence Empathy? An Experimental Investigation on the Role of Emotional Transportation." PloS one (2013).

Cordi, Kevin. "Stories Are Our Greatest Teacher." Teaching Tolerance (November 2017). https://www.tolerance.org/magazine/stories-are-our-greatest-teacher

Unkovich, Anna. "The Power of Story: To Teach, To Reach, To Inspire." Kappan 92 (March 2011): 58-62.