This presentation was first given at the NAFSA Region V conference in Schaumburg, IL, on October 19, 2018, 8:30am, and repeated at the Region VI conference in Columbus, OH, on November 6, 2018, 11:30am.

As each new generation comes into the public eye as college students and then as new employees, the past generations do not necessarily describe the upcoming generation as empathetic, and current generations do not necessarily look back on their ancestors as being empathetic either, so how do teacher and learner enter into a productive dialogue about how to grow in empathy?  The attached presentation offers tools for facilitating conversations about how to grow in intercultural empathy.

Dr. Barbara Kappler and Dr. Yuliya Kartoshkina from the University of Minnesota, along with Annette Benson from Purdue, team up to:

1.Identify key findings from educational and cultural neuroscience that can provide insights into how the functions of our brains impact intercultural learning.

2.Discover the complexity of intercultural facilitation and explore how effective facilitation techniques can benefit students’ intercultural learning.

3.Review several examples and scenarios involving intercultural facilitation techniques and analyze how you might apply these in your own practice.

4.Become familiar with several models and teaching tools to enhance intercultural empathy. 

The "Teaching the skills of intercultural communication and empathy across the generations" presentation in this collection references this article; specifically, "Whatever the reason, GenMe seems to lack much of the basic empathy that previous generations thought was human nature. Whether it is a true lack of empathy or simply that they are misunderstood depends on your point of view. It has even been said that those who accuse them of being less empathetic are in fact showing a lack of empathy themselves.”

Of interest to the preparation of the presentation on "Teaching the skills of intercultural communication and empathy across the generations" was the following:  

“Dr. Sara Konrath, Assistant Professor at the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at Indiana University and one of the authors of the 2009 study, spoke with BTR to discuss its findings.

“’What’s interesting is that [our study] didn’t look at the attitudes of previous generations toward college students, but actually surveyed the beliefs of college students themselves,’ Konrath explains. ‘When asked about some core empathy traits, we tended to see responses such as, “I don’t think about others when they’re in need, when someone is suffering it doesn’t move me,” and so on.’"

“It’s well-researched that there’s a correlation between reading and empathy. Reading strengthens your empathy muscles by requiring the reader to put himself into the characters’ shoes and see the world from an alternate perspective for a while.

“Knowing this, it’s no surprise to us that a strong percentage of the people that said books don’t play an important role in their lives are less likely to be able to see both sides of an argument. They are also less inclined to associate with people with differing opinions from their own.

“Likewise, people who profess a passion for books are more likely to see both sides of an argument and even more likely to enjoy interacting with people with differing opinions from their own."

Two articles which take opposing views of research on Millennials as Generation Nice

“The lack of empathy between Baby Boomers and Millennials isn’t the result of an inability to understand the attitudes and motivations of people born into a different generation. I think it’s caused by a deep-rooted conviction that a whole generation has a lesser capacity for empathy than your own.

“So before you judge another, judge yourself. Is your colleague apathetic to the needs of the business, incapable of understanding others, obsolete or inexperienced, and has a lot to learn…or is it you?”

"Millennials are more accepting of differences, not just among gays, women and minorities but in everyone. ‘There are many, many subcultures, and you can dip into them and search around. I prefer that to you're either supermainstream or a riot grrrl,’ says Tavi Gevinson, a 17-year-old who runs Rookie, an online fashion magazine, from her bedroom when she's not at school. It's hard, in other words, to join the counterculture when there's no culture. ‘There's not this us-vs.-them thing now. Maybe that's why millennials don't rebel,’ she says.”

“Replace the word 'millennial' with any individual race, religion or gender and you’d rightly spark mass outrage. Somehow, though, it is okay to make sweeping generalizations about the largest and most diverse generation in American history, at 81.1 million of the population, born between 1981 and 2000."

This journal article by Konrath, O-Brien, and Hsing lays out in detail the changes in dispositional empathy across the generations.  

Richard Kahlenberg argues that "until we actually diversify institutions by economic status, so that peers and classmates can explain the challenges faced by working-class people, teaching empathy through role-playing may be the next best thing."

Chris Grabau offers practical strategies for adding empathy skill-building into the university classroom

The results of Twenge, Freeman, and Campbell "genearally support the 'Generation Me' view of generational differences rather than the 'generation We' or no change views."

Nadine Dolby's recollections of a case study called "Toys for Haiti" is an anecdote with which many of us charged with teaching empathy can relate.

"Rebekah Fitzsimmons, a 34-year-old English professor at Georgia Tech, is a millennial.

"So are some of her students.

"But despite being members of the same generation, there are some pretty big differences between them."  See the article for more...

The Intentional Workplace (2014) blog includes the pointed reminder:  "To Have Empathy for You, I Have to be Able to SEE You."

The Psychology Today (Segal, 2019) article was written in response to the government shutdown, but her comments about power and empathy are important for any time. She says, 

"First, those at the top do not need to attend to the behaviors of those below them, especially in the ways that those below have to attend to the behaviors of their superiors. Bosses come in, tell people what to do, and then their orders are followed.  Those below must be aware of the mood, needs, opinions of their bosses.  And the lower you are on the work or social order, the more moods, needs and opinions of people you must attend to who are above you.  So, lower hierarchy folks are better at reading others than are those at the top.  Second, getting to the top may be easier for those without empathy.  They can be laser-focused on advancement and doing what they need to do to gain power without being distracted or emotionally touched by the needs and circumstances of others.  Brain science backs this up.  Neurologically, people in power attend less to surroundings, to the behaviors of others, and have deeper brain activity for self-focus.  They don’t readily attend to others in ways that we expect to show empathy.  People in power can be empathic, but they need to work at it, to want to feel for others...."

From the abstract: "Promoted as an emotional pre-requisite for cross-cultural understanding, the notion of empathy connects with tourism in a variety of ways. This article explores this connection by considering the current and potential role of empathy in tourism encounters and tourism studies. The discussion develops a critical understanding of the positioning of empathy in tourism, highlighting the importance of examining empathy’s limitations and risks. It is argued that important differences lay between an unquestioned or non-reflective empathy and a more ‘unsettled’ empathy, which is reflective and renders possible a productive sense of shame. The article concludes by considering the possibilities of and for empathy within tourism and tourism studies, and by suggesting questions to take the links between tourism and empathy forward."

Using Purdue University President Mitch Daniel's 2018 commencement speech and NPR's "Should We Have Empathy for Those We Hate," this activity explains tribalism and empathy.