Research Initiation: Development and Initial Validation of an Engineering Empathy Scale

Austin Peay State University, Clarksville TN

Investigators

Abstract

The problems engineers are called to solve are complex, not just from an intellectually rigorous perspective, but also from the myriad of societal, ethical, and human elements that must be considered in the solution. To this end, empathy is an essential skill needed by engineers to understand these complex problems and provide solutions that meet the needs of society. Empathy, however, is devalued within dominant engineering culture and largely not included in collegiate engineering formation. To correct this gap in engineering formation, more researchers must study empathy in engineering and create interventions and tools related to empathy training for engineers. To be able to assess and equip a more empathetic engineer, empathetic capabilities relevant and specific to engineering must be measurable. The aim of this project is to create an Engineering Empath Scale (EES) to measure empathy in pre-career engineers, practicing engineers, and engineering educators. Through the use of engineering specific empathetic scenarios, the EES will overcome a current issue in engineering formation, a disconnect between knowledge of empathy generally and its role within the discipline of engineering. Through knowledge of the role of empathy within engineering, engineers will be better able to understand the context, values, and driving forces of their work and relate to and communicate with those impacted by their work. These traits will allow engineers to better holistically serve society. This project will also introduce the PI to the field of engineering education and increase the number of researchers studying empathy in engineering. Currently, few studies describe scenarios of empathetic displays within engineering practice and education and no quantitative scale exists to assess an engineer’s empathetic abilities in engineering specific scenarios. The development of the EES will be driven by two key research questions: How is empathy conceptually perceived, experienced, and shown in engineering specific situations? and Can engineering specific situations be used to measure empathy in engineering students, faculty, and practitioners? Theoretical guidance for development of the EES comes from the three constructs of empathy: cognitive, affective, and behavioral, and a model for empathy in engineering. Using this framework, the research team will conduct semi-structured focus groups with practicing engineers and engineering educators to obtain detailed descriptions of empathetic thoughts, emotions, and displays within the specific context of engineering practice and education activities. Focus group narratives will be analyzed to produce overarching themes of empathy in engineering. The themes that result will be used to develop a large set of questions regarding empathy in engineering specific scenarios. This initial question set will go through expert and novice review and coding agreement between panel members will be used to select the question set for initial validation. Initial validation and reliability of the EES will be determined through confirmatory factor analysis of engineering students’ responses to the EES. Accomplishment of this proposal will result in a quantitative assessment tool, the EES, to be made publicly available so that engineering educators, and companies that employee engineers, can use the tool for reflection and indication of empathy training effectiveness. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.