Here’s How to Build Empathy and Form Deeper Connections

Here’s How to Build Empathy and Form Deeper Connections

This feature is part of Reader’s Digest’s August/September 2026 print cover story, “The New Genius,” where we share tips on how to master valuable skills in an AI-driven world. As an inherently social species, we have relied on our ability to empathize—to understand and share in each other’s feelings—since the dawn of human history. This quality has been a key to our survival and success, helping us better communicate and cooperate. But does emp…

How the American right came to hate empathy

Books by conservative authors argue that excessive empathy threatens Western civilisation, while others contend that cognitive empathy is essential for human survival.

How Empathy Became a Political Weapon - Mpelembe Network

The War on Feeling: How the American Right Reframed Empathy as a Vice Fri, July 24 2026 /Mpelembe Media/ — Modern American conservative thought has increasingly shifted toward a vocal rejection of empathy, labeling the trait as a dangerous moral failing. Prominent right-wing authors and influencers argue that prioritizing emotional understanding leads to societal decline and prevents leaders from making difficult but vital decisions. This perspe…