Empathy and Pro-Social Behavior: The Mediating Role of Moral Emotions

The aim of this study was to examine the mediating role of the moral emotions in the relationship between empathy and pro-social behavior. The research method was a descriptive correlational study using structural equation modeling. The sample consisted of 508 senior high school students (257 girls, 251 boys) who were selected from high school in city of Shiraz during the academic year of  2016-2017 by cluster sampling method. The participants completed the Basic Empathy Questionnaire (Jolliffe & Farrington, 2006), the Guilt and Shame Proneness Scale (Cohen,  Wolf, Panter & Insko, 2011) and the Pro-social Tendencies Measures (Carlo & Randall, 2002). The results of structural equation modeling indicated that a) empathy had a direct and positive effect on the pro-social behavior and emotions of guilt and shame, b) emotions of guilt and shame had direct and positive effect on pro-social behaviors, and c) emotions of guilt and shame mediated the relationship between empathy and pro-social behavior. The findings suggested the importance of moral emotions in pro-social behavior