Although many consider empathy to be a basic human quality, it's often still missing in our day-to-day lives. One reason is because many confuse empathy with its closely related cousin sympathy. The two qualities are definitely related, but the key to demonstrating empathy is in knowing the difference.

Is empathy a quality or a skill?

Daniel Goleman, author of the book Emotional Intelligence, says that “empathy is basically the ability to understand others' emotions.” Empathy is a skill that can be developed and, as with most interpersonal skills, empathizing (at some level) comes naturally to most people.

Is empathy a human quality?

Empathy is besides having awareness of the feelings and emotions of other people, taking action to provide a favorable solution. One of the key element of emotional intelligence, it is a link between self and others.