Similarities
"FOCUS ON SIMILARITIES BETWEEN ONESELF AND OTHERS.
Activities which focus children's attention on similarities between themselves and another person (or other persons) is effective in increasing affective and cognitive empathy (Black and Phillips 1982; Brehm, Fletcher, and West 1988; Clarke 1984; Dixon 1980; and Hughes, Tingle, and Sawin 1981).
Identifying these similarities is the logical next step following the focus on one's own feelings. As Brehm, Fletcher, and West (1988) point out:"
Virtually all considerations of the empathic process have noted the close connections between responding empathically to another person and perceiving that person as similar to oneself (p. 8). By way of example, Hahn (1980) found that crosscultural empathy is enhanced if classroom activities focus first on the similarities between other cultures and one's own society and only later begin calling attention to differences."