Modeling empathy: building a link between affective and cognitive processes

Abstract

Computational modeling of empathy has recently become an increasingly popular way of studying human relations. It provides a way to increase our understanding of the link between affective and cognitive processes and enhance our interaction with artificial agents. However, the variety of fields contributing to empathy research has resulted in isolated approaches to modeling empathy, and this has led to various definitions of empathy and an absence of common ground regarding underlying empathic processes. Although this diversity may be useful in that it allows for an in-depth examination of various processes linked to empathy, it also may not yet provide a coherent theoretical picture of empathy. We argue that a clear theoretical positioning is required for collective progress. The aim of this article is, therefore, to call for a holistic and multilayered view of a model of empathy, taken from the rich background research from various disciplines. To achieve this, we present a comprehensive background on the theoretical foundations, followed by the working definitions, components, and models of empathy that are proposed by various fields. Following this introduction, we provide a detailed review of the existing techniques used in AI research to model empathy in interactive agents, focusing on the strengths and weaknesses of each approach. We conclude with a discussion of future directions in this emerging field.