#34: Against Empathy, Altruism, Sex Ratio Regulation | Robert Sapolsky Father-Offspring Interviews

Episode 34 of Father-Offspring Interviews. Topics in this episode include the legitimacy of altruism, downsides of empathy, and biological regulations of birth ratios.
NOTE: Captions are embedded on YouTube, so be sure to activate them in the video settings.

0:00: Intro
0:51: Question 1 (Empathy and altruism)
24:04: Question 2 (Factor regulation sex ratios)

[bebe]

I got 5 of his books and first thing I can easily say is, the prices are super decent that I couldn't believe it, I mean, compared with other writers, prof. Salposky is a gem ❤❤. Thank you for all your work, authenticity and contributions! ❤

[kengilliland]

Thanks for sharing these Facts, our country ( USA ) needs more Facts to survive our crazy times.

[Subfightr]

Yay! Every time I see one of these new to me, it brightens my day. Thank you both for taking the time to do and share this with everyone. Y'all make the world a better place.

[Flow_with_G]

I've been listening to Behave every evening for at least an hour...for a few months now. Sometimes I switch to Determined, for a change 😊. I hope to know them by heart ❤️

[greatedges]

Thank you! Very interesting and enlightening subjects as always. My now quite aged brain cells always swell just a tad thanks to this program.

[KeithCooper-Albuquerque]

Thanks for another great episode! I am learning so much!

[dianaonaespinel]

I get fascinating every episode thank you for sharing knowledge with us Dr. Sapolsky.

[Emily-pixe]

I have Determined but I’m still reading through Behave. I’ve been enjoy it so much ❤

[michaelsee]

Thank you.... I learn so much from these talks.

[yaongingyfmm]

Against Empathy by Paul Bloom is a great read, if you are empathic or interested in understanding, the mechanisms of empathy.
There is a scale: sympathy, empathy, compasion. Sympathy means you can understand someone's pain, you have a refference for it. Empathy involves actually being able to feel, that said pain. Compassion means that you are willing to do something, to alleviate someone's pain.
As prof. Sapolsky said, it's not easy to be empathic, and in some circumstances it can be detrimental...

[ardentenquirer]

I’m not exactly swimming in shame, so let me prove it: I think Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers is a literary gem. But if you really want to blow some minds, Determined: A Life Without Free Will should be required reading in every science and philosophy course at university. Heck, let’s make a Coles Notes version mandatory for high schoolers too! Sure, it might throw a wet blanket over their holiday cheer, but who doesn’t love a gift that screams, “Merry Christmas, you’re not in control of anything!”

[Curiouscreature]

Thank you so much for these wonderful mind bites!

[towzone]

I’m altruistic because it makes the world a better place. I rarely get reciprocation.
But I’m AuDHD and not like normal people.
I fix problems I see when in the world like getting a shopping cart or debris out of the street because it needs to be done.

I experience too much empathy. I am overwhelmed by other people’s emotions.

[johnc]

Determined is awesome, i vibe with these two beautiful people. Godspeed

[mcgee]

I take the book "Determined" with me to the coffee shop, and it really pisses off a lot of people. Makes me so happy.😊

[watcher]

I wonder if the high levels of empathy that some people show are based on what they think they needed at a time in their life, probably most often as small children. Interesting, if not a little depressing, information about males. Though, perhaps the most compelling argument I've ever heard for men to get on board in terms of wanting equality of outcome.

[ms.communication]

Interesting topics this week!
Thank you for your show.

[noone-tb]

You should put your best quotes to music so we can all chill a bit while being reminded of the subject, chillstep is ideal.

[shaneward_adhdreimagined]

An interesting sidenote on empathy and its relation to neurodivergence (or more specifically ADHD) that I've recently done a little exploring is the tendency to view our personal empathic sensitivity as evidence of real marginalisation (of the other).

In light of recent events it struck me of how wildly off kilter empathy seemed globally - and what I've come to realise is that most people don't appreciate that empathy is not proof of rightness, its proof of connection - and so my ideology/causes structures my empathy (wondering whether one could link it to your talk on cognitive biases).

In ADHD it's a function of our emotion dysregulation, or hypersensitivity, but that is always driven by perception.

[XYZ]

Love this content, this should be teached at highschool level. Thank you so much!