PSYC 2630 - Developing Compassion: Science and Practice

2 credit hours
Compassion is often defined as a deep awareness of suffering combined with the intent to assuage it. Compassion calls forth our most noble and caring qualities: courage, acceptance, patience, understanding, non-judgment, sympathy, and generosity. However, it can be difficult to feel compassionate towards other people, especially when we ourselves feel overwhelmed or irritated. We may be tempted to dismiss compassion as rather obvious or trivial, but the scientific research demonstrates that compassion has powerful links with altruistic behavior, implicit biases, brain activity, the quality of our relationships, our effectiveness at work, and with our physical and mental health. A wealth of data also shows that compassion training reduces feelings of stress and burnout. Recent research studies indicate that individuals can increase their levels of compassion, both towards others and towards themselves, through a few weeks of practicing specific techniques. This course will combine academic inquiry into the field of compassion research (spanning cognitive psychology, social psychology, neuroscience, cultural psychology, and clinical psychology) with evidence-based experiential practices to meaningfully boost compassion.