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Elnaz J. Afouse, Ph.D., is a 2025 graduate of the Ph.D. Program in Couple and Family Therapy at Antioch University, New England

Dissertation Committee:

  • Kevin Lyness, PhD, Chairperson
  • Lucille Byno, PhD, Committee Member
  • Dorothy Florian-Lacy, EdD, Committee Member

Keywords

empathy, children’s picture books, early childhood, iEPIC coding system, emotional development, prosocial behavior, adult-facilitated reading

Document Type

Dissertation

Publication Date

2025

Abstract

This study examines the presence and nature of empathic content in best-selling children’s picture books, with a focus on developmental relevance for preschool-aged readers. Using a modified version of the iEPIC empathy coding system, 10 titles from the New York Times best-seller list were analyzed to assess the frequency and complexity of three empathy-related constructs: Emotion or State Description (ESD), Exploring Emotion or State (EES), and Empathic Understanding or Concern (EUC). Results indicate that while all books contained some empathy-related content, ESD3 (self-reflective emotional descriptions) and EUC2/EUC4 (understanding and helping others) were most prevalent, suggesting an emphasis on both intrapersonal awareness and other-directed concern. Although EES constructs were less frequent, their presence in select titles suggests that some books also engage young readers in early cognitive empathy and emotional inquiry. Importantly, several books integrated higher-level empathic behaviors, such as EUC4 and visual prosocial modeling, reinforcing themes of altruism and relational care. These findings support the use of carefully selected children’s literature as a valuable tool for empathy development, particularly when embedded within adult-facilitated reading experiences. Implications for bibliotherapy, parent-child reading practices, and early social-emotional learning interventions are discussed. This dissertation is available in open access at AURA (https://aura.antioch.edu) and OhioLINK ETD Center (https://etd.ohiolink.edu).

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ORCID No.: 0009-0001-0675-3076

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