Words Matter: Empathetic Interpretation Can Increase Children’s Positive Perceptions of a Disliked Insect

Abstract: Informal science education presentations offer a promising avenue for conservation education. Understanding how to cultivate empathy for animals, particularly species viewed negatively, can help design programs that promote compassion towards animals, strengthen connections to conservation, and enhance conservation efficacy. This study used a pre/post Personal Meaning Map method to evaluate changes in children’s attitudes, empathy, and knowledge. We investigated the effects of two types of interpretive conservation presentations (ecological or empathetic) on children’s personal meanings (empathy, attitude, and knowledge) toward cockroaches. Summer camp children (7−12 yrs) were randomly assigned one of two interpretive presentation styles: (1) an ecological knowledge‐focused presentation, or (2) the same information presented in an empathetic style. A total of 332 words/phrases were recorded from 12 camp sessions, with 180 participants. The word cockroach had fewer negative associations after both presentations, suggesting that either style of presentation reduces children’s negativity towards cockroaches. However, positive and naturalistic associations only increased after the empathy presentation, suggesting that a larger positive shift is achieved using an empathetic presentation.

Check out Dr. Emily Geest’s presentation on this study at our 2026 Empathy Summit through the tile at the bottom of this page!

Originally published in Zoo Biology.