A deep dive into the impacts of empathy on design learning and teaching

In the field of design, empathy, which is often addressed in design research and practice, has also become an essential aspect of design education. It is both one of the core components of learning processes and a foundation for teaching activities. This paper aims to explore and discuss the impacts of empathy on learning and teaching in the relevant design education literature. Regarding this, eight themes appear in this study as cognitive, affective, interactive, collaborative, operative, perceptive, formative and connective impacts. While all these themes have considerable effects on the learning process, the impacts of empathy on teaching activities are relatively limited. In relation to the themes, research gaps are addressed, methodological and pedagogical implications for further studies are also presented.