dents."
The intervention was built on the findings of two smaller experiments the researchers did that proved empathy changes teachers' responses and that students respond positively to the new classroom dynamic.
In one experiment, researchers found that teachers who read a brief article suggesting "good teacher-student relationships are critical for students to learn self-control" were more likely to show empathetic responses to students than teachers who read an article that suggested "punishment is critical for teachers to take control of a classroom." Teachers who read the first article were also less likely to label students as "trouble makers."
In a second experiment, researchers surveyed college students, asking them to imagine themselves as middle-school students who had disrupted class by repeatedly walking around to throw away trash. Their teacher responded by either assigning detention and referring them to the principal's office, a punitive response, or by asking them about their misbehavior and moving the wastebasket closer to their desk, an empathetic response. Survey respondents said they would respect the teacher with the empathetic response far more, and they also said they would feel more motivated to behave better in the future under empathetic conditions.
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