Between Buber and Mbiti: Foundations for a relational theory of empathy in the twenty-first century

Empathy is recognised as an important human capacity for addressing contemporary crises such as inter-personal violence, social fragmentation, and mental distress. While psychology and neuroscience have elucidated empathy’s affective and cognitive mechanisms, its ontological and ethical foundations remain underexplored. Buber’s dialogical philosophy and Mbiti’s concepts of the I–Thou encounter and ‘I am because we are’, respectively, conceive of personhood as constituted through relationships rather than isolated subjectivity, laying an ontological foundation for empathy. However, dominant models such as the trait-based models of empathy by M.H. Davis, which define empathy as a multi-dimensional personality trait comprising perspective-taking, fantasy, empathic concern, and personal distress, continue to dominate conversations on empathy. A relational framing of empathy as a triadic process of affective resonance, cognitive understanding, and ethical responsiveness is imperative. These dimensions are inherently relational and mutually reinforcing. The erosion of relational consciousness underlies many global crises, whereas empathy, conceived as relational attunement, would foster healing, dialogue, and cooperation across cultural and institutional contexts.