Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI)

About the IRI

The Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI), developed by Mark H. Davis in 1983, is a 28-item multidimensional measure of empathy. It is the most widely cited empathy self-report instrument in social and personality psychology.

The Four Subscales

IRI divides empathy into four 7-item subscales: Perspective Taking (cognitive, other-oriented), Fantasy (cognitive, self-oriented), Empathic Concern (affective, other-oriented), and Personal Distress (affective, self-oriented). Each subscale ranges 0–28.

Interpreting Your Results

Higher Perspective Taking and Empathic Concern scores generally indicate stronger other-oriented empathy and predict prosocial behavior. Higher Fantasy scores reflect imaginative involvement with fictional characters.

Higher Personal Distress reflects self-oriented anxiety in tense situations, not greater empathy. The IRI has no clinical cutoffs and is intended as a self-reflection tool, not a diagnostic instrument.

References

• Davis, M. H. (1983). Measuring individual differences in empathy: Evidence for a multidimensional approach. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 44(1), 113-126. 10.1037/0022-3514.44.1.113
• Davis, M. H. (1980). A multidimensional approach to individual differences in empathy. JSAS Catalog of Selected Documents in Psychology, 10, 85.
• Interpersonal Reactivity Index – UC Denver Wellbeing: https://www.ucdenver.edu/docs/librariesprovider54/wellbeing-documents/interpersonalreactivityindex.pdf
• IRI – Arab Psychology DB: https://db.arabpsychology.com/scales/empathy-interpersonal-reactivity-index-iri/