> [clip] And
> mimicry/modelling/whatever you want to call it is, on some accounts
> at least, empathy in action. To be emotionally in accord is a more
> common use of the word, but from this point of view is not required.
> (Developmentally, mimicry would come first, and emotional
> resonance later, building on it.)
Have you seen the studies were they've found that emotional state is
effected by facial features. That is to say, if you smile you will "feel"
happier than if you frown. This suggests that emotions may be as much a
result of feedback from the body as from the mind. This would make
mimicry a tool for the transference of emotional states from person to
person (empathy). So that if you saw someone smiling and you smiled back
and felt a little better for it, it could be seen as empathy at work.
Is that close to your point, or did I just murder it completely?
-Prof. Tim