Willamette Valley Nonviolent Communication

Willamette Valley Nonviolent Communication Facilitating the growth of Nonviolent Communication practice in the Mid Willamette Valley of Oregon

My ConcernsIn the last couple of years, it appears that a concern about "toxic empathy" has blossomed, raising my concer...
11/27/2025

My Concerns

In the last couple of years, it appears that a concern about "toxic empathy" has blossomed, raising my concern that one problematic form of empathy is being over-scrutinized without clear differentiation, possibly causing a vital form of empathy to be condemned along with possibly problematic form. The discussions seem to stem from a single 2016 book by psychologist Paul Bloom, “Against Empathy: The Case for Rational Compassion.”

Bloom’s arguments emphasize problems that might arise with intense ‘emotional empathy.’ He describes it as “the act of coming to experience the world as you think someone else does.” This is experiencing the other's feelings (pain, fear, joy, etc.) within oneself to such a depth that they feel like one's own. Over-identification with the feelings of another could lead to personal (or empathic) distress in the observer .

My Concerns In the last couple of years, it appears that a concern about "toxic empathy" has blossomed, raising my concern that one problematic form of empat

America is amped up on fear and loathing. For some, a natural response to their elevated levels of cultural cortisol mig...
11/27/2025

America is amped up on fear and loathing. For some, a natural response to their elevated levels of cultural cortisol might be to seek shelter in a remote cabin. For others, ease from stress might simply involve dialing back the news feeds and seeking the shelter of a loving conversation.

Nonviolent Communication (NVC) is like that red metal box in the hallway with a lever you pull; the box is ignored until there's an emergency, and then how many forget just where to find it?

Judging from the response to our recent offers for training, perhaps our culture is rushing towards the exits, hoping to find the red box in time to save the structure from collapse.

This month, we started our third year of teaching high school juniors and seniors the basics of NVC, as part of the Behavioral Health/Human Services curriculum offered through the School District's Career Tech Education Center.

America is amped up on fear and loathing. For some, a natural response to their elevated levels of cultural cortisol might be to seek shelter in a remote cabin.

Practitioners of Nonviolent Communication (NVC) sometime bristle at the use of “nonviolent”, preferring instead the word...
09/22/2025

Practitioners of Nonviolent Communication (NVC) sometime bristle at the use of “nonviolent”, preferring instead the word “compassionate.”

So, let’s look at why Rosenberg might have chosen that word:

Marshall could be provocative in his teaching, and he did that on purpose, like any good teacher does: to stir students up a little bit. The idea that our thoughts and words can be violent stimulates thinking about it.

https://www.willamettevalleynvc.org/2025/03/21/what-is-inherently-violent-about-our-communication/

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