Mike Carruthers

If you need a shoulder to cry on, you might want to skip your 20-something friends and go find someone in midlife.

Research suggests that empathy increases as we age, often peaking somewhere in our 40s or 50s.

And women tend to score higher than men on measures of empathy.

One large study published by the American Psychological Association found that traits like empathy and compassion tend to rise from young adulthood into middle age.

It's likely because people accumulate more life experience and emotional complexity over time.

There's also a practical explanation.

A lot of middle-aged adults, especially women, are simultaneously caring for children and helping aging parents.

That constant emotional multitasking may sharpen their ability to read people and respond in a supportive way.

In other words, it's not just personality, it's practice.

So if you want someone who truly gets it, your best bet may be someone who's been around long enough to have seen and felt a lot of what life can throw at you.

And that is something you should know.

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I'm Mike Carruthers.

Thanks for listening today to Something You Should Know.

I know you like interesting and thought-provoking conversations and ideas because you listen to something you should know.

So let me recommend another podcast I know you will enjoy.

It's The Jordan Harbinger Show.

Jordan has a real talent for getting his guests to share stories and offer thought-provoking insights.