To better understand how using a novel in a child and youth care classroom impacts empathy in relation to gender diversity, a qualitative study was constructed. Data were gathered using an online questionnaire administered to child and youth care practitioner students. These students had engaged with the novel Scarborough (Hernandez, C. [2017]. Scarborough: A novel. Arsenal Pulp) in a course about foundational therapeutic knowledge. The study sought to identify: (a) what perceptions and emotions were evoked by engaging with the narrative of a young person exploring gender; (b) what, if any, aspects of empathetic connection emerged in relation to this exploration; and (c) what, if any, connections were made to the theoretical material taught in the course. The study incorporated child-and-youth-care-specific and critical social theory frameworks, and theorized about evocative objects and the concept of empathetic distress. The findings suggest that novel-based teaching can elicit from students, or help them express, higher-order empathy in relation to gender diversity, and that a narrative about the struggle to live as one’s genuine self is one possible pathway towards achieving this empathetic connection. Additional research is needed to investigate these preliminary findings and to address bias in the existing literature on adult education and the use of fiction.

中文翻译：

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虚构，同理心和性别多样性

为了更好地理解在儿童和青少年护理教室中使用小说如何影响与性别多样性相关的同理心，我们进行了定性研究。使用对儿童和青少年护理从业人员学生进行管理的在线问卷收集数据。这些学生在有关基础治疗知识的课程中与小说《斯卡伯勒》（Hernandez，C. [2017]。斯卡伯勒：小说。阿森纳浆粕）互动。该研究试图确定：（a）参与探索性别的年轻人的叙述引起了什么看法和情感；（b）与这项探索有关的共情联系的方面（如果有的话）出现了哪些方面；（c）与课程中所教授的理论材料之间有什么联系（如有）。这项研究纳入了针对儿童和青少年的特定且重要的社会理论框架，并提出了关于唤起对象和移情困扰概念的理论。研究结果表明，基于小说的教学可以从学生身上引起，或帮助他们表达与性别多样性有关的更高层次的同理心，而关于为自己的真实自我而奋斗的叙事是实现这种同情心联系的一种可能途径。需要进行其他研究以调查这些初步发现，并解决有关成人教育和小说使用的现有文献中的偏见。而关于为自己的真实自我而奋斗的叙述是实现这种移情联系的一种可能途径。需要进行其他研究以调查这些初步发现，并解决有关成人教育和小说使用的现有文献中的偏见。而关于为自己的真实自我而奋斗的叙述是实现这种移情联系的一种可能途径。需要进行其他研究以调查这些初步发现，并解决有关成人教育和小说使用的现有文献中的偏见。