Report · Culture

Empathy is very important to good leadership for three-quarters of Americans

Reading

In a Verasight survey of 1,000 U.S. adults conducted May 22 to 28, 2025, 74% of Americans said empathy is very or extremely important for being a good leader. Including 45% who said extremely important and 29% who said very important.

Another 17% said empathy is moderately important and 5% said slightly important. Few Americans said it is not at all important (1%). About 3% said they do not know.

Topline

response scale

Topline scale

74% of Americans say empathy is very or extremely important for being a good leader.

How important is the trait of empathy with others to being a good leader?

  • Extremely important 44.8%
  • Very important 29.3%
  • Moderately important 16.9%
  • Slightly important 4.6%
  • Don’t know 3.1%
  • Not important at all 1.2%

2025 · base n 1,000 · +/- 3.1%

Verasight AAPOR Omnibus Survey #2025-040

View source

Methodology

Full methodology
Mode
Verasight panel recruited via random address-based sampling, random person-to-person text messaging, and dynamic online targeting
Field dates
2025-05-22 → 2025-05-28
Base (unweighted)
1,000
Margin of error
+/- 3.1%
Module
Verasight AAPOR Omnibus Survey #2025-040

Source

  • 01
    Empathy is very important to good leadership for three-quarters of Americansreports.verasight.io/reports/verasight-aapor-omnibus-survey-2025-040

Citation

Verasight AAPOR Omnibus Survey #2025-040, fielded May 22-28, 2025, N=1,000 US adults age 18+, +/- 3.1%.

https://reports.verasight.io/reports/verasight-aapor-omnibus-survey-2025-040#how-important-is-the-trait-of-empathy-with-others-to-being-a-good-leader

Verasight survey methodology

How Verasight conducts surveys.

This page describes the Verasight general survey contract, separate from how the Data Library packages it. Each wave's specific field dates, sample sizes, and module breakdown are listed in that wave's report.

Mode
Verasight panel recruited via random address-based sampling, random person-to-person text messaging, and dynamic online targeting.
Population
US adults age 18+.
Sample design
Surveys are run as omnibus or single-topic waves. Omnibus waves are split into modules with their own respondent set, typically around one thousand respondents per module.
Field window
Each wave specifies its own field dates. Most omnibus waves field across roughly two weeks.
Weighting
Per-module weighting to CPS targets including age, race and ethnicity, sex, income, education, region, and metropolitan status.
Partisanship benchmark
Pew Research Center's NPORS benchmarking surveys, three-year running average.
Vote benchmark
2024 presidential vote population benchmarks.
Margin of error
Typically about plus or minus 3.4 to 3.6 percent per module at standard module sizes. Question-level MoE is recomputed when a base shrinks materially below the module baseline.
Reporting
Every wave is published as a standalone report at verasight.io/reports with full instrument and methodology.
Transparency
AAPOR transparency standards.

Wave-specific methodology, full weighting variable lists, and verbatim instrument text live in each report at verasight.io/reports.