Essentially, Smith (2005) examined empathy and altruism using a large, nationally representative sample of American adults from the 2002 and 2004 General Social Surveys (4).  The findings directly support my research on pathos in Picasso's Guernica. Smith found that empathy is strongly associated with altruistic values and prosocial behaviors, and that these traits are significantly higher among those who are religiously engaged, socially connected, and supportive of government assistance for the disadvantaged (Smith 14-16). Importantly, the study also reported that women scored significantly higher on empathy than men, and that individuals raised with a maternal caregiver tended to be more empathic as adults (Smith 22-23). While Guernica depicts the horrors of war, Smith's research suggests that viewers who are already predisposed to empathy — particularly women and those with strong social or spiritual ties — may experience a heightened pathos response, feeling compassion for the suffering figures as if they were close others. Additionally, Smith's finding that empathy correlates with support for helping the less fortunate reinforces the idea that Guernica can serve not merely as an aesthetic object but as a moral catalyst, evoking the same empathic concern that leads to real-world prosocial action (Smith 35-37).