Social media is often assumed to foster empathy, yet there is little evidence to support this claim. In this project, I immerse myself in TikTok as both researcher and user to examine what happens to this deeply human capacity when it encounters short-form videos, infinite scroll, and algorithmic curation. By analyzing common genres, I explore how empathy is expressed and understood within the platform’s fast-paced environment.

This project asks whether genuine empathy can meaningfully exist on TikTok, or whether the platform’s structures encourage a version of empathy that is shaped by its design. Through this work, I aim to better understand how digital spaces influence the ways we connect, respond, and relate to others.