Research overview: emotional contagion and empathy-related responses in cats

Whether cats catch or respond to the emotions of others is an active research question. This overview surveys studies examining whether cats are affected by their owners' emotional states, respond to human or conspecific distress, and show physiological or behavioural synchrony with people. It discusses evidence that cats detect and adjust to human emotion, the limits of current data, and the methodological challenges of testing empathy-related processes in a species that masks responses. It situates cats within comparative work on emotional contagion in dogs and other animals. The topic addresses the contested question of how deeply cats are attuned to the feelings of those around them.