This paper presents the theory that altruistic motives develop out of the synthesis of empathic distress and the child's increasingly sophisticated cognitive development, especially his level of self-other differentiation. An examination of empathy and the sense of other is included, followed by a discussion of empathic distress, various forms of synpathetic distress, cognitive mediation, personal and existential guilt, and some hypotheses about socialization that derive from the theory. A review of research on object permanence in infants, role taking in early childhood, and identity in later childhood is also included. (SET)