Rob, as a software engineer at google, I would not expect you to to be able to relate to those without opportunities. In fact, there is some evidence that utilizing your brain to solve technical problems can restrict its ability to empathize. Of course amazon has no gun, but that does not mean that poverty in itself is not violent.
As you like science and data, here is a read for you:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/10/121030161416.ht...
Perhaps he's empathic enough to realize what it's like to have few choices, then have a well-meaning but paternalistic social reformer swoop in and take some of those choices away, pat you on the head, and drive off back to his nice neighborhood.
There's another way of thinking about it, that involves no paternalistic behavior. The government forces you to put an accurate price on transactions. For example, say you have a year-old good-condition car. As I understand it, you can sell it for around what it's worth, considering circumstances, or you can give it away, but you can't sell it for $50.
I don't have any good links or books unfortunately. There are a few people close to me that have a really great ability to empathize with others. They instantly understand social situations that will take me forever to get the dynamic. They respond to the needs of others much more quickly. I've tried to learn as much from them as possible - and often remember them when making decisions that have an impact others. But, I still have a long way to go.
It's just an intuition, but solving problems as a job might make you see every issue or bad situation as something to solve.
Not that it's wrong, but the focus slightly shifts from what the people are feeling to how the problem could or should be solved, and we might take less time or emotional resource to empathize. The situation itself can also be seen less as a tragedy than some sad transitory state waiting to be solved, and we'd be less sorry for someone if somewhere we think it might be just temporary.
I'd too would love to find studies or evidence about this subject.
The study shows that analytical thinking prevents/reduces empathy in the moments right after engaging in it (few seconds break). It doesn't, as far as I can see, prove anything about long term effects, and in fact, it specifically says that at rest, people naturally switch between the states.
