I want to avoid some common implications of empathy: that it's mostly involuntary, and that it involves some re-experiencing of the other's feelings. I'm looking for a more general word (or, less ideally, short phrase) that could easily apply both to someone empathetic and to Hannibal Lecter.
On the other hand, I'm not looking for an overly general word like perspicacity or discernment; I'm hoping for something that's specifically about perceiving other people's emotions and motivations.
Ideally I'm hoping for a noun, but a verb ("to exercise this ability") or adjective ("possessed of the ability") would be helpful too.