Week 11: Prosocial Behaviour PDF

**Week 11: Prosocial Behaviour** **1. Definition of Prosocial Behaviour** Prosocial behaviour is defined as **acting with the goal of benefiting another person**. Key characteristics include: - **Action**: It is a **behaviour**, not just a thought or feeling. - **Intentional**: The act must...

**Week 11: Prosocial Behaviour** **1. Definition of Prosocial Behaviour** Prosocial behaviour is defined as **acting with the goal of benefiting another person**. Key characteristics include: - **Action**: It is a **behaviour**, not just a thought or feeling. - **Intentional**: The act must be done with the intention to help. - **Beneficiary**: The goal is to benefit **another person**. - Even if the help doesn\'t work out or the recipient doesn\'t want it, it remains prosocial if the intention was to help. - It can involve different types of benefits: financial, emotional, or physical. - **Not prosocial** if the benefit is accidental. The key is **intentionality**. **2. Examples of Prosocial Behaviour** - **Simple Prosocial Behaviours**: 1. Picking up something someone dropped 2. Giving money to a homeless person 3. Doing charity work 4. Helping family members move house - **Extreme Prosocial Behaviours**: 5. Running into a burning building to save someone 6. Jumping onto train tracks to save a person 7. Donating organs **3. Motivations for Prosocial Behaviour** Prosocial behaviours can be driven by **egoism** (self-interest) or **altruism** (selfless concern for others). **Egoism (Self-Interest)** - **Egoistic Helping Theory** suggests people help others primarily to benefit themselves, either directly or indirectly. - Possible benefits of helping (egoism): 1. Reciprocity (getting something in return) 2. Improved self-esteem or mood 3. Relief from negative states (e.g., guilt or distress) 4. Social approval and reputation 5. Investment for future help (social exchange) - **Example**: Karen volunteers at a sports club to increase her chances of being elected captain. **Social Exchange Theories: Egoism** - **Principle**: People will only help others if the benefits outweigh the costs. - **Benefits** may include future help, feeling good, or gaining social approval. - **Costs** could include time, effort, physical discomfort, or embarrassment. **Research Example**: **Piferi et al. (2006)** found that after the 9/11 attacks, people donated money primarily to relieve their own distress and because they anticipated receiving help in the future. **Altruism (Selflessness)** - **Definition**: Helping others **without expecting any personal gain**, even if it costs the helper. - **Example**: Peter donates blood regularly, motivated by compassion for those in need, with no personal benefit. - **Pure Altruism**: Helping others solely for their benefit, without ulterior motives. **Empathy and Altruism** - **Empathy**: The ability to understand and share the feelings of another. - **Empathy-Altruism Hypothesis**: Helping is motivated by empathy when the goal is to relieve another person's suffering, regardless of any personal benefit. - **Empathic Emotions**: Compassion, sympathy, tenderness, empathic anger. - If empathy is low, the motivation for helping is more likely to be **egoistic** (based on social exchange considerations, like avoiding guilt or gaining approval). **4. Research on Motivation for Prosocial Behaviour** **Piferi et al. (2006) -- 9/11 Study** - People helped after 9/11 to relieve personal distress (egoism) or due to empathy for the victims (altruism). - **Egoism**: 34% donated money to relieve personal distress. - **Altruism**: 1 in 5 helped because they saw others suffering. **Stock et al. (2009) -- Empathy Training** - Manipulating empathy levels showed that when empathy was high, people helped others even when they had an easy escape. - **Low empathy**: People were more likely to escape than help. **Slattery et al. (2012) -- Positive and Negative Emotions** - Positive emotional experiences (e.g., from a website) increased people\'s likelihood to donate or act prosocially. - **Mixed emotions** (positive and negative) did not increase prosocial behaviour, but positive or negative emotions alone did. **5. Factors Influencing Prosocial Behaviour** **Operant Conditioning** - Prosocial behaviour can be learned through rewards and punishments (e.g., good Samaritan laws, medals for helping). - **Example**: Parenting can shape prosocial behaviour by rewarding helpful actions. **Cognitive Dissonance** - When people see others in need but fail to help, it causes discomfort (dissonance), which may prompt future helping. **Social Learning Theory** - People learn prosocial behaviour through observation and modelling, including from media like video games and movies. **Affective Influence** - **Empathy**: Drives prosocial behaviour. The more empathetic you are, the more likely you are to help. **Cultural Influence** - Social and cultural norms shape how prosocial behaviour is expressed. - **Simpatía** cultures (Latin America and Spain) value amiable social qualities and helping others more than achievement, leading to higher levels of prosocial behaviour. **Mood and Prosocial Behaviour** - People in a **good mood** are more likely to help others, as seen in **Isen & Levin (1972)** where finding coins in a payphone increased the likelihood of helping others. - **The Feel-Good, Do-Good Effect**: Positive emotions lead to more prosocial acts. - **Bad Moods**: **Guilt** can increase helping (e.g., Harris et al., 1975), as people feel compelled to compensate for wrongdoing. **6. Evolutionary Perspectives on Prosocial Behaviour** **Darwin\'s Theory of Natural Selection** - Evolution favours behaviours that promote survival, and prosocial behaviour can enhance survival by helping others (especially kin). - Examples: Birds that alert others to predators at personal risk, or dolphins helping sick companions. **Kin Selection** - People are more likely to help relatives, as helping increases the chances of passing on shared genes (inclusive fitness). - **Burnstein et al. (1994)** found that in life-or-death situations, people prioritize helping close family members, especially younger individuals and females. **Reciprocity and Evolution** - The **Norm of Reciprocity**: People help others because they expect future help in return. - **Example**: Manuel helps his friend Javier because Javier helped him earlier. **7. The Bystander Effect** - **Darley & Latané (1968)**: People are less likely to help when there are more bystanders due to **diffusion of responsibility** and **pluralistic ignorance**. - **Fischer et al. (2011)**: A meta-analysis of 105 studies confirmed that helping decreases as the number of bystanders increases. **Factors Reducing the Bystander Effect:** - When the situation is perceived as dangerous or when bystanders know each other. - When bystanders are physically required to help, or when the perpetrator is present. **8. Factors That Inhibit Helping (Bystander Effect)** - **Pluralistic Ignorance**: When bystanders are unsure of the situation and look to others for cues, often leading to inaction. - **Diffusion of Responsibility**: The more people present, the less likely any one individual is to take responsibility. - **Evaluation Apprehension**: Fear of being judged for doing the wrong thing can prevent helping. **9. Key Takeaways** - Prosocial behaviour can be motivated by **egoism** (self-interest) or **altruism** (selfless concern for others), often influenced by empathy and social factors. - The **bystander effect** demonstrates how the presence of others can inhibit helping, but this effect can be reduced in certain situations. - Both **emotions** and **cultural norms** play significant roles in driving prosocial actions.