Chapter 13: Altruism

1
Chapter 13 Altruism

• Social Psychology by Tom Gilovich, Dacher
  Keltner, and Richard Nisbett

2
Altruism

• Altruism - unselfish behavior that benefits
  others without regard to the consequences for the
  self
• What stops us from helping others?
• Why do we help others?
• How do we react to receiving help?
• How can we increase helping behavior?

3
The Problem

• Why dont people help?
• Fear of danger
• Disruption of own life
• People are not prepared
• Worried about looking foolish?

4
Essential Steps To Help in Emergency
Try to help
Yes
Have needed skill
Yes
Assume responsibility?
No
Yes
No
No help
Interpret as emergency?
No help
Yes
No
Notice the situation?
No help
No
No help
5
Noticing and Interpreting Situations
The Smoke Filled Room
Seminary Students
6
Assuming Responsibility

• Latané Darleys seizure study
• discuss student life over intercom
• no one else would be listening in
• 3 conditions
• talking to 1 other person
• talking to 2 other people
• talking to 5 other people
• one subject had seizure
• pleaded for help
• what helped in each situation?

7
The Bystander Effect

• Bystander effect- helping decreases as number of
  bystanders increases
• Noticing and Interpreting
• ambiguity
• pluralistic ignorance
• Assuming Responsibility
• diffusion of responsibility
• high costs to intervene
• Having necessary skills
• fear of looking foolish

8
Factors Affecting Helping

• Helping increases if victim is
• attractive
• similar to bystander
• not perceived as responsible for their plight
• Note blaming the victim restores ones sense of
  perceived control over events
• Helping increases in situations where
• there are few other bystanders
• we are in a small town or rural area

9
Factors Affecting Helping Contd

• Helping increases if the helper is
• not in a hurry
• feeling guilty about something
• in a good mood
• an altruistic person

10
Effects of Mood on Helping

• In general, the results are mixed
• Mood increases helping when
• good mood stimulates positive thoughts and
  actions
• helping can improve bad mood (feel-bad, do-good)
• Mood decreases helping when
• helping might spoil your good mood (unpleasant
  consequences such as embarrassment or danger)
• bad mood leads you to focus on yourself

11
Gender Differences in Helping

• Men help more than women when
• act is dangerous (heroic) requiring certain
  skills such as changing flat or overpowering
  attacker
• person in need of help is a woman (possible
  sexual motive)
• Women help more than men when
• giving to charity
• caring for friends, family, and others

12
We do we help?

• Biologically-Oriented
• Genetic determinism
• Social exchange
• Social norms

• Psychologically-Oriented
• Empathy-Altruism
• Empathetic Joy
• Negative State Relief

13
Genetic Determinism Model
Unconscious desire to help occurs if the person
perceives the victim to be genetically similar
to himself or herself
Person provides help in order to maximize the
chances of survival of genes that are like those
of the observer
Person observes emergency
14
Social Norms Hypothesis
Helping is prescribed by social
norms reciprocity or social responsibility
Person provides help because victim needs
help and bystanders are expected to help those in
need
Person observes emergency
15
Social Exchange Theory
Cost-benefit analysis conducted
Person provides help if benefits outweigh the
costs
Person observes emergency
16
Empathetic Joy Hypothesis
Situation leads to desire to act and to have a
positive effect on the victim
Person provides help in order to engage in an
activity that has successful outcome, making
the helper feel good
Person observes emergency
17
Negative-State Relief Model
Negative affect is aroused by the emergency
situation, or person is experiencing negative
affect based on something else
Person provides help in order to reduce own
negative affect and make the helper feel better
Person observes emergency
18
Empathy-Altruism Hypothesis
Empathy is aroused
Person provides help simply because victim needs
help.
Person observes emergency
19
Batsons Experiments

• Participants were going to observe Elaine being
  shocked.
• Prior to observing shocks, participants were
  exposed to Elaines responses on an attitude
  questionnaire.
• Two conditions created
• High empathy
• Very similar to Elaine
• Low Empathy
• Not similar to Elaine
• Manipulated ease of escape

20
Batsons Experiments (2)

• Same Scenario
• Did NOT manipulate similarity
• Measured participant emotions and categorized
  them as high or low empathy
• Manipulated ease of escape in the same way as
  before.

21
Batsons Experiments (3)

• Misattribution paradigm
• Participants all took a placebo
• High empathy condition
• Told pill would make them feel uneasy
• Low empathy condition
• Told pill would make them feel warm and fuzzy
  inside

22
Summary of Batson

• Empathetically-oriented people help for
  altruistic motives rather than egoistic ones.
• Want to relieve other persons distress, not your
  own

23
Reactions to Receiving Help

• High helper-victim similarity (friend, peer)
• negative affect (feel incompetent, resent helper)
• lowered self-esteem
• motivated to self-help in the future
• Note reactions typically occur in high-threat
  situations
• Low helper-victim similarity (non-friend)
• positive affect (feel good, appreciative)
• positive self-image
• less motivated to self-help in the future

24
Ways to Increase Helping

• When dealing with potential emergencies
• become aware of factors which inhibit helping
  (diffusion of responsibility, ambiguity, etc.)
• if you see something unusual, consider various
  possibilities (seek additional evidence)
• be willing to be wrong or look foolish
• assume responsibility
• gain confidence/competence (e.g., CPR)
• seek exposure to prosocial models

25
Study Smarter Student Website

• http//www.wwnorton.com/socialpsych
• Chapter Reviews
• Diagnostic Quizzes
• Vocabulary Flashcards
• Apply It! Exercises