Altruism & Bystanders Prosocial behaviour Altruistic behaviour Bystander behaviour

Would You Help?

Important Terms Prosocial behaviour Acts that benefit people other than the actor Acts that benefit people other than the actor Altruistic behaviour Acts that benefit others, carried out at a cost to the actor Acts that benefit others, carried out at a cost to the actor

Universal Egoism Evolutionary processes do not obviously favour selfless behaviour Consequently, psychologists widely assume that all ‘altruistic’ acts involve benefits to the actor Apparently selfless acts are carried out for selfish reasons

Explanations Arousal-cost reward (Piliavin & Piliavin) Others’ distress causes arousal, which we are motivated to reduce Others’ distress causes arousal, which we are motivated to reduce Can reduce arousal by either helping the person or walking away from the situation Can reduce arousal by either helping the person or walking away from the situation Decision to help determined by costs versus rewards of helping/not helping Decision to help determined by costs versus rewards of helping/not helping

Explanations Empathy-Altruism (Batson) Altruism/helping is motivated by the ability to empathise with the person in trouble Altruism/helping is motivated by the ability to empathise with the person in trouble Helping brings a range of benefits: Helping brings a range of benefits: To the self (egoism) To the group (collectivism, inclusive fitness) Upholding principles Obeying social norms

Predictions Arousal-Cost-Reward We will help when costs are low, rewards are high and costs of not helping are high We will help when costs are low, rewards are high and costs of not helping are highEmpathy-Altruism We will help when empathic identification (similarity) is high and ease of escape is low We will help when empathic identification (similarity) is high and ease of escape is low

Bystanders in Emergencies The Bystander Effect (Latane & Darley): The more people present at an emergency, the less likely that help will be given The more people present at an emergency, the less likely that help will be given Diffusion of responsibility Pluralistic ignorance The nature of the situation The characteristics of the potential helper

Diffusion of Responsibility 1 person present – sole responsibility 2 people present – 50% responsible 30 people present – all assume someone else will take care of it E.g. Kitty Genovese case (NB. This is NOT a study, so don’t use it as such)

Pluralistic Ignorance Embed smoke-filled room video on this slide

Pluralistic Ignorance Occurs when situation is not clearly an emergency i.e. is ambiguous People cue their own behaviour off others So if no-one knows whether to do anything, no-one does anything A form of informational influence (conformity)

Other Factors Does the potential helper have the skills to help? Is there someone else nearby more qualified to intervene? Is the person in genuine need (legitimacy)? Is the person perceived to have brought it on themselves?

Cultural Variations Are there differences in prosocial/helping behaviour? Within a culture e.g. urban versus rural areas Within a culture e.g. urban versus rural areas Between cultures e.g. individualist versus collectivist cultures Between cultures e.g. individualist versus collectivist cultures

Cultural Variations Urban Overload Hypothesis (Milgram, 1970) People who live in cities are exposed to high levels of environmental stimulation People who live in cities are exposed to high levels of environmental stimulation They develop strategies to cut out excessive stimulation They develop strategies to cut out excessive stimulation One such strategy is to avoid interactions with strangers – this leads to a reduction in helping behaviour in some situations One such strategy is to avoid interactions with strangers – this leads to a reduction in helping behaviour in some situations

Cultural Variations Individualist versus collectivist Members of collectivist cultures tend to prioritise the interests of the group over self-interest Members of collectivist cultures tend to prioritise the interests of the group over self-interest Norms of reciprocity Help may be given in the expectation that it will be ‘paid back’ at a future date Help may be given in the expectation that it will be ‘paid back’ at a future date Helping behaviour may be more apparent in non-Western societies – but it does not follow that altruism is higher