prosocial behaviour Flashcards
what is prosocial behaviour?
valued behaviours that have a positive effect on others
what is helping behaviour?
intentional act to benefit another
what is altruism?
benefits others rather than self
what is the bystander effect?
people are less likely to intervene in an emergency when more people are around
what is bystander intervention?
a person who helps in an emergency
what are the four aspects of Latane and Darley’s Cognitive Model (1970) for giving help?
- attend to what is happening
- define event as an emergency
- assume responsibility
- decide what can be done
what were the findings for Latane and Darley’s smoke filled room experiment?
- alone (75%)
- two strangers (38%)
- two confederates (10%)
risk of danger to self
what were the findings for Latane and Rodin’s filing cabinet experiment?
- alone (70%)
- pairs (40%)
- confederate (7%)
- friends (70%)
risk of danger to others
what were the findings for Darley and Latane’s fit in a cubicle experiment?
- two people, during fit (85%), within 6 mins (100%)
- four people, during fit (62%), within 6 mins (81%)
- six people, during fit (31%), within 6 mins (62%)
works when not physically present
what contributes to bystander apathy?
diffusion of responsibility- offloading responsibility, only needs, one other person, similar to ‘social loafing’.
audience inhibition- ‘fear f social blunders’.
social influence- passivity vs action role models.
what is kin selection?
‘selfish gene’ hypothesis
what is reciprocal altruism?
giving to receive
what did Burnstein, Crandall and Kitayama (1994) find in terms of helping?
every day situation- sick, very old, very young
life and death situation- healthy, young people, kin
what are the two explanations for altruism?
- evolutionary explanations
2. social learning theory
what is the bystander calculus model?
physiological arousal followed by empathy as a reaction to a disturbing event
what are the three stages of calculation in the bystander calculus model?
- physiological arousal: heart rate, adrenaline, severity increases arousal
- labeling the arousal: fear, anger, anxiety, personal distress (act to reduce distress), empathetic concern (act because of feeling compassion, altruism)
- evaluating the consequences: calculate personal costs (time, effort, risk)
what are the costs of not helping?
empathy costs- guilt, anxiety closeness severity of emergency similarity to victim (greater physiological arousal) personal costs- blame, public outcry greater the need (vulnerability)
what are helping behaviours influenced by?
high self- monitors men (dangerous situations) Carnegie medal for heroism 90% male women (volunteering in safe situations) situation dependent personality traits emotionality empathy self- efficacy
critique of prosocial behaviour theory
(Kitty Genovese)
public vs private/ domestic violence intervention
culture and historical context important
(evolutionary explanations)
individualistic
cause and effect
(social learning theory)
based on experiments
smoke without fire
