Prosocial Behaviour

Question 1

Bystander-calculus model

Answer 1

= bystander calculates costs and benefits of providing help compared to those associated with not helping – people intervene to relieve unpleasant arousal

1. Psychological aroused by another’s distress
2. Label arousal as an emotion
3. Evaluate consequences of helping

Question 2

Pilvanian model

Answer 2

 Empathy costs of not helping: failing to help can cause distress to bystander (e.g. anxiety)
o Clarity of emergency
o Severity (Schwere)
o Closeness
o Similarity
 Personal costs of not helping: not helping victim in distress can be costly to bystander (e.g. blame)
o The greater the victims need for help the greater the costs of not helping

Question 3

Batsons theory of helping behaviour

Answer 3

 Perspective taking: being able to experience the world from someone else’s point of view (cognition based) which increases empathy
 Empathic concern: part of altruism which includes feelings of warmth, being soft-hearted and having compassion for a person in need (in contrast to personal distress which makes us flee)

1. Actively imagining another’s feelings in the situation
   o Produces empathy which leads to altruistic motivation
2. Actively imagining how I would feel in the same situation
   o Produces empathy and self-oriented distress which leads to mix of altruism and egoism

Question 4

Batsons motives of helping

Answer 4

1. Egoism – benefits one’s self
2. Altruism – helping without getting back
3. Collectivism – contributing to welfare of group which can harm outgroup
4. Principlism – prosocial act follows moral principle

Question 5

Attributes

Answer 5

 Specific physical/personality attributes: more helpful
 Attachment style: Securely attached, forgiving more altruistic
 City size: Smaller hometown = more helpful
 Scrooge effect/terror management theory: more likely to help when confronted with own mortality
 Competence (situation-specific)
 Leader: does not experience same degree of diffusion of responsibility
 Gender: women more empathy but men especially helpful for women (both equally prosocial but differ in kinds of actions)
o Social role theory: differences defined by society rather than biology
 more likely to act pro-social when “helpful” as self-concept
 just-world hypothesis: don’t help because we think they deserve it or help because we think they deserve it – view that is also learnt in childhood
 more likely to help when victims case is special rather than one of many and when the need is temporary rather than persisting – helps deciding if giving aid “right now” will be effective