Prosociality Flashcards
Define prosociality.
Behaviour that is positive and intended to help or benefit another being
What is the main difference between altruism and prosociality?
Altruism doesn’t benefit the actor, prosociality can
Does prosocial behaviour need to be voluntary?
No
Does prosocial behaviour need to benefit others?
Yes (or at least be intended to)
Does prosocial behaviour need to have a personal cost to the actor?
No
Does prosocial behaviour need to involve empathy?
No, but highly correlated
Is prosocial behaviour exclusive to humans?
No (e.g. rats)
Is prosocial behaviour motivated by others’ needs?
Yes, generally, but not necessarily (can be our perception of others’ needs)
Do positive or negative emotions tend to generate prosocial behaviour?
Positive
Does empathy increase prosocial behaviour?
Yes, usually but not always. Too much empathy can create distress and avoidance.
What are the three types of prosocial behaviour according to Wu and Hong?
- Comforting in response to emotional need
- Targeted helping in response to goal-directed need
- Sharing in response to material need
What’s an example of rats being altruistic?
Rats will release a cage-mate from a restraint.
What type of behaviour does negative affect trigger?
Survival-motivated specific responses to an immediate need
What type of behaviour does positive affect trigger?
Broad, prosocial behaviour (attention drawn away from self and towards others)
What is the relationship between positive affect and prosocial behaviour?
Reciprocal, both increase each other
How does prosocial behaviour relate to extreme stress?
Buffers against it
What are two types of prosociality that aren’t based on empathy?
Strategic prosociality and selective/ norm-based prosociality
What is strategic prosociality?
When the actor benefits in some way from the prosocial behaviour
What is the relationship of age with strategic prosociality?
Increases with age
What does it mean that the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex is associated with costly giving?
*Controlling impulse to protect one’s own resources
*Regulating negative emotions associated with costly giving
What type of prosocial behaviour is empathy especially related to?
Costly giving
Why is cognitive control important in the relationship between empathy and costly giving?
Redirecting negative arousal away from avoidance and towards prosocial behaviour
How does reward relate to prosociality?
Intrinsic rewards are beneficial, but extrinsic rewards can reduce prosociality
How does reward for costly prosocial behaviour relate to group dynamics?
More reward for costly giving to in-group than out-group members,
Why is extrinsic reward sometimes bad for prosociality?
Can undermine feelings of goodness and motivation to be prosocial
What is the general developmental trend of prosocial behaviour?
Trends are hard to identify, depends on how it’s operationalised, depends on context. Tends to increase in childhood and adulthood, mixed findings in adolescence.
What is the developmental trend for giving to antagonists?
Stable until 15-18, then decreases
From what age can people demonstrate prosocial behaviour?
Possibly as young as three months
Describe the results of the Aknin et al. (2012) study
Toddlers (younger than 2) are happier giving candy to a puppet than receiving candy themselves.
From what age do infants prefer those who help good people and punish bad people?
4.5 months
At what age can moral development be inferred in infants?
4.5 months
How does risk-taking affect prosocial behaviour in adolescents?
Some prosociality, e.g. standing up for others, requires risk-taking to be displayed.
What is the developmental trend of prosocial behaviour in adolescence?
Mixed evidence, no clear trend. Depends on individuals - different adolescents have different trajectories
What brain regions (big-picture) are involved in both prosociality and risk-taking?
- Reward regions
- Cognitive control regions
- Social regions
How does the strength of prosocial and antisocial influences change across adolescence?
Decreases (highest at age 12, lowest at 18).
What is the developmental trend of prosocial behaviour in adulthood?
General upwards trend, but also depends on recipient (in-group vs out-group)
What is the overall relationship between prosociality and well-being?
Positive (globally, in every region of the world)
What is the idea of a “positive cascade” in prosociality in children?
As children engage in prosocial behaviour, they learn positive skills and have more friends, people treat them nicer and like them more, so they engage in more prosocial behaviour.
What is the relationship between prosociality and peer acceptance in adolescence?
Prosociality positively predicted peer acceptance but not vice versa.
What is the problem of intrinsic motivation for prosociality?
Difficult to get people to behave prosocially to get the benefits of prosociality. People who don’t value prosociality don’t really benefit from it. Only works if they’re intrinsically motivated to do it.
What is the relationship between suppression and prosocial behaviour?
Negative
What is the relationship between reappraisal and prosocial behaviour?
Positive
What is the relationship between prosociality and mental disorder/ well-being in adults?
Prosocial behaviour protects against disorder and increases happiness and valued living.
