social psych ch 11 & 9

prosocial behavior

any act performed with the goal of benefiting another person

altruism

the desire to help another person even if it involves a cost to the helper

kin selection

the idea that behaviors that help a genetic relative are favored by natural selection

norm of reciprocity

the expectation that helping others will increase the likelihood that they will help us in the futures

social exchange theory

argues that much of what we do stems from the desire to maximize our rewards and minimize our costs

rewards of helping

• it can increase the likelihood that someone will help us in return

• it is an investment in the future, the social exchange being that someday someone will help us when we need it

• it can also relieve the personal distress of a bystander

• can also gain such rewards as social approval from others and increased feelings of self-worth

empathy

putting ourselves in the shoes of another person and experiencing events and emotions the way that person experiences theme

empathy altruism hypothesis

the idea that when we feel empathy for another person, we will attempt to help that person for purely altruistic reasons, regardless of what we have to gain

motives for prosocial behavior

1. Helping is an instinctive reaction to promote the welfare of those genetically similar to us (evolutionary psychology).

2. The rewards of helping often outweigh the costs, so helping is in our self-interest (social exchange theory).

3. Under some conditions, powerful feelings of empathy and compassion for the victim prompt selfless giving (the empathy–altruism hypothesis).

altruistic personality

the qualities that cause an individual to help others in a wide variety of situations

egoism

helping is self-interested; end-state is increasing helper’s own welfare

in groups

groups in which an individual identifies as a member

out groups

any group with which an individual does not identify

simpatia

a range of social and emotional traits, including being friendly, polite, good-natured, pleasant, and helpful toward others

urban overload hypothesis

the theory that people living in cities are constantly bombarded with stimulation and keep to themselves to avoid being overwhelmed by it

bystander effect

the greater the number of bystanders who witness an emergency, the less likely any one of them is to help the victim

pluaralistic ignorance

the case wherein people think that everyone else is interpreting a situation in a certain way, when in fact they are not