Chapter 9 Helping and Altruism

alturism

any behavior that is designed to increase another person’s welfare, and particularly those actions that do not seem to provide a direct reward to the person who preforms them

reciprocal alturism

if we help other people now, they will return the favor should we need their help in the future

reciprocity norm

social norm reminding us that we should follow the principles of reciprocal altruism

social responsibility norm

we should try to help others who need assistance, even without any expectation of future paybacks

personal distress

negative emotions that we may experience when we view another person’s suffering

empathy

an affective response in which a person understands and even feels, another person’s distress and experiences events the way the other person does

pluralistic ignorance

when people think that others in their environment have information that they do not have and when they base their judgement on what they think the others are thinking

diffusion of responsibility

when we assume that others will take action and therefore we don’t take action ourselves

just world beliefs

beliefs that people get what they deserve in life