Prosocial behaviorcovers a broad range of actions intended to benefit others. This includes, but is not limited to, cooperation, sharing, helping, charitable giving, and volunteering. As such, prosocial behavior usually entails some (small or even large) cost for the actor, such as spending resources, time, and effort or sometimes even incurring physical harm. For example, acts of kindness or charity (e.g., offering your seat in the bus or giving few coins to a beggar) but also self-sacrifice or heroism (e.g., donating a kidney to save others’ lives or intervening to help strangers in emergencies) are all prosocial behaviors. The question is why people do such nice things for others? Many explanations have been provided at many levels; in the present entry, we focus on the fundamental role of certain personality traits and incentives in promoting prosocial behavior. We look at who is more likely... Show
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution. Balliet, D., Parks, C., & Joireman, J. (2009). Social value orientation and cooperation in social dilemmas: A meta-analysis. Group Processes & Intergroup Relations, 12, 533–547. doi:10.1177/1368430209105040. CrossRef Google Scholar Hilbig, B. E., Glöckner, A., & Zettler, I. (2014). Personality and prosocial behavior: Linking basic traits and social value orientations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 107, 529–539. doi:10.1037/a0036074. CrossRef PubMed Google Scholar Manesi, Z., Van Lange, P.A.M., Van Doesum, N.J., & Pollet, T.V. (2017). What are the most powerful predictors of charitable giving to victims of typhoon Haiyan: Prosocial traits, socio-demographic variables, or eye cues? Manuscript under review. Google Scholar Messick, D. M., & McClintock, C. G. (1968). Motivational bases of choice in experimental games. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 4, 1–25. doi:10.1016/0022-1031(68)90046-2. CrossRef Google Scholar Milinski, M. (2016). Reputation, a universal currency for human social interactions. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B, 371, 20150100. doi:10.1098/rstb.2015.0100. CrossRef Google Scholar Penner, L. A., Dovidio, J. F., Piliavin, J. A., & Schroeder, D. A. (2005). Prosocial behavior: Multilevel perspectives. Annual Review of Psychology, 56, 365–392. doi:10.1146/annurev.psych.56.091103.070141. CrossRef PubMed Google Scholar Van Doesum, N. J., Van Lange, D. A. W., & Van Lange, P. A. M. (2013). Social mindfulness: Skill and will to navigate the social world. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 105, 86–103. doi:10.1037/a0032540. CrossRef PubMed Google Scholar Van Lange, P. A. M. (1999). The pursuit of joint outcomes and equality in outcomes: An integrative model of social value orientation. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 77, 337–349. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.77.2.337. CrossRef Google Scholar Van Lange, P. A. M., Schippers, M., & Balliet, D. (2011). Who volunteers in psychology experiments? An empirical review of prosocial motivation in volunteering. Personality and Individual Differences, 51, 279–284. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2010.05.038. CrossRef Google Scholar Wu, J., Balliet, D., & Van Lange, P. A. M. (2015). When does gossip promote generosity? Indirect reciprocity under the shadow of the future. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 6, 923–930. doi:10.1177/1948550615595272. CrossRef Google Scholar Download references Author informationAuthors and Affiliations
Authors
Corresponding authorCorrespondence to Z. Manesi . Editor informationEditors and Affiliations
Section Editor information
Rights and permissionsReprints and Permissions Copyright information© 2017 Springer International Publishing AG About this entryCite this entryManesi, Z., Van Doesum, N.J., Van Lange, P.A.M. (2017). Prosocial Behavior. In: Zeigler-Hill, V., Shackelford, T. (eds) Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28099-8_1894-1 What are the characteristic traits of prosocial behavior?Behaviors that can be described as prosocial include feeling empathy and concern for others. Prosocial behavior includes a wide range of actions such as helping, sharing, comforting, and cooperating.
Are certain personality traits linked to prosocial behavior?Abstract: Prosocial behavior is intended to benefit others rather than oneself and is positively linked to personality traits such as Agreeableness and Honesty-Humility, and usually negatively to the Dark Triad traits (i.e., Machiavellianism, narcissism, and psychopathy).
Which personality factors most strongly associated with aggression?The link between the Big Five personality traits and aggression. Regression analysis revealed that neuroticism and extraversion were positively associated with aggression, agreeableness was negatively related to aggression, while openness to experience and conscientiousness were unrelated to aggression.
What are prosocial behaviors quizlet?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.
|
