Level of altruism 1

SURVEY MEASURING LEVEL OF ALTRUISM AMONG MALE AND FEMALE

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ISLAMABAD MODEL COLLEGE FOR GIRLS I-"#3$ ISLAMABAD
Level of altruism 2
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Certified that survey on your topi prepared by your name has been
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AC+NO,LEDGEMENT
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T&-.e o/ 0on1en1
Level of altruism .
ABSTRACT
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0he aim of the present study was to investi$ate
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Le2e. o/ &.1%3is' &'on4 '&.e &n* /e'&.e &*o.es0en1s
Level of altruism 2
In1%o*301ion
3veryday life is filled with small ats of altruism% from the $uy at the $roery store who 4indly
holds the door open as you rush in from the par4in$ lot to the woman who $ives a lot of money
to a homeless man. 5ews stories often fous on $rander ases of altruism% suh as a man who
dives into an iy river to resue a drownin$ stran$er to a $enerous donor who $ives thousands of
dollars to a loal harity.
O%i4ins
0he ori$inal use and onept of altruism an be traed ba4 to the first half of the 1*667s by
8renh philosopher% Auguste Comte. Comte referred to it as bein$ the moral obli$ation of
individuals to serve other people and to plae their interests above one9s own (:rea$% retrieved
1/+61+6;). -ome $ood e<amples of altruisti people ould be 'artin Luther :in$% who
reo$ni=ed the need of basi ivil ri$hts for all people and was willin$ to plae himself in $reat
dan$er to support his beliefs. He was ultimately 4illed for tryin$ to improve the lives of other
people. "nother e<ample ould be 'other 0eresa who was a well)4nown fi$ure for the help and
wor4 she did in under developed ountries% and who7s ativity seemed to always be at the
altruisti end of a spetrum of motivations. 'ore reent e<amples of altruisti people ould be%
5obel #eae #ri=e winner 5elson 'andela for the many thin$s he has done throu$hout his life%
most reently% his support in the fi$ht a$ainst aids or his opposition to the &ra> war.
De/ini1ions o/ &.1%3is'
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0he &nternational 3nylopedia of the -oial -ienes defines psychological altruism as @a
motivational state with the $oal of inreasin$ another7s welfare.@ #syholo$ial altruism is
ontrasted with psychological egoism, whih refers to the motivation to inrease one7s own
welfare.
'odern definitions of altruism state that it an be a form of pro)soial behaviour in whih a
person will voluntarily help another at some ost to themselves (Cardwell% Clar4 and 'eldrum%
2662). -ome other definitions su$$est that altruism is the unselfish onern of an individual for
the welfare of another (Carlson% 'artin A Bu=4ist% 266.).
C&3ses o/ &.1%3is'
#syholo$ists have su$$ested a number of different e<planations for why altruism e<ists%
inludin$C
Bio.o4i0&. Re&sons5 :in seletion ) We may be more altruisti towards those we are
related to beause it inreases the odds that our blood relations will survives and transmit
their $enes to future $enerations.
Ne3%o.o4i0&. Re&sons5 "ltruism ativates reward enters in the brain. 5eurobiolo$ists
have found that when en$a$ed in an altruisti at% the pleasure enters of the brain
beome ative.
Co4ni1i2e Re&sons5 While the definition of altruism involves doin$ for others without
reward% there may still be o$nitive inentives that are not obvious. 8or e<ample% we
mi$ht help others to relieve out own distress or beause bein$ 4ind to others upholds our
view of ourselves as 4ind% empatheti people.
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T(eo%ies o/ &.1%3is'
Social exchange theory
0he social exchange theory postulates that altruism only e<ists when benefits outwei$h
osts. !aniel Batson is a psyholo$ist who e<amined this >uestion and ar$ues a$ainst the soial
e<han$e theory. He identified four maDor motives for altruismC
1. altruism to ultimately benefit the self (e$oism)
2. to ultimately benefit the other person (altruism)
3. to benefit a $roup (olletivism)
4. to uphold a moral priniple (priniplism)
0he empathy-altruism hypothesis basially states that psyholo$ial altruism does e<ist
and is evo4ed by the empathi desire to help someone who is sufferin$. 8eelin$s of empathi
onern are ontrasted with feelin$s of personal distress% whih ompel people to redue their
own unpleasant emotions. #eople with empathi onern help others in distress even when
e<posure to the situation ould be easily avoided% whereas those la4in$ in empathi onern
avoid helpin$ unless it is diffiult or impossible to avoid e<posure to another9s sufferin$. Helpin$
behavior is seen in humans at about two years old% when a toddler is apable of understandin$
subtle emotional ues.
Reward theories
0he main drive for altruisti behavior an be seen as a desire to improve the welfare of another
person and not havin$ any expectation of getting a reward or have any other reason that may
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indiate some level of self interest (Cardwell% 1;;2). 8or e<ample% onsider a hild who has been
as4ed to ut his+her unle7s $rass% and then offered money in return as a reward. &t would be very
diffiult for a person testin$ for altruisti behavior to determine whether the hild was atin$ in
an altruisti or e$oisti way.
Latan and Darleys (1970) decision model of ystander inter!ention
0he term bystander effect refers to the phenomenon in whih the $reater the number of
people present% the less li4ely people is to help a person in distress. When an emer$eny situation
ours% observers are more li4ely to ta4e ation if there are few or no other witnesses.
0he most fre>uently ited e<ample of the bystander effet in introdutory psyholo$y
te<tboo4s is the brutal murder of a youn$ woman named Catherine @:itty@ (enovese. En 8riday%
'arh 1,% 1;2.% 2*)year)old (enovese was returnin$ home from wor4. "s she approahed her
apartment entrane% she was atta4ed and stabbed by a man later identified as Winston 'oseley.
!espite (enovese7s repeated alls for help% none of the do=en or so people in the nearby
apartment buildin$ who heard her ries alled polie to report the inident. 0he atta4 first be$an
at ,C26 "'% but it was not until ,C/6 "' that someone first ontated polie.
&nitially reported in a 1;2. New York Times artile% the story sensationali=ed the ase and
reported a number of fatual inauraies. While fre>uently ited in psyholo$y te<tboo4s% an
artile in the -eptember 266? issue of American sychologist onluded that the story is lar$ely
misrepresented mostly due to the inauraies repeatedly published in newspaper artiles and
psyholo$y te<tboo4s.
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8ollowin$ the (enovese ase% researh foused primarily on the situational fators that
led individuals to help another in need. -uh auses of short)lived altruisti behavior were first
artiulated in LatanF and !arley7s (1;?6) deision model of bystander interventionC 1) an
individual must notie that somethin$ is wron$% 2) must define it as an emer$eny% ,) deide
whether or not they will ta4e personal responsibility% .) hoose what type of help to $ive% and /)
determine to $o ahead with the hosen ourse of ation (!ovidio et al. 2662C2*).
T67es o/ &.1%3is'
-tudies have shown that altruism an be bro4en down into two main typesC
1. Biolo$ial altruism
2. Geiproal altruism.
"iological altr#ism is the idea that people may help others re$ardless of who they are but are
more li4ely to help a relative as opposed to a stran$er. "nderson A Gii (1;;?) theori=ed that
the reason for this was due to the fat that $eneti relatives% in differin$ de$rees% share a
proportion of our $enes% so their survival is a way of ensurin$ that some of the individual7s $enes
will be passed on. 0hey laimed that altruisti behaviour between an individual and a non)
relation will have no evolutionary advanta$e so it would be hi$hly unli4ely for a person to show
altruisti behaviour towards a non)relation.
Reci$rocal %ltr#ism is the idea that if you behave 4indly to a person or help them in the past%
that individual will be inlined to help you in the future (0rivers% 1;?1). Hnli4e Biolo$ial
altruism% Geiproal altruism does not re>uire individuals to be related to eah other% it is only
neessary that the individuals should interat with eah more than one. 0he reason for this is
Level of altruism 11
beause if individuals interat only one in their lifetimes and never meet a$ain% there is no
possibility of some form of return benefit% so there is nothin$ to be $ained by helpin$ the other
individual.
Conse83en0es o/ A.1%3is' &n* 9e.7in4
"lthou$h further researh is needed to e<plore whether% in $eneral% people atually feel
better after they have helped another% people believe that they will feel better (!ovidio et al.
2662I Wuthnow 1;;1). Gesearh does indiate that helpin$ (in the form of blood donation)
lessens physiolo$ial measures of an<iety (#iliavin and Callero 1;;1) and inreases positive
feelin$s and feelin$s of satisfation (5ilsson -oD4a and -oD4a 266,).
Li1e%&13%e %e2ie:
Gesearh into altruism done by Croo4 (1;*6) has su$$ested that altruism may be lin4ed
to onsiousness. Croo4 e<plained that onsiousness helps us to distin$uish between other
people and ourselves and to ima$ine ourselves if we were put into the situation that a ertain
individual is in. &n turn% we may feel% sadness% Doy% et% for an individual Dust from pereivin$ the
person behavin$ in a partiular way. 0his may ause someone to help the individual and try help
resolvin$ the issue that aused the individual to behave in that partiular way in the first plae.
-oial psyholo$ist !aniel Batson ran a series of e<periments to try to establish the
altruisti motivation of why people help others. Baston be$an his searh for empirial evidene
in the 1;?67s in the hope to show that altruism does not e<ist and that all motives were ultimately
based on self)interest (Baston% 1;;1). 8or e<ample% if a person7s relation was havin$ finanial
Level of altruism 12
diffiulties% the person may lend a sum of money to his+her relative% with the belief that the
relation would lend the person money should the situation be reversed. 0herefore% the person has
an ulterior motive for $ivin$ his+her relation money% thus renderin$ the at as bein$ e$oisti% not
altruisti. Baston% in 1;;1% put forward his empathy) altruism hypothesis% whih e<plains
altruisti behaviour as a onse>uene of empathy.
Latane and !arley (1;?6) onduted a laboratory e<periment to determine whether
altruisti behaviour was affeted by peer influene. 'ale partiipants were seleted% some were
tested in $roups and others were tested individually. 0he partiipants were as4ed to fill out a
>uestionnaire based on some form of mar4et researh. " woman was then instruted to fall off
her hair in the ne<t room and all for help. 0he results of this e<periment found that all
partiipants that were tested individually helped the woman but only 22J of the partiipants
under$oin$ the $roup tests went to the woman7s aid. 0he outome of this e<periment su$$ested
that partiipants too4 lon$er to respond and help when in the presene of a lar$e $roup.
0here are several fators that may affet the way in whih a person behaves
altruistially. " study by &sen% !aubman and 5owi4i (1;*?) found that if a person is in a $ood
(positive) mood% they are more li4ely to help others. However% people are less li4ely to help
when in a $ood mood if they thin4 that by helpin$ they may spoil that $ood mood. 0his would
su$$est that altruism if onsidered to be li4e a sale ould be manipulated by both internal and
e<ternal fators. &n addition to several fators that may ontribute to altruisti behaviours% a study
by Gushton (1;*.) su$$ested that parental models and other forms of soial support are essential
fators in the development of altruisti behaviour.
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&t has also been disovered that if we believe that a vitim is responsible for his+her own
problems% we are less li4ely to help than if we believed they hadn7t ontributed to their problems.
0his fits into the idea of the KLust)World7 hypothesis% this is the idea that people $et what they
deserve and deserve what they $et. (Bordens A Horowit=% 2661) "lthou$h these situational
fators an play an important role in helpin$ people% it may not $ive us a true refletion of the
helper and how he+she ould behave aross various other helpin$ situations. #ersonality
harateristis may beome more obvious when the person is involved in some forms of lon$
term helpin$. -ome people in this ase may have an altruisti personality or several traits that
may influene that person to help.
Gushton% 8ul4er% 5eale% Bli=ard and 3ysen4 (1;*,)% tried to evaluate the possibility of
$enetially based individual differenes in human altruism. 0he study was onduted on 1.66
sets of "merian 'ono=y$oti and !i=y$oti twins% it was found that only a small proportion of
altruisti tendenies are due to individuals livin$ in a partiular environment. &t was found that
there was /6J variane between the 'ono=y$oti and !i=y$oti twins (Gushton et al% 1;*,)
improvin$ on the ?.J variane of the previous study ('athews et al, 1;*1). Both of these
studies show that there is a $eneti influene on altruism sores.
Gushton% ChrisDohn and 8e44en (1;*1) onduted several studies on a total of .2.
student partiipants by issuin$ a -elf)Geport "ltrusim -ale (-G") (Gushton et al, 1;*1). 0he
results of the -G" in addition to a substantial review of the literature identified that there is in
fat a broad)based trait of altruism.
" study by E4un% #u$liese A Goo4 (266?)% of *** adults between the a$es of 2/);6%
sou$ht to disover whether there was a orrelation between e<traversion and volunteerin$ of
Level of altruism 1.
older adults by e<aminin$ the various resoures derived from the relationships with other people
and or$anisations. 0his study was onduted to improve on a 1;;, study by Her=o$ and 'or$an%
to e<amine the diret and indiret effets on later life volunteerin$ and , sets of e<o$enous
variables #ersonality traits (e.$.% e<traversion)% soial)strutural harateristis and
environmental fators% and , mediatin$ variablesI Goles% -oial partiipation and Health. Both
E4un et al. (266?)% and Her=o$ et al! (1;;,)% found that e<traversion si$nifiantly orrelated with
volunteerin$. 3<traversion influened a si$nifiant total effet and also had indiret effets on
volunteerin$ throu$h means of partiular soial partiipation% for e<ample% ontat with friends%
hurh attendane or various lubs and or$anisations. 0hose results su$$ested that soial
partiipation provides a valid e<planation for the ties between e<traversion and volunteerin$.
-everal studies onfirm E4un et al7s findin$s for e<ample% Be44ers (266/) or Carlo%
E4un% :ni$ht and de (u=man (266/). However% a study of 12. students by 0rudeau A !evlin
(1;;2) disovered that there were no differenes between K&ntroverts7 or K3<traverts7 in relation
to "ltruism. &t was thou$ht by 0rudeau A !evlin that e<traverts would appear more altruisti as
it is lo$ial that e<traverts see4 out additional human involvement and view volunteerin$ with
various or$anisations as a diret way to hannel suh outward foused ener$yM (0rudeau A
!evlin% 1;;2). -urprisin$ly% it was found by 0rudeau and !evlin that introverts are also li4ely to
see4 out volunteer involvement in order to ma4e up for a la4 of soial interation in their lives
as volunteerin$ offers a safe strutured way in whih to $ather soial stimulation and
affiliationM (0rudeau A !evlin% 1;;2).
0he results of 0rudeau and !evlin7s study found that introverts and e<traverts may
both be hi$hly altruisti and be atively en$a$ed in many types of volunteer wor4% but% the
Level of altruism 1/
motivation of the individuals may be different. :rue$er% Hi4s and '(ue (2661) measured 2?,
partiipants usin$ a strutural model of personality trait inventory developed by 0elle$en (1;*/)
whih measures positive emotionality% ne$ative emotionality% and onstraints. :rue$er et al
(2661) found that altruism was lin4ed to shared familial environments% uni>ue environments and
personality traits whih reflet positive emotionality. Basially% individuals that live within
positive family environments with onstant support tended to be more altruisti than individuals
who live in ne$ative family environments. 0his findin$ supports the study by #ar4e et al (1;;2)
who disovered that positive soial supports has a diret lin4 to the inrease of the development
of emotional re$ulation and pro)soial behaviour.
0he study by Gushton et al! (1;*1)% shows that there is more reliability to altruisti
behaviour than is su$$ested by previous studiesI that there is a personality trait of altruism. 0his
idea was later supported by Eliner and Eliner &n the 1;;67s% studies within the field of altruism
were reviewed and it was stated that it was futile to searh for the altruisti personalityM and that
there were inonsistent relationships between personality harateristis and pro)soial
behaviourM (#iliavin A Charn$% 1;;6% p. ,1). However% towards the end of the 1;;67s this view
of altruism had a$ain han$ed. Baston (1;;*) stated that theoretial models of altruism that had
e<isted up to then that did not ta4e dispositional fators (internal harateristis) into aount are
li4ely to be inompleteM. &n addition to this new li$ht surroundin$ the altruisti personality%
researh is be$innin$ to show systemati and meanin$ful lin4s between personality and
onsistent behaviour (:rue$er% -hmutte% Caspi% 'offitt% Campbell A -ilva% 1;;.). &f this is the
ase% on the other end of the spetrum% personality should have lin4s to pro)soial behaviour and
in turn% altruism.
Level of altruism 12
9Y;OT9ESIS
'ale7s level of altruism is $reater than females
VARIABLE
altruism
T9EORETICAL DEFINITION
Write any author7s definition with referene here
MET9OD
;&%1i0i7&n1s
In 1(is se01ion$ 6o3 (&2e 1o :%i1e5
F%o' :(o' &n* :(e%e 6o3 0o..e01e* 6o3% *&1&$ :(&1 :e%e 1(ei% &4es$ e*30&1ion&. .e2e.
&n* so0ioe0ono'i0 s1&13s e10.
M&1e%i&.s
0he -elf Geport "ltruism -ale altruism sale was used in the present study to measure the level
of altruism amon$ adolesent males and females. 0his sale omprises of 16 items and is a five
point li4ert type sale. &t was developed by Gushton% ChrisDohn% A 8e44en in 1;*1.
;%o0e*3%e
9e%e ,%i1e in se83en0e (o: *i* 6o3 0on*301e* 6o3% s13*6
Level of altruism 1?
RESULTS
DISCUSSION
Re/e%en0es
httpC++psyholo$y.about.om+od+ainde<+$+what)is)altruism.htm
httpC++en.wi4ipedia.or$+wi4i+"ltruism
httpC++deanmdonnell.hubpa$es.om+hub+"ltruism)dmd
Level of altruism 1*
Anne<3%es
Ins1%301ions5 Che4 the ate$ory on the ri$ht that onforms to the fre>ueny with whih you
have arried out the followin$ ats.
5ever Ene 'ore
than
one
Eften Nery
often
Level of altruism 1;
1. & have helped push a stran$er7s ar out of the
snow.
2. & have $iven diretions to a stran$er.
,. & have made han$e for a stran$er.
.. & have $iven money to a harity.
/. & have $iven money to a stran$er who needed it
(or as4ed me for it).
2. & have donated $oods or lothes to a harity.
?. & have done volunteer wor4 for a harity.
*. & have donated blood.
;. & have helped arry a stran$er7s belon$in$s
(boo4s% parels% et.).
16. & have delayed an elevator and held the door
open for a stran$er.
11. & have allowed someone to $o ahead of me in a
lineup (at photoopy mahine% in the
supermar4et).
12. & have $iven a stran$er a lift in my ar.
1,. & have pointed out a ler47s error (in a ban4% at
the supermar4et) in underhar$in$ me for an
item.
1.. & have let a nei$hbour whom & didn7t 4now too
well borrow an item of some value to me (e.$.% a
Level of altruism 26
dish% tools% et.)
1/. & have bou$ht KharityM Christmas ards
deliberately beause & 4new it was a $ood ause.
12. & have helped a lassmate who & did not 4now
that well with a homewor4 assi$nment when my
4nowled$e was $reater than his or hers.
1?. & have before bein$ as4ed% voluntarily loo4ed
after a nei$hbour7s pets or hildren without
bein$ paid for it.
1*. & have offered to help a handiapped or elderly
stran$er aross a street.
1;. & have offered my seat on a bus or train to a
stran$er who was standin$.
26. & have helped an a>uaintane to move
households.