Prosocial Research Articles

Understanding prosocial and antisocial behaviours: The roles of self‐focused and other‐focused motivational orientations

AbstractWe examine how individual differences in self‐focused and other‐focused orientations relate to prosocial (e.g., helping, volunteerism) and antisocial (e.g., theft, violence) behaviours/attitudes. Using four datasets (total N = 176,216; across 78 countries), we find that other‐focused orientations (e.g., socially focused values, intimacy motivation, compassionate/communal traits) generally relate positively to prosocial outcomes and negatively to antisocial outcomes. These effects are highly consistent cross‐nationally and across multiple ways of operationalizing constructs. In contrast, self‐focused orientations (e.g., personally focused values, power motivation, assertive/agentic traits) tend to relate positively to both antisocial and prosocial outcomes. However, associations with prosocial outcomes vary substantially across nations and construct operationalizations. Overall, the effects of other‐focused orientations are consistently larger than those of self‐focused orientations. We discuss the implications of these findings for interventions that target self‐focused and other‐focused motivations to influence prosocial and antisocial outcomes.

Unpacking the differences in social impact and social preference among Spanish preschool aggressors, victims, aggressor‐victims, and defenders whilst controlling for emotional competences

AbstractPeer status among preschool children has been associated with their roles in aggression‐related interactions. This study analyses the differences between aggressors, victims, aggressor‐victims and defenders on two measures of peer status (social impact and social preferences) whilst controlling for individual factors. The sample comprised 394 preschool children (184 girls, 210 boys) between the ages of 3–6 years old (M = 4.36, SD = 0.87) and their parents supplying information about socio‐demographic variables and children's emotion regulation. Teachers rated emotional competences for each child in their class. Analysis of covariance along with Bonferroni‐adjusted post‐hoc comparisons were conducted to compare mean scores between the aggression roles for social impact and social preference while controlling for significant individual factors. The results revealed that aggressors and aggressor‐victims exhibited higher social impact but lower social preference after controlling for individual factors. In contrast, defenders enjoyed higher social status among their peers, characterized by both higher social preference and social impact. Victims were associated with lower social preference and social impact. Uninvolved children consistently exhibited lower social impact. Results underscore the need for interventions that focus on promoting prosocial behaviors, addressing aggressive tendencies, and enhancing emotional competences to create a more positive and supportive peer environment.

Prosocial behaviour enhances evaluation of physical beauty.

Ten studies (N = 4192) demonstrated that individuals depicted as prosocial were judged to be more physically beautiful. This evaluation of prosocial individuals as more beautiful is influenced by a motivation to be associated with prosocial others. This phenomenon was observed in real-world settings (Study 1) and applied to both men and women, both as targets and observers (Studies 2a-2b). The effect persisted in scenarios where participants imagined the target without any visual aid (Study 2c) and extended beyond metaphorical interpretations of beauty (Study 3). The effect weakened when prosocial behaviour was an isolated incident, not indicative of the target's prosocial personality (Study 4). The influence of prosociality on beauty evaluations surpassed that of other positive traits such as intelligence or humour (Study 5) and remained significant despite physical imperfections in the target's appearance (Study 6). The effect diminished insituations where forming a relationship was not feasible, thus supporting the motivated cognition rationale (Studies 7-8). These findings highlight the substantial role of prosocial behaviour in influencing evaluations of physical beauty, a crucial element in social interactions and relationship formation, often outweighing other attributes typically linked to physical appearance evaluation.

Performance management in the prosocial market economy: a new paradigm for economic performance and sustainability

Purpose The purpose of this multi-voiced paper is to propose a prosocial paradigm for the field of performance management and management control systems. This new paradigm suggests cultivating prosocial behaviour and prosocial groups in organizations to simultaneously achieve the objectives of economic performance and sustainability. Design/methodology/approach The authors share a common concern about the future of humanity and nature. They challenge the influential assumption of economic man from neoclassical economic theory and build on evolutionary science and the core design principles of prosocial groups to develop a prosocial paradigm. Findings Findings are based on the premise of the prosocial paradigm that self-interested behaviour may outperform prosocial behaviour within a group but that prosocial groups outperform groups dominated by self-interest. The authors explore various dimensions of performance management from the prosocial perspective in the private and public sectors. Research limitations/implications The authors call for theoretical, conceptual and empirical research that explores the prosocial paradigm. They invite any approach, including positivist, interpretive and critical research, as well as those using qualitative, quantitative and interventionist methods. Practical implications This paper offers implications from the prosocial paradigm for practitioners, particularly for executives and managers, policymakers and educators. Originality/value Adoption of the prosocial paradigm in research and practice shapes what the authors call the prosocial market economy. This is an aspired cultural evolution that functions with market competition yet systematically strengthens prosociality as a cultural norm in organizations, markets and society at large.

Fears and Worries at Nighttime in Young Children: Development and Psychometric Validation of a Parent-Report Measure (FAWN-YC).

This paper outlines the development and psychometric evaluation of the Fears and Worries at Nighttime-Young Children (FAWN-YC) scale; a parent-rated measure for children aged 3-5years. Based on previous literature, it was hypothesised that the measure would be represented by a six-factor solution, with four clusters of fear types and two behavioural manifestations of fears. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA; N = 436) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA; N = 383), resulted in a final 17 items that loaded onto 3 factors: Nighttime Fear Focus (8 items, α = 0.92), Bedtime/Sleep Avoidance and Interference (5 items, α = 0.90), and Dark Fear (4 items, α = 0.88). Evidence of convergent validity was found through strong associations between the total score and subscales of the FAWN-YC with measures of child anxiety, fear, sleep, externalizing and conduct problems. Furthermore, there was support for divergent validity (through a very weak to no relationship with a measure of prosocial behaviours), and evidence for temporal stability was also established with 2-week test-retest reliability. Overall, the results provide strong preliminary evidence for the reliability and validity of the FAWN-YC total score and subscales. Implications for the use of the measure in research and clinical practice are discussed.

Exposure to anti-refugee hate crimes and support for refugees in Germany

Abstract In recent years, anti-refugee hate crimes have soared across Europe. We know this violence has spread fear among refugees, but we know less about its effects on the non-refugee population. This is an oversight, as research suggests political violence often has effects on the broader population. Those effects can range from increased solidarity with the targets of the violence to reduced pro-social behavior and less support for the targets of the violence. In this research note, we examine the effects of exposure to anti-refugee hate crimes in Germany. Our results suggest no direct effect of exposure to anti-refugee hate crimes on support for refugees. These results have several implications for our understanding of political divides over refugees in Europe.

The Social Intervention Function of Chinese Pop Music Performance and Its Macro Sociological Analysis

Pop music is a product of human consciousness and widely exists in all known human cultures. Music is not a necessity for human survival, why is it so important to humans? For a long time, social connections have been considered an important function of music and a major factor influencing the evolution of human musicality. The recent hypothesis of music social connection provides a framework for understanding the biological and cultural evolution of music. It suggests that music can coordinate emotions, behaviors, and ideological perspectives among individuals, strengthen intimate relationships between individuals, and thus enhance social cohesion. Pro social behavior is a manifestation of human social connections, which refers to the beneficial behavior of individuals towards others, groups, and society, such as helping behavior. Although studies have shown that listening to prosocial songs and their associated prosocial emotions can promote individual prosocial behavior, it remains unclear whether the music itself and its corresponding emotional experiences are sufficient to influence prosocial behavior after excluding the influence of lyrics. In addition, although some studies suggest that prosocial behavior is related to factors such as individual psychological theory ability and cognitive ability, the mediating effect of music on prosocial behavior through psychological theory ability and cognitive ability has not been verified. Therefore, based on the classic two-dimensional emotional model, this study systematically examines whether music and its induced emotional experiences affect individual prosocial behavior decisions, and further explores the mediating role of psychological theory and cognitive ability.

The correlates of environmental initiatives in sports organizations with climate change attitudes and subjective well-being.

To recognize the interplay between climate change and public health, this study examines the impact of sports organizations' environmental initiatives on members' subjective well-being (SWB) and climate change attitudes (CCA). Drawing on the theoretical tenets of pro-social behavior, organizational initiatives aiming at protecting and improving the natural environment can be viewed as altruistic. This altruism can in turn increase SWB. The analysis uses survey data from the 2022 Eurobarometer, including 27 European countries and 6311 members of different types of sports organizations. Seemingly unrelated regression models were employed to assess the associations of various environmental initiatives with members' SWB and CCA. The total number of initiatives and specific initiatives, such as promoting green energy and waste reduction, are positively correlated with members' CCA. However, there is no effect on SWB. Organizational environmental initiatives may shape members' attitudes towards climate change but do not seem to affect their SWB. This would suggest that environmental protection does not come at the expense of SWB. Thus, sports organizations represent a context to promote environmental protection along with public health.

Companion animals and child development outcomes: longitudinal and cross-sectional analysis of a UK birth cohort study

BackgroundResearch into the impact of social relationships on childhood and adolescent health and wellbeing has been largely limited to children’s relationships with other humans, while studies into the impact of pet ownership are sparse and have generally not adjusted for potential confounders. This study aimed to investigate the association between pet ownership and a range of developmental outcomes in childhood and adolescence.MethodsData were self-reports and direct assessments of approx. 14,000 children from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC). Multivariable regression models adjusting for confounding factors examined associations between developmental outcome measures (emotional health, behavioural development, cognitive development, language development, educational attainment) and concurrent pet ownership, including species, and also longitudinal pet ownership history and pet-interaction where possible. Analyses model numbers using multiple imputation varied from n = 393–8963.ResultsIn cross-sectional analyses, owning a dog (b = 0.24, [0.06–0.41], p = .004) and owning other/miscellaneous pets (b = 0.18, [0.03–0.33], p = .021) at age 3 were associated with higher prosocial behaviour score. Owning a pet was associated with a higher non-verbal communication score at age 2 (cross-sectional, b = 0.18, [0.04–0.32], p = .014), and a higher language development score at age 5 (cross-sectional, b = 1.01, [0.18–1.83], p = .017). However, pet ownership was associated with lower educational attainment across a number of academic subjects and timepoints, in both cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses. It was also cross-sectionally linked to hyperactivity at age 3 and conduct problems at age 3 and 11. Furthermore, at age 8, cross-sectional analysis showed that children who owned any pets (OR [95% CI]: 0.85 [0.73–0.98], p= ·026) or cats (0.83, [0.73–0.95], p= ·006) had lower odds of high self-esteem (scholastic competence).ConclusionsUsing a large, well-designed longitudinal study and adjusting for key confounders, we found little evidence of cross-sectional or longitudinal associations between pet ownership and emotional health or cognitive outcomes in children. There may, however, be some cross-sectional and longitudinal association with poorer educational attainment and a positive impact on social interactions as seen through associations with enhanced language development and prosocial behaviour. This study demonstrates the importance of adjustment for confounding variables and suggests that, contrary to popular belief, positive impacts of pet ownership on childhood development may be mainly limited to social behaviour and language development.

Prosocial reputation and stress among contemporary hunter-gatherers: the Hadza case

It has been suggested that having a reputation for being prosocial is a critical part of social status across all human societies. It has also been argued that prosocial behavior confers benefits, whether physiological, such as stress reduction, or social, such as building allies or becoming more popular. Here, we investigate the relationship between helping reputation (being named as someone others would go to for help), and hair-derived chronic stress (hair cortisol concentration). In a sample of 77 women and 62 men, we found that perceived helping reputation was not related to chronic stress. Overall, the results of our study suggest that, in an egalitarian society with fluid camp membership and widely practiced generosity such as the Hadza, helping reputation does not necessarily boost stress-related health benefits through prestige-signaling mechanisms observed in hierarchical, large-scale societies.

Altruistic and egoistic motivations to engage with contact-tracing apps: Lessons learned from the Covid-19 pandemic

During the Covid-19 pandemic, contact-tracing apps have offered effective help to bend the contagion curve. Thus, it is of critical importance to understand the factors that influence contact-tracing apps’ adoption among citizens. In particular, the successful adoption and usage of contact-tracing apps strongly relies on individual motives. Therefore, this study draws on the theory of altruistic and egoistic motivation for prosocial behaviours to analyse the underlying motives through which citizens engage in voluntary behaviours aimed at using and promoting the use of contact-tracing apps. The study also examines the mediating role of users’ trust in the app. Data from 221 users of Ireland’s Covid Tracker app was analysed. Structural equation modelling with PLS was used to test the research model. Findings show differences between egoistic and altruistic motivation in promoting app use and sharing. Egoistic motivation significantly promotes voluntary behaviours among citizens and users’ trust in the app mediates this influence. Yet, contrary to predictions, in the context of the pandemic, altruistic motivation does not play a significant role in engaging citizens in these voluntary behaviours, either directly or indirectly. The findings of this study are important for policy makers and may inform future policy decisions regarding the implementation of contact-tracing apps in the case of new pandemics or for other contexts requiring cooperative daily check-in.

Beyond borders: The moderating role of cultural religiosity in the relationship between moral circle and generosity.

Research has indicated a link between the moral circle and an individual's prosocial behaviour. However, it remains uncertain whether this relationship holds across a broader range of countries and is influenced by sociocultural contexts. Drawing from an international dataset encompassing 49,540 participants from 57 countries, this study examined the impact of the moral circle on an individual's generosity and the moderating role of cultural religiosity. The results revealed a significant positive association between moral circle and generosity in a cross-national context. Notably, in religious cultures, the connection between the moral circle and generosity was found to be weaker. Three robustness checks further affirmed that these findings are robust. The research confirmed a positive relationship between the moral circle and generosity in a multinational context but also highlighted the moderating role of cultural religiosity. This finding suggested that future research should further investigate how cultural and religious frameworks influence ethical behaviour.

Infant sensitivity to social contingency moderates the predictive link between early maternal reciprocity and infants' emerging social behavior.

The scientific study of love underscores the importance of dyadic reciprocity in laying the foundation for infants' social development. While research establishes links between early reciprocity and children's social capacities, some infants appear to benefit from reciprocity more than others. A central feature of reciprocity is its contingent structure, that is, the extent to which maternal behaviors are temporally associated with and contingent upon infants' dynamically changing cues. As such, infants' sensitivity to social contingencies may define the extent to which an infant benefits from maternal reciprocity. The current study examined the role of infants' sensitivity to social contingency (SC) in moderating associations between early maternal reciprocity and subsequent infants' social behavior. The study followed 157 children (47% females), across the first year of life (4, 10, and 12 months) and at preschool age (48 months). Infants' SC at 4 and 10 months moderated the link between early maternal reciprocity and infants' prosocial behavior observed at 12 months. SC at 10 months moderated the link between early reciprocity and reported peer problems at 48 months. Maternal reciprocity predicted more helping behavior in infancy and fewer peer problems at preschool, but only for infants who displayed high SC. Findings highlight the contingent nature of reciprocal mother-infant interactions revealing that an infant's sensitivity to breaks in social-contingency moderates the developmental benefit of reciprocity. Future research is necessary to directly test the underlying mechanisms of these processes and better understand the individual characteristics of infants' sensitivity to social contingency and its' role in typical and atypical development. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: Individual differences in infants' sensitivity to breaks in social contingencies may moderate the extent to which infants benefit from contingent reciprocal maternal behavior (i.e., maternal reciprocity). Maternal reciprocity predicted more helping behavior in infancy and fewer peer problems at preschool, but only for infants who displayed high sensitivity to breaks in social contingency. Findings highlight the contingent nature of reciprocal mother-infant interactions revealing that infants' sensitivity to breaks in social-contingency moderates the developmental benefit of reciprocity. Findings emphasize the need to develop measurement methods and direct empirical attention to the important yet understudied individual characteristic of infants' sensitivity to social contingency and its role in shaping social development.

Social and emotional competencies in Portuguese incarcerated males: psychometric properties of the SEC-Q questionnaire and their relation to health risk behaviors

This study departs from the acknowledged absence of validated measures to assess social and emotional competencies in incarcerated individuals. This is a critical gap given that most available programs aimed at fostering prosocial behavior and reducing antisocial behaviors are theoretically based on enhancing these competencies. This study assessed the psychometric properties of the Social and Emotional Competencies Questionnaire (SEC-Q) in a sample of 219 Portuguese incarcerated males (M age = 37.21 years, SD = 10.61), and to explore the impact of the SEC-Q dimensions on health risk behaviors in this population. The study used confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to examine the factor structure of the SEC-Q. The four-factor model fitted well to the data (SB χ2 = 267.75; df = 120; Robust CFI = 0.99; Robust RMSEA = 0.06), and, as expected, it includes four dimensions: self-awareness, self-management and motivation, social awareness and prosocial behavior, and decision-making. The four dimensions showed appropriate internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha = 74–81; McDonald’s omega = 75–82). Additionally, social and emotional competencies were related to higher self-control (rs=0.45, p <.01) and lower health risk behaviors (rs = − 0.25, p <.01), supporting convergent and divergent validity. Findings from the negative binomial regression suggest that higher social awareness and prosocial behavior is related to less health risk behaviors among incarcerated males. This study is a pivotal step to promote an affordable and valid measure to assess social and emotional competencies among Portuguese justice-involved males. SEC-Q can be an important complementary measure for evaluating the effectiveness of interventions aimed at preventing criminal recidivism.

Prevalence of dyslexia related to mental health problems and character strengths among primary school students in northwest China

ABSTRACT Objective This study aimed to examine the prevalence of dyslexia, mental health problems, and character strengths among primary school students in northwest China. Method Primary school students (N = 2,322) were assessed for dyslexia, strengths and difficulties, self-esteem, bullying, depression, anxiety, and character strengths. The Student’s t-test and χ2 test were used to compare continuous and categorical variables between students with and without dyslexia. Results The estimated prevalence of dyslexia ranged from 4.9% to 6.9% and was highly prevalent among boys. Students with dyslexia reported statistically higher mean scores for emotional symptoms, conduct behaviours, internalizing and externalising problems, as well as total difficulties. Conversely, they exhibited lower levels of prosocial behaviour, expressed lower self-esteem, and reported higher instances of being bullied. Additionally, the prevalences of depression and anxiety symptoms were 36.5% and 26.3%, respectively, among dyslexic students. Signature strengths among students with dyslexia included appreciation of beauty and excellence, love, hope, forgiveness, and judgement. Conclusions These findings underscore dyslexia’s impact on mental health and academic performance in China. Implementing character strength-focused interventions could enhance well-being and academic outcomes among dyslexic primary school students.

“I now see my toddler as a helper, not just somebody in need of help”: Raising Helpful Toddlers training

Helping other people benefits children and is fundamental to a functioning society. A novel training, Raising Helpful Toddlers (RHT), focuses on beneficial Indigenous heritage parent socialization practices previously described. RHT participants were thirty U.S. toddler parents/caregivers, aged 28–46, 26/4 female/male ratio; 73.3 % White, 13.3 % Asian, 6.7 % African or Black/African American, 3.3 % Asian and White, 3.3 % American Indian and Hispanic, and highly educated on average, with children aged 12 to 48 months. RHT consists of a 2-hour online training, followed up with daily logs and interviews to support the training while collecting qualitative data. Feasibility was indicated by high rates of parent recruitment, satisfaction, and use of RHT strategies. Average parenting self-efficacy increased at post-test, with a moderate to large effect size, according to a repeated-measures t-test, t(28)=3.792, p < .001, d = 0.58. Many parents reported improvements at post-test including less stress when doing chores and changed beliefs, actions, and speech. Results suggest that parenting practices described in Indigenous-heritage families can be beneficial across cultural contexts. Keywords: Indigenous, Parenting, Family, Intervention, Early Care, Early Education, Prosocial Behavior, Moral Development

Impact of NGOs’ undercover videos on citizens’ emotions and pro-social behaviors

Undercover videos have become a popular tool among NGOs to influence public opinion and generate engagement for the NGO’s cause. These videos are seen as a powerful and cost-effective way of bringing about social change, as they provide first-hand evidence and generate a strong emotional response among those who see them. In this paper, we empirically assess the impact of undercover videos on support for the cause. We in addition analyze whether the increased engagement among viewers is driven by the negative emotional reactions produced by the video. To do so, we design an online experiment that enables us to estimate both the total and emotion-mediated treatment effects on engagement by randomly exposing participants to an undercover video (of animal abuse) and randomly introducing a cooling-off period. Using a representative sample of the French population (N=3,310), we find that the video successfully increases actions in favor of animals (i.e., donations to NGOs and petitions), but we fail to prove that this effect is due to the presence of primary emotions induced by the video. Last, we investigate whether activists correctly anticipate their undercover videos’ (emotional) impact via a prediction study involving activists (exploratory analysis).Protocol registrationThis manuscript is a Stage-2 working paper of a Registered Report that receivedIn-Principle-Acceptance from Scientific Reports on November 20th, 2023 [Link to Stage-1]. The Stage-1 that received In-Principal-Acceptance can be found here: https://osf.io/8cg2d.

Campus landscape types and pro-social behavioral mediators in the psychological recovery of college students.

Physical and mental health problems of college students are becoming more prominent, and contact with nature has a positive effect on physical and mental health. This paper investigates the psychological recovery effect of different types of campus green space landscape on college students. From the perspective of college students' perception of campus landscape types, the green space, blue space, gray space and movement space of three universities in Anhui Province are investigated. Through choose campus landscape types and questionnaires, structural equation modeling (SEM) and mediation modeling were constructed on the role of college students' perception of campus landscape types on psychological recovery. It was found that the level of landscape type perception had a significant effect on the effect of psychological recovery and the generation of pro-social behavior, with no significant gender difference, while psychological recovery also had a positive effect on the generation of pro-social behavior. The study also found that campus landscape type not only directly affect students psychological recovery, but also promote psychological recovery through the mediating role of pro-social behavior. The study reveals the effects of campus landscape type on college students' psychological recovery, and pro vides a basis for planning campus of different types.

The Effects of a Bullying Prevention Teacher Professional Development on Exceptional Students’ Perceptions of Bullying and Prosocial Behavior

The Effects of a Bullying Prevention Teacher Professional Development on Exceptional Students’ Perceptions of Bullying and Prosocial Behavior

Understanding and Promoting School Climate, Bullying, and Social-Emotional Learning: Transdisciplinary and Transnational Science Advancing Positive Youth Outcomes

School climate is an important part of school improvement efforts, capturing student engagement, connectedness, safety, and relationships. A positive school climate is associated with more prosocial behaviors, academic achievement, reduced engagement in risky behaviors, teacher retention, and reduced burnout. With growing interest and attention to the research of social and emotional learning (SEL), the definitions and conceptualizations of social and emotional learning have expanded significantly across the past few decades. Understanding the intersection between students’ identities, their educational experiences and their academic, social, emotional, and behavioral outcomes is a necessary precursor to being able to strategically and systematically identify and implement universal and targeted supports to meet the overlapping and unique needs of students. To achieve true equity in education, interventions supporting the needs of all students, including those from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds must be identified and appropriately vetted. A transnational understanding of the structural patterns and the association between these variables is critical for both the development of culturally sensitive SEL and bullying prevention programs and the transnational adaptation and applications of effective programs that promote a positive school climate. Articles featured in this special issue advance transdisciplinary and translational research by contributing high-quality studies focusing on the impact of bullying and/or SEL programs and interventions on school climate. These articles bridge the research-to-practice gap, including empirical papers with important implications for theory, research, practice, and policy. Impact Statement Promoting school climate and social and emotional learning are important to support student success at school and beyond. Transdisciplinary and transnational research provides valuable information to understand and implement supports that are culturally sensitive and responsive. While school climate and social and emotional learning are often studied separately, both are necessary for students to thrive.