Psychology 301Social Psychology

Lecture 24, Nov 27, 2008Prosocial BehaviourProsocial Behaviour

Instructor: Cherisse SeatonInstructor: Cherisse Seaton

Announcement: Psychology Program Information Session There are changes to the Psychology Degree

requirements starting May 2009This information session will explain the current

requirements and the new requirements coming into effect in May 2009

This information session will be useful for any students wondering if they should stay with the current Psychology requirements or switch to the new requirements

Amanda Hancock, Student Advisor for Psychology, and Dr. Paul Siakaluk, Acting Chair of Psychology, will answer questions

Psychology Program Information SessionThe information sessions will be held on

the following datesTuesday, December 2 from 10:00 –

11:30 amWednesday, December 3 from 11:00 am

– 12:30 pmBoth sessions will be held in room 7-152

Free Will or Scientific Determinism: Do We Freely Choose Our Behaviour?

A debate presented by:

Tammy Klassen &

Cherisse Seaton

Thursday, November 27, 2008 4:00 PM - 5:30 in room 5-177

OverviewLast class!Final section on prosocial behaviour

Latane and Darley’s intervention model What factors influence whether or not people

will help others?Exam review Course evaluations

Readings for this sectionAronson et al. Chapter 10

Review: The Bystander effectDefinition:

“the finding that the greater the number of bystanders who witness an emergency, the less likely any one of them is to help.” (p. 343)

As the number of bystanders witnessing an emergency increases, the likelihood of each bystander's responding decreases.

Mechanisms underlying the Bystander Effect:

a. Pluralistic ignorance Greatly interferes with the

interpretation of the event as an emergency and therefore reduces helping

When we use other people’s behaviour to define the situation & assume that nothing is wrong (or needs to be done) because no one else looks concerned (e.g., smoke study)

b. Diffusion of responsibilityA decrease in our sense of obligation to help due to

the presence of others.

Latane and Darley’s model of Emergency Intervention (1970)

1. Notice the emergency

HELP

2. Define the emergency

3. Take responsibility

4. Decide on a way to help

5. Implement a chosen way to help

Don’t Help

Don’t Help

Don’t Help

Don’t Help

Don’t Help

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

No

No

No

No

No

Five step model of intervention

Darley/Latane Model of Helping

Bystander must perceive an emergency. The unaware cannot act.

Bystander must interpret situation as an emergency. Pluralistic ignorance: misinterpretation/inaction by

many may stifle action. Bystander assumes responsibility to act.

Must know what to do, show expertise. Bystander must decide (and know how) to help.

Must assess costs and efficacy of routes. Bystander actually does help.

Does not ensure effectiveness.

Step 1: NoticingPiliavin et al. (1976)

More help when dramatic event witnessed rather than just aftermath of it.

Mathews & Canon (1975)More help without stimulus-overload (cf. Milgram,

1970).

McMillen et al. (1977)More help when in an ‘externally-attentive’ good

mood than in a ‘self-absorbed’ bad one.

Step 1: NoticingNoticing and Defining the Situation

What determines if the situation will be noticed and defined correctly?

A cry for help

Step 1: NoticingYakimovich and Salz (1971)Participants complete a survey in a room on

the second floor of a building. A window washer on a ladder falls. In half the cases, he cries out for help. How many participants come to his aid?

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

No Cry For Help Cry For Help

% H

elpi

ngStep 1: Noticing

Step 2: InterpretingLatané & Darley (1968)

Pluralistic ignorance can lead to reduced probability of an individual helping when in the presence of others and exposed to an ambiguous need for help.

Clark & Word (1972)When the need is not ambiguous, the presence of

others has no effect on helping levels.

Staub (1974)The cues others give can reduce or increase the

probability of an individual bystander giving help.

Step 2: Interpreting

Ambiguity: Does this man need help, or is he taking a nap?

Step 3: Taking personal responsibilityLatané & Darley (1968)

The chances of any given participant helping decrease as the number of observers seemingly increased.

Diffusion of responsibility - Taking less personal responsibility because one believes that others will (or should) provide help.

Bickman (1971)Responsibility not diffused when co-witnesses are clearly not

able to help.

Moriarty (1975)Responsibility not diffused when specifically attached to a

bystander. ie. Someone directly requests them to help or points them out

in a crowd.

Steps 4 & 5: Choosing how to help, and ActingKnowing what is required, and

having the skills to helpE.g., CPR training

Steps 4 & 5: Choosing how to help, and ActingShotland & Heinold (1985)

College students trained in first-aid were not more likely to help someone with profuse arterial bleeding.

They were, however, much more likely to do the right thing!

Sometimes the most helpful thing one can do is not provide direct assistance (cf. overhelping, Gilbert & Silvera, 1996).Which of course adds to the ambiguity of whether

and what help is need.

Factors that influence helpingNorm of ReciprocityNature of the relationshipIn exchange relationships, people are concerned

with:EquityKeeping track of who is contributing what to the

relationshipIn communal relationships, people are

concerned:Less with who gets what, and More with how much help the other person needs

Factors that influence helpingSocial Norms

“Mind your own business”Shotland and Straw (1976)Staged an attack of a woman by a man in a

public placeIn one condition, the woman yelled: “I don’t

know you”In the other she yelled: “I don’t know why I

married you”

Results

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

"I don't know you" "I don't know why I marriedyou"

Condition

Per

cen

t in

terv

enin

g

Factors that influence helpingSocial Norms

Norm of Social Justice We should help others when they deserve it

Bickman & Kamzan (1973) Female confederate begged for money to buy things

at the grocery store Money for milk Money for chilled cookie dough

Milk money beggars more likely to receive money

Factors that influence helpingAssessment of the victim’s responsibility for

the situation:If the victim is perceived to be the cause of their

situation, people are less motivated to help. ControllabilityFrom Attribution theory: if we believe a

person had no control over the situation we view them as more deserving of help.

Uncontrollable sympathy and pityControllable anger and irritation.

Factors that influence helpingControllability

Responsibility: We help those who are not responsible for their plight.

Pilliavin, Rodin and Pilliavin (1969) staged an emergency on a subway train: A confederate collapses. In some cases, the confederate is reeking of alcohol. Who helps?

0102030405060708090

100

No Alcohol Alcohol

% H

elpi

ngControllability & Responsibility

Influences on Prosocial Behavior: Characteristics of Help Recipient

“Deservingness”: Responsibility is assigned to victims in varying degrees.Weiner et al. - Reason why patient has AIDS

(e.g., sex vs. blood transfusion)

Other characteristics of the help recipient

Attractiveness/likeability

Similarity to help-giverPersonal stylePolitical viewsRace/ethnicity

We help those who are similar to us.Empathy?

Other characteristics of the help recipient

Victim Responses to Being HelpedAnother reason that bystanders may be hesitant

to help is that victims are sometimes resentful. Accepting help from others can be embarrassing and lower self-esteem because it implies that the recipient is less capable or competent.

Even if we accept responsibility and know what to do, we may fail to help because it is too costly. Fear of embarrassmentFear of punishmentFear a negative response from others

How can we increase helping?Reduce the ambiguityEnhance feelings of personal responsibilityTeach norms supporting helpful behaviourIncreasing Awareness of the Barriers to

Helping

Increasing helping in childrenRewards and models

In order to encourage prosocial behaviour, parents and others can: Reward prosocial acts with praise, smiles, and hugs. Behave prosocially themselves to represent a model of

those behaviours for the children.

Reward & Punishment on Children’s Helping Behaviour (Hogg & Vaughan 2005)

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

Immediate 2 Weeks Later

Reinforcement

No Consequence

Punishment

Increasing helping in generalIncreasing Awareness of the Barriers to

HelpingTeaching people about the determinants of

prosocial behaviour:Makes them more aware of why they

sometimes don’t helpLeads them to help more in the future.

Increasing helpingBeaman, Barnes, Klentx, and Mcquirk

(1978)Half the class heard lecture on the

Bystander effect; half a control ‘lecture’Male confederate appears to be injured

in a bicycle accidentSecond confederate apathetic – a non-

reactive bystander

Results

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

Helping lecture Control

Treatment group

Per

cen

t h

elp

ing

ConclusionThe situations we find ourselves in can have

powerful effects of our behaviourKnowledge of situational influences can help us

overcome them“Sensitizing persons to social forces in the

environment gives them greater freedom to control their own behavior.” (Beaman et al, 1978, p. 410)Not only the bystander effect, but many other

‘situational influences’ E.g., Knowing about groupthink & implementing

effective preventative measures

Final ExamFriday December 5th

Room: 7-2389:00 am to 12:00 pm

Exam ReviewNon-cumulative: Only topics 5, 6, 7, & 8

chapters 7, 8, 9, & 10Roughly equal coverage of sections covered

(including today!)Most questions on material that was covered

in BOTH text & lectures2nd most from material covered only in classAlso a minority of questions from text ALONE

(not covered in class)

Exam ReviewExam format – lecture and text material (not

paper topics)Multiple choiceDefinitions Short answerLong answer

Definitions

ConformitySocial Influence*Conformity*Compliance*Obedience*Social Norms*Informational social

influence*Normative social

influence

Groups:Group*Social roles*Social facilitationSocial Loafing*GroupthinkProcess loss*Group polarization*Social dilemmas*Tragedy of the commons*Diffusion of

responsibility

6-8 worth 1 pt each.Only taken from those presented in lectures (not text):

DefinitionsAttraction &

Relationships*The propinquity effect*Functional distanceThe mere exposure effect

or Frequency of exposureReciprocal-likingSimilarityAttributionsThe fundamental

attribution error*Positive illusions*Companionate love*Passionate love

Prosocial Behaviour*Kin selection*Norm of reciprocity*Empathy*Empathy-altruism

hypothesis*The altruistic

personality*The bystander effectPluralistic ignorance

Short AnswerUse ‘evidence-based reasoning’ to aswer short and long

answer questions.Sometimes asking directly about the material

E.g., “describe the three components of Latane’s Social Impact Theory ” (3pts)

Sometimes asking you to extrapolate past the material using examplesE.g., “Your date takes you to a horror movie on Halloween.

You were scared out of your mind. Prior to this date you weren’t very optimistic about this relationship, but you find that you are much more attracted to this person than you first thought. How does Schacter’s theory of emotion explain your new feelings toward this person?” (3pts)

Long answerSame as short answer, but longer/ worth more

points.Example Exam question:“In research conducted by Batson and colleagues,

participants are typically found to be more motivated to help if they are placed in a condition of “high empathy”. Define “empathy” and describe Batson’s Empathy-altruism hypothesis. Explain generally how Cialdini et al.’s (1987) research using the pseudo Milgram situation generally supports an egoistically based interpretation of helping under conditions of high empathy (ie. how their research indicates that even high empathy subjects may still in fact be selfishly motivated)?” (5pts)

Course evaluationsPlease take the remaining time to fill out

course evaluations.

Good luck on your final exam(s)!Thank you and have a good holiday!!!