The Science of a Meaningful Life
Altruism is when we act to promote someone else’s welfare,
even at a risk or cost to ourselves. Though some believe that humans are
fundamentally self-interested, recent research suggests
Greater Goodotherwise:
Studies have found that people’s first impulse is
to cooperate rather than compete; that toddlers spontaneously help people in need out of a
genuine concern for their welfare; and that even
non-human primates display altruism.
Evolutionary scientists speculate that altruism has such deep roots
in human nature because helping and cooperation promote the survival of
our species. Indeed, Darwin himself argued that altruism, which he
called “sympathy” or “benevolence,” is “an essential part of the social
instincts.” Darwin’s claim is supported by recent neuroscience studies,
which have shown that when people behave altruistically, their brains
activate in regions that signal
pleasure and reward, similar to when they eat chocolate (or have sex).
This does not mean that humans are more altruistic than selfish;
instead, evidence suggests we have deeply ingrained tendencies to act in
either direction. Our challenge lies in finding ways to evoke the
better angels of our nature.
For More: Why do some people risk their lives to help others? Read about Kristen Renwick Monroe’s research to understand
heroic altruists.
Why Practice Altruism?
Nice guys finish last? Hardly. More and more, research
suggests that practicing altruism enhances our personal
well-being—emotionally, physically, romantically, and perhaps even
financially. It’s also crucial to stable and healthy communities, and to
the well-being of our species as a whole. Still need to be convinced to
be kind? Read on.
- Altruism makes us happy:
Researchers have consistently found that people report a significant
happiness boost after doing kind deeds for others. Some studies suggest
giving to others makes people feel happier than spending money on themselves; this has even been found among kids. These good feelings are reflected in our biology: Giving to charity activates brain regions associated with pleasure,
social connection, and trust. Scientists also believe that altruism may
trigger the release of endorphins in the brain, giving us a “helper’s high.”
- Altruism is good for our health: People who volunteer tend to experience fewer aches and pains, better overall physical health, and less depression; older people who volunteer or regularly help friends or relatives have a significantly lower chance of dying. Researcher Stephen Post reports that altruism even improves the health of people with chronic illnesses such as HIV and multiple sclerosis.
- Altruism is good for our bottom line: Studies suggest that altruists may reap unexpected financial benefits
from their kindness because others will feel compelled to reward their
kindness; other research has found that donating money to charity might make corporations more valuable. Across the animal kingdom, animals that cooperate with each other are more productive and survive longer.
- Altruism is good for our love lives:
When researcher David Buss surveyed more than 10,000 people across 37
cultures, he found that kindness was their most important criterion for a
mate and the single universal requirement for a mate across all
cultures.
- Altruism fights addiction:
Studies have shown that addicts who help others, even in small ways,
can significantly improve their chances of staying sober and avoiding
relapse; this is true among adults and adolescents alike.
- Altruism promotes social connections: When we give to others, they
feel closer to us, and we also feel closer to them. “Being kind and
generous leads you to perceive others more positively and more
charitably,” writes positive psychologist Sonja Lyubomirsky in her book The How of Happiness, and this “fosters a heightened sense of interdependence and cooperation in your social community.”
- Altruism is good for education: High-quality service learning programs,
where students complement their classroom learning with real-world
community service, improve academic performance and make students feel
more connected to their school. And when students engage in “cooperative learning,”
where they must work together to complete a project, they are more
likely to have positive relationships, better psychological health, and
are less likely to bully.
- Altruism is contagious: When we give, we don’t only help the
immediate recipient of our gift. We also spur a ripple effect of
generosity through our community. Research by
James Fowler and Nicholas Christakis has shown that altruism can spread by three degrees—from
person to person to person to person. “As a result,” they write, “each
person in a network can influence dozens or even hundreds of people,
some of whom he or she does not know and has not met.”
For more: Read our article on “
Five Ways Giving Is Good for You” and Christine Carter’s explanation of “
What We Get When We Give.”
How to Cultivate Altruism?
Studies show that kids
behave altruistically
even before they’ve learned to talk. But too often, we don’t act on our
propensities for kindness as we get older. Here are ways research
suggests we can nurture our own altruistic instincts—and help motivate
altruism in others.
- Get connected: Feeling connected
to other people—even by just reading words like “community” and
“relationship”—makes us more altruistic. Reminders of connection can be
very subtle: In one study, when toddlers simply saw two dolls facing each other in the background of a photo, they were three times more likely to be helpful than when they saw the dolls in other poses.
- Get personal: We’re more altruistic when we see people as
individuals, not abstract statistics. So if you want to encourage aid to
people in need, give their problem a human face. By the same token, people respond more altruistically when they feel personally responsible for a problem: Bystanders
to a crisis are much more likely to respond if singled out
individually—“Hey, you in the striped shirt, can you help me?”—than if
they hear a general appeal for help.
- See yourself in others: In general, people are much more likely to
help members of their own group—but research has shown that who we think
belongs to our “in-group” can be very malleable. Finding a thread of similarity with someone else—even something as simple as liking the same sport or sports team—can motivate altruistic action toward that person, in some cases overcoming group rivalries in the midst of war.
- Give thanks: Grateful people
are more generous, perhaps because they’re paying forward the gifts
they appreciate receiving from others. Receiving gratitude can also
encourage altruism—for instance, when a server writes “thank you” on a restaurant bill his or her tip goes up by as much as 11 percent.
- Lead by example: People who consistently display altruism encourage others to follow suit. Simply reading about extraordinary acts of kindness makes people more generous, perhaps because they experience the warm, uplifting feeling psychologists call “elevation,”
which we get when we see unexpected acts of goodness. This is an
especially important tip if you’re caring for kids: Research suggests
altruistic children have parents or other caregivers who deliberately model helpful behavior or stress altruistic values.
- Put people in a good mood: Feeling happy
makes people more generous. And because being generous seems to make
people happy, researcher Lara Aknin sees a “positive feedback loop” to
altruism that might benefit charitable organizations: “Reminding donors
of earlier donations could make them happy, and experiencing happiness
might lead to making a generous gift.”
- Encourage collaboration and emphasize shared goals: When kids have
to work together on a task, they’re much more likely to share the fruits
of their efforts evenly. When students participate in “cooperative learning” exercises in small groups, they’re more likely to show kindness toward their classmates in general.
- Acknowledge giving—but not with rewards: People are more likely to be altruistic when others will know
of their good deeds, perhaps because they assume their kindness will be
reciprocated down the line. But too much acknowledgment can backfire:
Young kids who receive material rewards for kindness become less likely to help in the future.
- Get time on your side: In seminal studies by Daniel Batson and John
Darley, when people saw someone slumped on a sidewalk, their decision to
help depended on a single factor: whether they were late to an appointment They were altruistic only when they felt like they had the time to be—which offers important lessons for our increasingly busy culture: slow down, don’t overschedule, and make time to be mindfully aware of your surroundings.
- Help build a supportive community: One study found that neighborhoods with more support structures
for kids, like extracurricular activities and religious institutions,
had teens who were more altruistic. The amount of wealth in their
neighborhood wasn’t a factor. This suggests volunteering doesn’t just
make you feel good—it also helps build a more altruistic community.
- Fight inequality: Studies suggest that when people feel an inflated sense of status, they become less generous. Perhaps that’s why wealthier people in the United States give a lower percentage of their income
to charity, especially when they live in neighborhoods with a high
proportion of other wealthy people. But when high-status people are made
to feel a compassionate connection to others, or feel their status dip,
they become more generous.
For more: Read our “
Seven Tips for Fostering Generosity,” Stephen Post’s “
Six Ways to Boost Your Habits of Helping,” and Christine Carter’s “
Five Ways to Raise Kind Children.”
How Altruistic Are You?
Find out by taking some of these research-tested scales and quizzes.
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