How the “Truth” Self Relates to Altruism: When Your Problem is Mine

Abstract

It has been argued that the phenomenal self sees the world from an "egocentric" perspective. But then how do we explain why people give up their own time and resources on behalf of others? We propose that one answer to this question can be found in people's subjective experience of motivation to establishing what's real-the phenomenal "truth" self. In seeking the truth, people want to establish not only what is correct and real but also what is right, including morally right. We propose that the experience of being effective in figuring things out and solving problems relates positively to solving others' problems as well; that is, altruistic behaviors that help others. In support of this proposal, we touch upon ethical theories in philosophy and religion that have drawn the connection between seeking the truth and being moral, and we review research in comparative and social psychology suggesting how experiencing a "truth" self would support helping others. We also report two empirical studies demonstrating the unique relation between the subjective experience of effectiveness in pursuing the truth, particularly an affinity for solving puzzles or problems, and behaving altruistically by helping others to solve their problems. In contrast, being effective in value and control motivation-two other forms of self agencydid not predict altruism.

Inducing motivational harmony to increase attitudes and intentions to register as an organ donor and engage in general prosocial behavior

“…That is, they expected individuals who, for example, see themselves as being “exactly where they're meant to be” when encountering a need to be more likely to step in and address that need compared to someone who does not see discrete moments in his or her life that way. It is worth noting that this interpretation is consistent with the finding that self‐reported altruism is higher among those with more effective truth motivations and a higher need for cognition (Cornwell et al., 2017).…”

Motivated secrecy: Politics, relationships, and regrets.

“…For instance, a social motive for affiliation promotes spending time with friends (Neel, Kenrick, White, & Neuberg, 2016). These social motives allow us to connect to others, and such connection and communication brings practical benefits in the form of sharing resources and information (Greenaway, Wright, Willingham, Reynolds, & Haslam, 2015; see also Cornwell, Franks, & Higgins, 2017). How people might pursue social motives by not communicating with others (i.e., keeping secrets), however, is understudied.…”

Handbook of Positive Psychology, Religion, and Spirituality

“…and cross-culturally associated with higher religiousness and more positive attitudes toward outgroups (Ashton & Lee, 2019). Within this chapter's regions of interest, altruism has been linked to authenticity in two Canadian samples (Cornwell et al, 2017) and to religiousness in four samples of Belgian adults (Saroglou et al, 2005). Furthermore, gratitude has been associated with life satisfaction among Catholic pastoral workers in Germany (Büssing et al, 2017) and with well-being among adolescents in Canada (Bosacki et al, 2018).…”