1st Place Winner of the Robert Fulton Student Paper Competition of the Annual International Death, Grief, and Bereavement Conference: Social Psychological Perspectives on Altruism in Care Giving: The Schiavo Case and beyond

Abstract

This article will address altruism in the care giving of an ill person and also consider some of the factors—responsibility, empathy and motivation—that influence helping behavior. A literature review indicates ongoing disagreements among scholars in relation to altruism and its motives. Inquiries are made into empathetic reactions using spoken and unspoken cues, and a transformation of altruism into compassionate action is examined. Assumption of responsibility will be analyzed with special reference to the role of the provider of care for an ill person. Models, theories, and approaches relating to altruism are examined as well as the various causes that contribute to the behavior of the care taker, including cooperation. The impact of altruism on families and in relationships is discussed on a cultural level with respect to norms. Lastly, the research is applied to the Florida Terri Schindler/ Schiavo case and its subjects, relating altruism and care giving to an assumed Persistent Vegetative State (PVS) patient.