Understanding the Better Than Average Effect on Altruism

Abstract

Prior research suggests that most people perceive themselves to be more altruistic than the average population, an observation known as the better-than-average (BTA) effect. Understanding the BTA effect carries significant public health implications, as self-perceived altruism is closely related to altruistic behaviors, which plays a significant role in individual and societal well-being. However, little is known about whether subpopulations with specific sociodemographic profiles are more likely to hold BTA altruistic self-perceptions, making it difficult to design targeted programs based on multiple sociodemographic characteristics to promote altruistic behaviors. This study addresses this gap by identifying the sociodemographic profiles of populations who are more likely to exhibit BTA effects on trait altruism. Data were derived from a representative sample of Hong Kong citizens (n = 1,185) in the 2017 Hong Kong Altruism Survey. A latent class analysis was performed using four domains of sociodemographic characteristics: sex, age, religion, and socioeconomic status. Multivariate multinomial logistic regressions were conducted to examine associations between class membership, BTA effect, and altruistic behaviors. The results yielded four classes of sociodemographic profiles. Middle-aged, Christian/Catholic, highly educated, and high-income individuals (Class 4, 17.8%) were most likely to exhibit BTA effects and behave altruistically; Class 3 (14.0%) were older, male, no/other religious belief, low education, and least likely to exhibit BTA effects and behave altruistically. Findings improve the understanding of the sociodemographic profiles of people showing BTA effects and facilitate targeted policy development to effectively promote altruism.

Adolescent social networks matter for suicidal trajectories: disparities across race/ethnicity, sex, sexual identity, and socioeconomic status

“…social media, texting, or email) and designing telepsychiatry-based interventions (Valente, 2012 ). Public health professionals and social work practitioners shall also implement tailored interventions that serve the needs of individuals from diverse sociodemographic backgrounds (Cha et al, 2018b ; Chu et al, 2010 ; Lindsey et al, 2019 ; Xiao, Wong, Cheng, & Yip, 2021 ).…”

‘The best interest of patients, not self-interest’: how clinicians understand altruism

“…According to Szuster, altruistic inspirations have an association with moral values [ 13 ]. As religious teachings stress upon moral values [ 9 ], altruism has a strong link to religion [ 14 ]. Research on regional differences in altruistic tendencies have also identified religion as one of the most important influencing factor [ 15 , 16 ] as has culture [ 9 ].…”

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“…For example, anger, particularly when directed towards the outgroup, predicts the desire for both verbal and physical outgroup confrontation (Iyer et al, 2007), support for military action against outgroups (Huddy & Feldman, 2011), and decreased intergroup forgiveness (Tam et al, 2007). In a related vein, research on helping and prosocial behaviour revealed that anger decreased intentions to help people in need of assistance (Weiner, 1980; Xiao et al, 2021; Yang et al, 2017). Therefore, it seems interesting to find useful anger-reduction strategies, particularly in a sports fandom context where this emotion is felt by highly identified sports fans following defeat and encourages intergroup tensions (Bagneux et al, 2021; Crisp et al, 2007).…”