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What causes people to jeopardize their own health and well-being to help other people? What

is it that inspires individuals to give their time, energy, and money to aid in the betterment of

others, even when they receive nothing tangible in return? Altruism involves the unselfish

concern for other people. It involves doing things simply out of a desire to help, not because you

feel obligated to out of duty, loyalty, or religious reasons.

Everyday life is filled with small acts of altruism, from the guy at the grocery store who kindly

holds the door open as you rush in from the parking lot to the woman who gives twenty dollars

to a homeless man. News stories often focus on grander cases of altruism, such as a man who

dives into an icy river to rescue a drowning stranger to a generous donor who gives thousands

of dollars to a local charity. While we may be all too familiar with altruism, social psychologists

are interested in understanding whyit occurs. What inspires these acts of kindness? What

motivates people to risk their own lives to save a complete stranger?

Altruism is one aspect of what social psychologists refer to asprosocial behavior.Prosocial

behavior refers to any action that benefits other people, no matter what the motive or how the

giver benefits from the action. Remember, however, that altruism involves true selflessness.

While all altruisms acts are prosocial, not all prosocial behaviors are altruistic. For example, we

might help others for a variety of reasons such as guilt, obligation, duty or even for rewards.

Psychologists have suggested a number of different explanations for why altruism exists,

including:

Biological Reasons:Kin selection- We may be more altruistic towards those we are related

to because it increases the odds that our blood relations will survives and transmit their

genes to future generations.

Neurological Reasons:Altruism activates reward centers in the brain. Neurobiologists have

found that when engaged in an altruistic act, the pleasure centers of the brain become

active.

Cognitive Reasons:While the definition of altruism involves doing for others without reward,

there may still be cognitive incentives that are not obvious. For example, we might help

others to relieve out own distress or because being kind to others upholds our view of

ourselves as kind, empathetic people.

Dr. Neil burton Hide and Seek:Does true altruism exist?Nietzsche is in effect agreeing with Aristotle who in the Rhetoricdefines pity as a feeling of

pain caused by a painful or destructiveevilthat befalls one who does not deserve it, and that

might well befall us or one of our friends, and, moreover to befall us soon. Aristotle surmises

http://psychology.about.com/od/pindex/g/prosocial-behavior.htmhttp://psychology.about.com/od/pindex/g/prosocial-behavior.htmhttp://psychology.about.com/od/pindex/g/prosocial-behavior.htmhttp://psychology.about.com/od/kindex/g/kin_selection.htmhttp://psychology.about.com/od/kindex/g/kin_selection.htmhttp://psychology.about.com/od/kindex/g/kin_selection.htmhttp://www.psychologytoday.com/basics/moralityhttp://www.psychologytoday.com/basics/moralityhttp://www.psychologytoday.com/basics/moralityhttp://www.psychologytoday.com/basics/moralityhttp://psychology.about.com/od/kindex/g/kin_selection.htmhttp://psychology.about.com/od/pindex/g/prosocial-behavior.htm

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that pity cannot be felt by those with absolutely nothing to lose, nor by those who feel that

they are beyond all misfortune.

Altru istic acts are self-interested, if not becaus e they rel ieve anxiety, then perhaps

because they lead to p leasant feel ings of p ride and satisfact ion; the expectat ion of

hono r or reciprocation; or the g reater l ikel ihood of a place in heaven; and even i f

neither of the abov e, then at least because they rel ieve unp leasant feel ings su ch as

the gui l t orshame of no t having acted at al l .

This argument has been attacked on various grounds, but most gravely on the grounds ofcircularityaltruistic acts are performed for selfish reasons, therefore they must beperformed for selfish reasons. The bottom line, I think, is this. There can be no such thing asan altruisticact that does not involve some element of self-interest, no such thing, forexample, as an altruistic act that does not lead to some degree, no matter how small, ofpride or satisfaction. Therefore, an act should not be written off as selfish or self-motivated

simply because it includes some inevitable element of self-interest. The act can still becounted as altruistic if the selfish element is accidental; or, if not accidental, then secondary;or, if neither accidental nor secondary, then undetermining.

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