Answering the Call for Prosocial Behavior

Abstract

Prosocial behavior toward strangers was investigated via responses to wrong-number messages on telephone answering machines. Two hundred forty anonymous participants were randomly selected from the telephone directory of a midsized, midwestern community. Each participant received a message that was intended for someone else. The importance and urgency of the message were varied—low, medium, high, and high with a prod (a direct request for help). Overall, the findings revealed a higher than anticipated prosocial response. The number of return calls increased as a function of the urgency and importance of the misdirected message.