When prosocial behavior becomes altruistic: An attributional analysis

Guided by Jones and Davis’ (1965) theory of correspondent inferences, an experiment was conducted to explore the conditions under which prosocial behavior is attributed to altruism. Some 14 vignettes were constructed to vary aspects of five general dimensions believed to underlie perceptions of altruistic behavior: Benefits or costs to the actor or the actor’s close kin; benefits to the recipient of help; behavior extending beyond usual helping roles and norms; intentionality of helping; and planful versus spontaneous helping. A total of 164 respondents evaluated the actor and his or her behavior on scales measuring altruism and praiseworthiness. As hypothesized, the first four dimensions consistently predicted judgments of altruism, while the fifth did not. Strengths and shortcomings of the vignette approach are discussed, as are directions for subsequent research.