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To lend helping hands: in-group favoritism, uncertainty avoidance and the national frequency of pro-social behaviors

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journal contribution
posted on 2023-06-09, 01:24 authored by Peter B Smith
Nation-level differences in individuals’ reports of helping strangers, donating money to charity, and volunteering time were analyzed, drawing on nationally representative survey data from 135 nations. Frequency of these three behaviors yielded a reliable index of pro-social behavior. All three behaviors were found to be more frequent in nations that score low on an index of in-group favoritism and score low on uncertainty avoidance. Helping a stranger was also more frequent in nations with greater income inequality. The use of a wide sample of nations provides a more valid understanding of what kinds of cultures favor pro-social actions and indicates that national wealth is a less important contributor to the differences that are found than is the case in other aspects of cultural difference.

History

Publication status

  • Published

File Version

  • Accepted version

Journal

Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology

ISSN

0022-0221

Publisher

SAGE Publications

Issue

6

Volume

46

Page range

759-771

Department affiliated with

  • Psychology Publications

Full text available

  • Yes

Peer reviewed?

  • Yes

Legacy Posted Date

2016-05-27

First Open Access (FOA) Date

2016-05-27

First Compliant Deposit (FCD) Date

2016-05-27

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