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To Help or Not to Help? Assessing the Impact of Envy and Gratitude on Prosocial Behaviors

Envy is an other-oriented but negative emotion; no research has examined the influence of envy on prosocial behavior. Study 1 examined whether envy and gratitude would promote or inhibit prosocial behavior. I hypothesized that envy would result in less helping behavior than a neutral condition, whereas gratitude would increase helping behavior. Results supported the hypothesis that envy inhibits prosocial behavior. There was not enough evidence to suggest that gratitude promoted helping.
Study 2 examined how envy and gratitude affected prosocial behavior when participants were given the choice to help or harm others. I hypothesized that experiencing envy would result in greater likelihood of engaging in harmful behavior, but that gratitude would promote more helpful behavior, even when it meant a less positive outcome for participants. The hypothesis that envy increases harming behavior was supported, while there was not enough evidence to suggest that gratitude promoted helping behavior in this scenario.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:vcu.edu/oai:scholarscompass.vcu.edu:etd-5891
Date01 January 2017
CreatorsBehler, Anna Maria C
PublisherVCU Scholars Compass
Source SetsVirginia Commonwealth University
Detected LanguageEnglish
Typetext
Formatapplication/pdf
SourceTheses and Dissertations
Rights© Anna Maria C. Behler

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