In reflection of the egoistic approach one questions why would someone not want to engage in helping another person or perform a type of service?
Guided Respond
Humans are indeed capable of pure altruism. Everyday we see examples of people who do good things for strangers and never stay long enough to get recognition. Someone left a big tip to a waitress just for good service, an old coin worth millions dropped into a collection plate at church, a stranger pays for someone’s groceries and walks away, or even donations made to a charity house without a name. These people did a good deed with complete selflessness and never looked back. There are also individuals who will do a good deed rooted in egoism. Observing someone in need of help can evoke a sense of empathic concern for that person (Maner, 2007). In one research study data states it is easy for someone to help another or perform a type of service when you either know that person, feel obligated in some way, or have had an opportunity to feel compassion for that individual. Prosocial behavior such as: helping, sharing, donating, co-operating, and volunteering is part of our daily life thus good deeds are rooted more so in egoism.
Human behavior can fall somewhere between purely altruistic and egoistic. People in general are a mixture of emotions, thoughts, and feelings. Values and beliefs guide our conscious heart and mind while behaviors connect to it. “a considerable part of human altruism is driven by concerns about reputation” (Fehr, 2003). Wealthy people can feel obligated to charity because they have lots of money, politicians advocate for laws that support their own State because people voted for him or her, and private school students feel they should make good grades because their parents pay for expensive education. These are examples of individuals who feel the need to do the right thing or risk negative feedback. In reflection of the egoistic approach one questions why would someone not want to engage in helping another person or perform a type of service? In one research study data revealed several reasons. An egoistic manner can exist if the person has not been exposed to peers performing such acts. According to one new egoistic explanation, people learn through prior reinforcement (Batson, 1988). If a person has performed an altruistic act and was never praised for it, he or she may feel justified in not repeating one. A lack of empathy can leave any individual without compassion to want to help anyone. Mood changes, behavioral acts, developed personalities are some of the elements that also factor into egoistic human behavior.
Culture can play a role in altruistic or egoistic behavior. If an individual’s upbringing is one that focuses only on survival of self or is raised in an atmosphere in which he or she is not exposed to charitable experiences or helping others an egoistic characteristic is developed with time. Still, if a person’s culture teaches prosocial behavior such as: helping, sharing, donating, co-operating, and volunteering then more than likely the individual will grow with a nurturing characteristic. “…altruistic behavior among humans tends to be deliberative rather than instinctive“ (MONTANYE, 2016). In one final research study, data found that in humans compassion and benevolence are an evolved part of human nature, rooted in our brain and biology, and ready to be cultivated for the greater good (Keltner, 2004).