Podium Presentation - 20 minutes International Positive Psychology Association 8th IPPA World Congress 2023

When is helping fulfilling? Types of helping behavior and the role of identity  (#72)

Rachel Baumsteiger 1
  1. Cal Poly Pomona, Alhambra, CA, United States

Background

Helping others has been linked to facets of well-being such as meaning and life satisfaction (Akin et al., 2013; Klein, 2017), but less is known about how it contributes to personal fulfillment.

Aims

The purpose of this study was to investigate how helping is related to fulfillment and how this potential link varies by individual characteristics (i.e., identity) and by the type of helping behavior (e.g., public vs. private, spontaneous vs. regular helping).

Method

U.S. adults (= 294, ages 18-81, 64% male, 36% female) about their identities and about the activities that contribute to their sense of fulfillment.

Results

Some of the key findings were: (a) helping others is similarly or more fulfilling (M = 5.51, SD = 1.44; scores ranged 1-7 with 7 being more fulfilling) than activities such as working (M = 4.37, SD = 1.79), spending time with friends (M = 5.42, SD = 1.45), or engaging in spiritual practices (M = 3.74, SD = 2.20); (b) helping is particularly fulfilling for those who consider helping to be central to their identities (r = .66, p < .001); and, (c) helping is more fulfilling when it is intrinsically rather than extrinsically motivated, t(293)= 10.83, p < .001; when it involves providing emotional support rather than financial support, t(293)= 7.90, p < .001; and, when the recipient is a close loved one rather than a stranger, t(293)= 10.90, p < .001.

Conclusion

These findings suggest that helping others boosts well-being because it allows people to demonstrate qualities that are central to their identity and because it reinforces existing social relationships. The findings also indicate that certain types of helping tend to be more rewarding than others, which is useful for guiding interventions aimed at promoting well-being.

  1. Aknin L. B., Barrington-Leigh C. P., Dunn E. W., Helliwell J. F., Burns J., Biswas-Diener R., . . . Norton M. I. (2013). Prosocial spending and well-being: Cross-cultural evidence for a psychological universal. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 104, 635–652.
  2. Klein, N. (2017). Prosocial behavior increases perceptions of meaning in life. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 12(4), 354–361.
  • Please select up to 3 keywords from the following list to best describe your submission content: Meaning and Purpose, Positive emotions, Relationships