The Influential Mechanisms of Theory of Mind on Prosocial Behavior and the Effect of Mindfulness Intervention

Background:Theory of Mind(ToM)and empathy are crucial cognitive and emotional capacities that influence social interactions.While their role in promoting prosocial behavior has been established,the potential moderating effect of mindfulness on this relationship remains unexplored.Understanding these complex interactions is vital for developing effective interventions to foster prosocial behavior among college students.This study examines the influence of ToM on college students’prosocial behavior and explores the moderating role of mindfulness in this relationship.Methods:A mixed-methods approach combining questionnaires and experimental design was employed.Study 1:A survey of 759 college students(mean age 22.03 years;477 females)was conducted using the ToM Scale,Interpersonal Reactivity Index,Prosocial Behavior Tendency Scale,and Mindfulness Awareness Scale.Data were analyzed using correlation and moderated mediation analyses.Study 2:An 8-week mindfulness attention training program was implemented for the intervention group and compared with a control group.Mindfulness training served as a moderating variable to validate Model 59 from Study 1.Results:1.Study 1 found:(a)ToM was significantly positively correlated with prosocial behavior(r=0.31,p<0.01).(b)Empathy partially mediated the relationship between ToM and prosocial behavior(β=0.10,p<0.001,95%CI[0.06,0.14]).(c)Mindfulness negatively moderated the direct path between ToM and three dimensions of prosocial behavior,as well as the indirect path between empathy and kin altruism and reciprocal altruism.Specifically,high levels of mindfulness weakened the direct impact of ToM on prosocial behavior.High levels of mindfulness also weakened the indirect influence of ToM on prosocial behavior through empathy.2.Study 2 results showed:(a)The intervention group had significantly higher levels of trait mindfulness compared to the control group(t=2.56,p<0.05).(b)The validity of the moderated mediation model 59 from Study 1 was verified.Conclusion:While ToM and empathy play crucial roles in fostering prosocial behavior,mindfulness exhibits a more complex influence than anticipated,potentially inhibiting prosocial behavior under certain circumstances.These findings offer novel insights into the psychological mechanisms underlying prosocial behavior and underscore the importance of considering multiple interacting factors in its promotion.

Relationship between Moral Elevation and Prosocial Behavior among College Students: The Mediating Role of Perceived Social Support and Moderating Role of Moral Identity

Objectives:The present study examined the relationship between college students’moral elevation and prosocial behavior.As well as the mediating role of perceived social support and the moderating role of moral identity.Methods:A sample of 489 college students were recruited for the study.They were asked to complete a series of questionnaires,including Moral Elevation Scale(MES),Perceived Social Support Scale(PSSS),Moral Identity Scale(MIS)and Prosocial Tendency Measure(PTM).As part of the data analysis,we used correlation analysis and the method of constructing latent variable structural equation model to explore the mechanism of action among variables.Results:After controlling for gender,discipline,the research found that:(1)Moral elevation positively predicted the prosocial behavior among the college students;(2)Perceived social support mediated the relationship between moral elevation and prosocial behavior;(3)Moral identity moderated the second half of the model(i.e.,the link between perceived social support and prosocial behavior).Specifically,the mediating effect of perceived social support was stronger for college students with high-level moral identity compared to those with low-level moral identity.Conclusions:Moral identity significantly moderates the mediating effect of perceived social support,and the mediating model with moderated is established.

Social avoidance behavior in male tree shrews and prosocial behavior in male mice toward unfamiliar conspecifics in the laboratory

Adult male tree shrews vigorously defend against intruding male conspecifics. However, the characteristics of social behavior have not been entirely explored in these males. In this study, male wild-type tree shrews(Tupaia belangeri chinensis)and C57 BL/6 J mice were first allowed to familiarize themselves with an open-field apparatus. The tree shrews exhibited a short duration of movement(moving) in the novel environment, whereas the mice exhibited a long duration of movement. In the 30 min social preference-avoidance test, target animals significantly decreased the time spent by the experimental tree shrews in the social interaction(SI)zone, whereas experimental male mice exhibited the opposite. In addition, experimental tree shrews displayed a significantly longer latency to enter the SI zone in the second 15 min session(targetpresent) than in the first 15 min session(targetabsent), which was different from that found in mice.Distinct behavioral patterns in response to a conspecific male were also observed in male tree shrews and mice in the first, second, and third 5 min periods. Thus, social behaviors in tree shrews and mice appeared to be time dependent. In summary,our study provides results of a modified social preference-avoidance test designed for the assessment of social behavior in tree shrews. Our findings demonstrate the existence of social avoidance behavior in male tree shrews and prosocial behavior in male mice toward unfamiliar conspecifics. The tree shrew may be a new animal model, which differs from mice, for the study of social avoidance and prosocial behaviors.

School Boarding and Students'Prosocial Behaviors:Evidence from Rural China

This study investigated the efects of boarding at school on students'prosocial behaviors in rural China using data from the National Children's Study of China.The instrumental variable(IV)approach was used to control for potential endogeneity,and the IVs were the proportion of boarding students in higher grades and the school area per student.The ordinary least squares and IV estimates showed that boarding students exhibited more prosocial behaviors,including compliance with rules,positive traits,and altruistic attitudes.These results were robust.Heterogeneity analyses suggested that students from low-income families,children who were not"left behind,"high-grade students,and female students were more likely to benefit from boarding.We found that these effects were primarily due to boarding students developing stronger feelings of trust and support from their peers and teachers and participating in more school-organized events and team activities.

How Facial Expressions of Recipients Influence Online Prosocial Behaviors?-Evidence from Big Data Analysis on Tencent Gongyi Platform

Cyberspace has significantly influenced people’s perceptions of social interactions and communication.As a result,the conventional theories of kin selection and reciprocal altruism fall short in completely elucidating online prosocial behavior.Based on the social information processing model,we propose an analytical framework to explain the donation behaviors on online platform.Through collecting textual and visual data from Tencent Gongyi platform pertaining to disease relief projects,and employing techniques encompassing text analysis,image analysis,and propensity score matching,we investigate the impact of both internal emotional cues and external contextual cues on donation behaviors.It is found that positive emotions tend to attract a larger number of donations,while negative emotions tend to result in higher per capita donation amounts.Furthermore,these effects manifest differently under distinct external contextual conditions.

Motivational and Methodological Factors Involved in the Helping Behavior Test in Laboratory Rodents

Empathy allows humans and other animals to share the emotional state of another, adopting that individual’s perspective on a given situation. This ability is fundamental for species living in groups. Helping behavior in laboratory animals has been used to study empathy. In this test, subjects are exposed to a conspecific that is trapped and learn to open the cage to release the other animal. However, the interpretation of helping behavior as an emphatically motivated action is still controversial. Here we review the studies that use the helping behavioral test proposed by Ben-Ami Bartal and colleagues in 2011 to better understand motivational factors for this behavior. In addition, we compare methodological aspects of these studies. In conclusion, helping behavior can be driven by empathy, but other factors such as the desire for social contact and learning components cannot be ruled out as motivators. In addition, studies focused on evaluating neurobiological mechanisms underlying helping behavior in laboratory rodents can help elucidate the factors involved in releasing the trapped co-specific.

Variations in the oxytocin receptor gene and prosocial behavior:moderating effects of situational factors

Humans are the most prosocial primate species and they often exhibit high levels of prosocial behavior toward genetically unrelated individuals.Traditional evolutionary theories are not sufficient to explain the individual differences and mechanisms related to prosociality.In this study,we focused on the gene–situation interaction in prosocial behaviors,and the patterns of genotype variance related to cooperation and comforting in different situations.We explored the interaction between the oxytocin receptor(OXTR)gene and situations,and the genotype variance under low and high prosociality situations between outgroup and ingroup recipients in a sample of 422 Chinese males.Prosociality was tested by measuring the prosocial tendencies,and prosocial behaviors were tested in cooperation and comforting tasks.OXTR single nucleotide polymorphisms(SNPs)were genotyped using polymerase chain reaction–restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis.The results suggested that the relationship between OXTR SNPs(specifically rs13316193,rs1042778 and rs237887)and prosocial behavior varied across different situations,and that the associations were moderated by the recipient’s identity and the prosocial cost.Our findings indicate the action of a moderating mechanism between the OXTR gene and prosocial behaviors according to situational factors.