Internalized Values as Motivators of Altruism: Development and Maintenance of Prosocial Behavior

For us, altruism refers to self-sacrificial acts intended to benefit others regardless of material or social outcomes for the actor. Crucial to this definition is an emphasis on the actor’s motivation: An act is altruistic only to the extent that it is motivated by concern for the welfare of others. In other words, altruistic behavior is motivated by the desire to affirm one’s own moral values (Schwartz & Howard, 1981). The more general notion of prosocial behavior points to the outcomes of action rather than to the intentions that underlie action (Wispe, 1972). Prosocial behavior usually entails a mixture of altruistic and other types of motivation. An adult may stop children who are fighting, for instance, both because of her own value-based concern for their welfare and because this act may elicit social approval and enhance her sense of competence.