The Effects of peer influence and empathy on the altruism of young adolescents

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dc.contributor.advisorMcDougall, Daniel
dc.contributor.authorLitvack-Miller, Willa
dc.date.accessioned2005-07-21T20:01:00Z
dc.date.available2005-07-21T20:01:00Z
dc.date.issued1986
dc.descriptionBibliography: p. 102-112.en
dc.description.abstractThis study investigated the effects of peer influence and dispositional empathy on the altruism of young adolescents. The subjects, 203 junior high school students were divided into three treatment groups: peer exhortation, adult exhortation and no exhortation and into high and low empathy groups. The study was conducted in two sessions. In the first session, subjects completed a measure of dispositional empathy, the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (Davis, 1980) and viewed a film documentary about the plight of African famine victims and the relief efforts of the International Red Cross. Prior to viewing the films, two of the treatment groups were exposed to a brief charitable exhortation delivered by either a high-status peer or a teacher. Approximately one week later the subjects reassembled. The same speakers delivered a second brief exhortation to their respective groups and subjects completed an index of altruism and anti-utilitarianism. The subjects then received a $0.50 payment for their participation in the study and were told that they could donate up to $0.45 to famine relief. Multivariate analyses of variance were used to assess the relationships of exhortation and trait empathy with charitable donations, altruism and anti-utilitarianism. The multivariate analyses of variance revealed no significant exhortation effects for the overall group. Exhortation effects did, however, appear for those subjects who had scored in the top and bottom thirds (approximately) of the empathic concern subscale of the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (Davis, 1980). Stepdown-F tests and t-tests revealed that subjects in the peer-exhortation group scored significantly higher on the anti-utilitariansim measure than did subjects in the adult-exhortation group (p=.007). Analyses of variance and corresponding stepdown-F tests revealed that both overall empathy and empathic concern significantly and positively affected charitable donations and altruism scores (p=.001) but not to anti-utilitarianism.
dc.format.extentviii, 131 leaves ; 30 cm.en
dc.identifier.citationLitvack-Miller, W. (1986). The Effects of peer influence and empathy on the altruism of young adolescents (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca. doi:10.11575/PRISM/19089en_US
dc.identifier.doihttp://dx.doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/19089
dc.identifier.isbn0315326409en
dc.identifier.lccBF 724 L565 1987en
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/1880/22270
dc.language.isoeng
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Calgaryen
dc.publisher.placeCalgaryen
dc.rightsUniversity of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission.
dc.subject.lccBF 724 L565 1987en
dc.subject.lcshJunior high school students - Psychology
dc.subject.lcshAltruism
dc.subject.lcshEmpathy
dc.titleThe Effects of peer influence and empathy on the altruism of young adolescents
dc.typemaster thesis
thesis.degree.disciplineEducational Psychology
thesis.degree.grantorUniversity of Calgary
thesis.degree.nameMaster of Science (MSc)
ucalgary.item.requestcopytrue
ucalgary.thesis.accessionTheses Collection 58.002:Box 590 215772193
ucalgary.thesis.notesoffsiteen
ucalgary.thesis.uarcreleaseyen
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