Helping "Us" versus "Them": Towards a Group-Level Theory of Helping and Altruism Within and Across Group Boundaries

Stefan Stürmer, Mark Snyder

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingChapter

48 Scopus citations
Original languageEnglish (US)
Title of host publicationThe Psychology of Prosocial Behavior
Subtitle of host publicationGroup Processes, Intergroup Relations, and Helping
PublisherJohn Wiley and Sons
Pages33-58
Number of pages26
ISBN (Print)9781405178815
DOIs
StatePublished - Nov 6 2009

Keywords

  • Emphasizing commonalities among groups-promoting empathy and altruism across group lines
  • Group-level theory of helping and altruism within and across group boundaries
  • Helping "Us" versus "Them"
  • In-group/out-group distinction impact on empathy-helping relationship
  • Motives for helping in interpersonal contexts
  • Perception of similarities between helper and target
  • Psychological understanding of altruistic motivation and empathy in helping
  • Role of perceived self-other (dis)similarities in empathy relationship and evolutionary roots
  • Salient in-group/out-group distinctions
  • Social psychological theory of helping and altruism and social groups

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