Compassion Training Increases Prosocial Behavior
Author Information
Author(s): Susanne Leiberg, Olga Klimecki, Tania Singer
Primary Institution: University of Zurich
Hypothesis
Compassion training will elicit a longer-lasting enhancement of general compassionate motivation, which in turn may lead to an increase in the general tendency to act prosocially.
Conclusion
Short-term compassion training significantly increased prosocial behavior towards strangers in a training-unrelated task.
Supporting Evidence
- Participants who received compassion training helped more in the Zurich Prosocial Game compared to those who received memory training.
- Compassion training led to significant increases in self-reported positive mood and compassionate feelings.
- Helping behavior was significantly correlated with the amount of time spent practicing compassion techniques.
Takeaway
Teaching people to be compassionate can help them be nicer to others, even if they don't know them.
Methodology
Two experiments were conducted using the Zurich Prosocial Game to assess prosocial behavior before and after compassion training.
Potential Biases
Participants may have been influenced by demand characteristics due to the nature of the training.
Limitations
The study only included female participants, which may limit the generalizability of the findings.
Participant Demographics
Healthy female volunteers aged 18-35 years.
Statistical Information
P-Value
<0.05
Statistical Significance
p<0.05
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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