Altruism

Question 1

Explain how the kin selection theory of altruism functions.

Revolt · Accepted Answer

Responses may vary but should include some or all of the following information: In kin selection, an organism is willing to expose itself to danger in order to help others with the same genes survive. Since the genetic material of the individual is most closely shared with relatives, performing helping acts toward those individuals helps ensure that these genes will survive. This is an evolutionary benefit because altruism in individuals helps their genes survive whether the individual does or not. A group composed of more selfish individuals would be at a disadvantage as a group because each individual’s fate would be solely in one’s own hands.

Question 2

Read the scenario below and answer the question that follows.Some ant colonies consist of a queen, who performs all reproductive duties for the colony, and worker ants, who perform all the labor that the colony needs to gather food, expand and defend territory, and survive. The worker ants are also able to—but do not—contribute reproductively to the colony. In a colony like this, the worker ants will give their lives to defend the queen. Why is the worker ant considered altruistic?A.The worker ant cannot directly assist in reproduction.B.The worker ant is willing to forgo reproduction itself.C.The worker ant can’t reproduce as effectively as the queen.D.The worker ant can adopt offspring from the queen.

Revolt · Accepted Answer

B

Question 3

Read the scenario below and answer the question that follows.Juniper, a college student, is walking to her next class, which begins in five minutes. She knows that the professor is very irritated by lateness and may ask her to leave the classroom if she is late. While she is rushing to the class, she notices a man lying on the sidewalk. The man is clutching his throat and turning blue. When she notices this, Juniper’s palms begin to sweat and she feels agitated. Juniper notices that there are many other students in the area who have noticed the man.Which of the following factors is likely to discourage Juniper from performing an altruistic act?A.Juniper interprets the incident as an emergency.B.Juniper notices the man’s distress.C.Juniper sees that there are many other witnesses.D.Juniper is beginning to feel agitated.

Revolt · Accepted Answer

C

Question 4

A behavior is still considered altruistic if it grants some benefit to the person performing the behavior, especially if the behavior puts the individual at some risk.

Revolt · Accepted Answer

T

Question 5

What effect does a sense of urgency often have on the incidence of altruistic behavior?

Revolt · Accepted Answer

An elevated sense of urgency will increase altruistic behavior.

Question 6

Altruism is an uncontroversial term in that only one cause for altruistic behavior is accepted by psychologists.

Revolt · Accepted Answer

F

Question 7

Which of the following statements regarding emotion and altruism is true?A.Financial gain causes less altruistic behavior than other causes of happiness.B.The cause of happiness does not make a difference in whether or not someone demonstrates altruism. C.Happiness caused by financial gain increases altruism more than other causes.D.There is no correlation between levels of happiness and willingness to perform helping behavior.

Revolt · Accepted Answer

B

Question 8

Provide a rationale for why no one came to the aid of Kitty Genovese before she was murdered.

Revolt · Accepted Answer

Responses may vary but should include some or all of the following information: Almost 40 people witnessed the murder of Kitty Genovese, but it took almost 20 minutes for someone to call to police. Most psychologists feel that the bystander effect came into play. Because there were many witnesses, each felt that someone else would act. Additionally, due to the number of witnesses, a diffusion of responsibility occurred. Thus, each witness felt less responsible for acting to save Genovese. Some of the witnesses also claimed that they did not understand what was occurring, believing the murder to be a lover’s quarrel. Thus, they did not perceive it as an emergency and therefore did not respond with helping behavior.

Question 9

Explain why leaving a generous tip at a restaurant one never plans on returning to is considered an altruistic act.

Revolt · Accepted Answer

Responses may vary but should include some or all of the following information: Altruism occurs when an individual gives to another out of concern or thought of one's well-being. If an individual has no expectation of returning to a restaurant then leaving a generous tip is considered altruistic because there is no expectation of a reward from the server. If the customer does not return, the server is unable to exchange the gift or tip with good service. Therefore, the customer who tips is giving out of care or concern for the well-being of the server rather than giving with the intention of receiving an external reward.

Altruism Answers

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