Does Being Prosocial Pay Off? Testing Positive Developmental Cascades of Prosocial Behavior, Social Preference, and Subjective Well-Being in Chinese Adolescents

Self-concept promote subjective well-being through gratitude and prosocial behavior during early adolescence? a longitudinal study

Whether and how self-concept link subjective well-being (SWB) among early adolescents is an important issue. This study employs longitudinal method to explore the relationship between self-concept and SWB, as well as the mediating effects of gratitude and prosocial behavior on this relationship in early adolescents. A total of 554 early adolescents completed scales at two waves, with a 10-month interval between two measurements. Results showed that, from the perspective of cross-section, self-concept T1 had an indirect effect on SWB T1 through gratitude T1 and prosocial behavior T1. From the longitudinal perspective, self-concept T1 had an indirect predictive effect on SWB T2 through gratitude at T1 and T2, as well as prosocial behavior at T1 and T2. In a word, self-concept positively predicted SWB indirectly in that they positively predicted gratitude and prosocial behavior. These findings help to enrich existing literature and provide a new scientific insight for effectively enhancing early adolescents' SWB. Implications and limitations were also discussed.

Defending Behavior in Bullying and Defenders' Psychosocial Outcomes among Children and Adolescents: A Series of Three-Level Meta-Analyses

Defending behavior in bullying plays a vital role in mitigating bullying. However, previous research has reported inconsistent findings regarding the potential psychosocial risks faced by defenders. The current study aimed to systematically examine and quantify the associations between defending behavior in bullying and defenders' psychosocial outcomes through a series of three-level meta-analyses. Following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, a comprehensive systematic search, manual search, and citation tracking were conducted across several databases. The search yielded 290 effect sizes from 62 studies, encompassing data from 102,574 children and adolescents. The analyses revealed that defending behavior in bullying was weakly, but significantly positively correlated with concurrent internalizing problems and victimization. The analyses also showed a small, but reliable positive correlation between defending behavior in bullying and concurrent social relationships, as well as associations with both concurrent and longitudinal social status. These associations were moderated by culture, types of defending, the reporter of defending, and social status types. Positive association between defending behavior and internalizing problems increased with individualism scores. Aggressive defending showed a stronger positive association with internalizing problems than other defending behavior. Both direct defending (particularly aggressive defending) and self-reported defending demonstrated stronger positive correlations with victimization. Defending behavior was more positively linked to likability than popularity. Peer-reported defending was more strongly associated with social status than self-reported defending. However, significant correlations were not observed between defending behavior and externalizing problems or academic achievement. Given the dual nature of defending behavior in bullying, implications for future research directions and bystander intervention programs are discussed.

The Longitudinal Relationship between Adolescents' Prosocial Behavior and Well-Being: A Cross-Lagged Panel Network Analysis

Despite extensive research on the relationship between adolescents' prosocial behavior and well-being, few studies have examined the relationships between prosocial acts towards different targets (family, friends, and strangers) and both hedonic and eudaimonic well-being over time, especially within the cultural context of China, where relational closeness are highly emphasized. To address this research gap, the present study conducted a longitudinal investigation involving 514 Chinese adolescents (M = 13.75 years, SD = 1.46; 57.2% female) across three time points, each separated by six-month intervals. Cross-lagged panel network analyses revealed the reciprocal relationships between prosocial behavior and well-being, moderated by the relational closeness to the prosocial target. Specifically, the results showed a positive and reciprocal relationships between helping family members and both forms of well-being, as well as between helping friends and eudaimonic well-being. In contrast, while helping strangers did not exhibit a direct reciprocal relationship with well-being, both hedonic and eudaimonic well-being were predictive of prosocial behavior towards strangers. Furthermore, the mediation path analysis elucidated distinct mechanisms: helping family and strangers satisfied autonomy needs, contributing to well-being, whereas helping friends fulfilled relational needs. These findings highlight the mutual interplay between adolescents' prosocial behavior, particularly towards close relations, and their well-being.

The Reciprocal Effects of Prosociality, Peer Support and Psychological Well-Being in Adolescence: A Four-Wave Longitudinal Study

The aim of this study was to analyze the reciprocal effects between prosociality, peer support and psychological well-being using a four-wave longitudinal study and a within-person analytical approach (random intercept cross-lagged panel model, RI-CLPM). A sample of 587 adolescents (males = 308; Mage = 14.23, SD = 0.58) enrolled in the first year of high school (9th grade) were recruited and followed over four years from 2016 (Time 1 [T1]) to 2019 (Time 4 [T4]). Once a year, they filled in a questionnaire measuring prosociality, peer support, and psychological well-being. The results from the RI-CLPM revealed that, at the between-person level, prosociality, peer support and psychological well-being were all positively associated. Conversely, at the within-person level and at all survey points, only psychological well-being positively predicted prosociality one year later. Specifically, we found that adolescents with higher levels of psychological well-being were more likely to show a tendency for prosocial behaviors over time. Promoting interventions aimed at enhancing psychological well-being may make adolescents more likely to engage in positive behaviors, such as prosocial ones, in a variety of contexts, thereby creating favorable social environments.

Perceived social support and prosocial behavior in medical students: Mediating effect of empathy and moderating role of moral identity

BACKGROUND

Prosocial behavior is essential for effective patient communication and building a positive doctor-patient relationship in medical students. Research on the factors influencing prosocial behavior in medical students is limited. This research aims to examine how perceived social support influences prosocial behavior among medical students, focusing on the mediating role of empathy and the moderating role of moral identity.

METHODS

This cross-sectional study included 2425 medical students from central and southern Jiangsu province. Participants were assessed using the Prosocial Behavior Scale, Interpersonal Response Index Scale, Moral Identity Scale, and Perceived Social Support Scale, with data collected through via an online questionnaire. SPSS PROCESS macro model 4.1 was used to examine the mediating effect and the moderating effect.

RESULTS

Perceived social support showed a significant positive correlation with prosocial behavior among medical students. The indirect effects of perceived social support on prosocial behavior through perspective taking (βindirect = 0.11, 95% Boot CI [0.09, 0.13]) and empathic concern (βindirect = 0.08, 95% Boot CI [0.06, 0.10]) confirmed the mediating roles of these variables, accounting for 32.05% and 23.82% of the total effect, respectively. However, personal distress did not mediate this relationship (βindirect = -0.004, 95% Boot CI [-0.01, 0.005]). Moral identity significantly moderated the effect of perceived social support on perspective taking (β = 0.05, p < 0.01) and the relationship between perspective taking and prosocial behavior (β = 0.12, p < 0.001). Additionally, moral identity also moderated the relationships between perceived social support and empathic concern (β = -0.05, p < 0.01) and between empathic concern and prosocial behavior (β = 0.08, p < 0.001). While the interaction between perceived social support and moral identity predicted personal distress (β = 0.04, p < 0.05), moral identity did not moderate the relationship between personal distress and prosocial behavior (β = 0.03, p = 0.12).

CONCLUSION

This study underscores the link between perceived social support and prosocial behavior, highlighting the significant roles of perspective taking, empathic concern, and moral identity in this relationship. These findings underscore the potential of cultivating these psychological mechanisms to foster caring and prosocial behaviors among medical students, providing important references for future educational interventions and policy formulation.

The unique role of meaning in life in the relationships between trait awe, subjective well-being, and prosocial tendency: A network analysis

Although individuals with higher trait awe (the tendency to experience awe) are known to be happier and more prosocial, there is limited understanding of the mechanisms underlying these complex relationships. This study uses network analysis to explore dimension-level relationships between trait awe, meaning in life, subjective well-being (SWB), and prosocial tendency in a joint network and to explore the bridging role of meaning in life in the network. A total of 538 adults (53.2% females; Mage = 19.86 ± 1.51) completed the survey. The network revealed unique and intricate connections between the dimensions of trait awe, meaning in life (i.e., the presence of and the search for meaning, abbreviated as POM and SFM), subjective happiness and life satisfaction (SWB), and prosocial tendency (i.e., willingness to donate money and volunteer time). Trait awe exhibited direct links to subjective happiness, life satisfaction, and prosocial tendency to donate money. Moreover, through POM and SFM, trait awe also exhibited indirect links to each dimension of SWB and prosocial tendency. Within the global network, POM was further identified as acting as a bridge node with the highest bridge strength and closeness, indicating that POM could efficiently transmit influences within the entire network. These findings highlight the distinct contributions of meaning in life to understanding the relationships between trait awe, SWB, and prosocial tendency, and provide valuable insights for improving SWB and fostering prosocial tendencies.