Gender and Altruism the Question

Gender and Altruism

The question of whether altruism is gender influenced has plagued both ethics and psychology debates. The answer to this question has never been sufficient simply because it is an extremely hard standard to evaluate. Yet, an understanding of how gender impacts altruism would not only give us a greater understanding of how humans work, but greater insight into the difference in rationalization between men and women. In the below study, we attempt to look at the influence of gender upon altruistic decision making and validate whether or not a true and significant difference exists between the two genders.

Current research seems more confused than ever on the topic of gender impact on altruism. In one formative study by James Andreoni and Lise Versterlund, they found that although a difference exists in the altruistic decision making between men and women, it is profoundly different from what the expected results were. The study found that on the whole, men are more likely to be altruistic when the cost of altruism is low, but adverse to altruism when the cost is relatively high. Whereas women, are more likely to perform altruistically when the costs become higher but are relatively indifferent when costs are low. Consequently men are more likely to fall to either extremes, whether extremely selfless, or extremely selfish. Women on the other hand are shown to be "equilitarians" who fall within the middle ranges (Andreoni, 1). Despite their findings, the quest to provide a perfect explanation is still entirely lacking. The basis of the Andreoni study was ground breaking but had many flaws within its testing and analysis procedure. Much of the data was collected through surveys which although effective, does not always reflect the absolute truth commiserate with actions. Other significant studies attack the problem from a different perspective by examining the rationale behind gender differences in altruistic behavior. Dr. Alessandro Innocenti conducted a study of gender and altruism relationships through relationship establishment and trust factors. His research shows that on a whole woman have greater trust and are in turn more trustworthy than men. Therefore, his conclusion argues that women tend to be more altruistic because they reciprocate much more than men and thus are more dependable in situations of personal altruism (Innocenti, npg). This study provides a sound rationale for the Andreoni study in that when the price of altruism is high, women tend to escalate in their altruism as a result of their deep trust and need for reciprocity, whereas men tend to be more reserved and as a result place less value in altruism when prices are high, but are not adverse to altruism when it costs them little. The prevailing "trust" theory has several weaknesses however, reciprocity among women is only observed within testing methodology, which means that altruism between women on personal levels have been observed, but altruism in cases where there is no close bond or reciprocity has never been validated nor tested in an accurate manner. Another prevailing research theory presented by Dr. Cialdini looks at the gender and altruism debate through the perspective of empathy. Her research suggests that women are more empathetic than men and as a result place themselves in the situation of others in need and by sympathizing with their situation creates a higher level of personal relationships that engenders altruistic behavior (Cialdini, 34). This theory approaches the gender gap from a differing perspective, however it still has the same fundamental problems attributed to Dr. Innocenti's trust research, primarily that it precludes events when the lack of any connection between individuals leads to altruistic behavior. Therefore the gap within prevalent research exists and the below test will examine such a gap.

The general confusion surrounding the gender and altruism relationship occurs because intent does not often translate to deeds. Previous studies conducted have never been fully "blind" and as a result have data severely skewed towards altruism. Thus, questions about the validity of these tests creates a void within this field. Prevailing theory within the field is that women are much more social than men and as a result are implicitly more willing to trust and share, which tends to lead to altruistic behavior (Innocenti, npg). The goal of this study is to create a "blind" test to determine if a noticeable and quantifiable difference actually exists between the two genders. The purpose of this test is to establish whether or not gender impacts altruism in situations where empathy and background is established between the test subjects and the hypothetical scenario and when no present relationship is developed. Through this blind test, it is our hope to observe that there is a significant difference between the decision making of men and women when they are presented with different scenarios involving altruism.

Method

Participants:

The participants within this study will be comprised of students within the University Psychology Research class. In total there will be thirty three different students, with nineteen participating female students and fourteen male students. These students will be tested blindly and they are representatives of a collective pool of 321 University psychology students within the student population. The specific division in this case creates a random sampling based upon the N test population.

Materials:

The primary material necessary for this test is the principle questionnaire given to participants. The questionnaire are given in two different groupings that will create a test variable. The two versions of the test will provide the same scenario where the primary test is how the test subject reacts to the given scenario. However, in one version of the test the scenario will be elaborative, providing details of the life and intimate thoughts of the hypothetical victim, concluding with the situation that demands altruism. In the other version, no background information is presented, and a neutral tone is used to describe the same situation. Another key resource is the use of quarantined environment to take this test and at the same time reduce as much as possible outside influences. The use of randomized testing is imperative and therefore an isolated classroom where only one student is allowed to take the test at any given time is the ideal parameter.

Procedure: