In support for the empathy-altruism hypothesis, researchers (Toi & Batson, 1982) found that participants were most likely to help a student named Carol who was injured in an automobile accident when they were told __________.
A) to try to imagine how Carol felt about what happened to her and how it changed her life.
B) to be objective, and not to focus on how Carol felt.
C) that they would see Carol every week in class.
D) that they would never come face to face with Carol.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The empathy-altruism hypothesis suggests that empathy can lead to altruistic behavior. In this study, participants were most likely to help Carol when they were told to imagine how she felt, indicating that empathy played a role in their decision to help her. Objective thinking (option B) and the frequency of seeing Carol (option C) do not relate to empathy, while the absence of face-to-face interaction (option D) may potentially decrease the feeling of responsibility to help. Therefore, the best choice is A.

In Support for the Empathy-Altruism Hypothesis, Researchers (Toi & Batson