Mortality Salience and Helping Intentions: Mediating Role of Search for Meaning and Moderating Role of Negotiable Fate

Chang Baorui Cheng Jiaxin Jiandong Fang ^*

• Guangxi Normal University, Guilin, China

Based on the "altruism born of suffering" hypothesis, individuals experiencing adversity are motivated to help others, potentially mediated by their search for meaning. As the dominant destiny view in the background of Chinese culture, compared with the fate view of conquering fate and fatalism fate, individuals who hold the view of negotiable fate are more likely to resist death by helping others when they are reminded of death. This study, grounded in terror management theory, delves into the intricate mechanisms underlying the impact of mortality salience on helping intentions through a series of experimental investigations. Study 1 revealed that mortality salience exerts a positive predictive effect on helping intentions, mediated entirely by search for meaning. Further, Study 2 underscores the moderating role of negotiable fate in the relationship between mortality salience and helping intentions. Specifically, when negotiable fate is salient, mortality salience significantly and positively predicts helping intentions. These findings underscore the importance of fostering search for meaning and enhancing negotiable fate beliefs to bolster helping intentions in the face of mortality reminders.