About this Research Topic
Over the last two decades, multiple literatures have investigated the psychological antecedents of pro-social behavior. Studies have examined (dis)honesty and cheating in every-day life; behavioral ethics and cognitive foundations of moral reasoning at a more general level; and (im)pure altruism, (un)conditional cooperation, trust, and reciprocity in economic games. Much has been learned and stylized facts established, but controversy has also erupted over the role of dual processes, decision heuristics, and evolutionary theories. Some of the disagreement pertains to questions of replicability, with dueling meta-analyses telling different stories, but there are also debates about methodological approaches and appropriate inferences. With so many competing claims, and ostensibly contradictory results, there is considerable scope to clarify, consolidate, and reconcile the published record.
The principal aim of this Research Topic is to advance knowledge of the psychological antecedents of pro-social behavior, understood broadly. This can be achieved by refining our understanding of known mechanisms, reconciling competing claims in the literature, developing new theory, presenting new evidence of altogether novel mechanisms, undertaking replication projects, aggregating empirical evidence from the (non)published record, or synthesizing the literature(s).
A subgoal is to address the ongoing debate about the role of dual processes in pro-social behavior, in general, and in specific settings with well-defined incentive-structures — such as charitable giving, (un)conditional giving, and strong/weak reciprocity — paradigms featuring prominently in the experimental economics literature.
Another subgoal is to bridge literatures that have studied related questions, but with slight conceptual distinctions and different empirical methodologies. Pro-social behavior encompasses subtopics ranging from behavioral ethics and (dis)honesty in every-day life to cooperation and trust in controlled laboratory experiments. Can we improve our understanding of the cognitive foundations of pro-social behavior by looking across traditionally separate literatures?
We welcome manuscripts that offer insight on the psychological antecedents of pro-social behavior. Manuscripts can present new findings, replicate published results, develop theory, reinterpret or challenge published work, or synthesize the literature.
Pro-social behavior is understood broadly, encompassing all reasonable forms, including those that are ‘strategic’ or ‘impure’. Relevant antecedents include cognitive processes, personality traits, neural mechanisms, emotional states, and other psychologically pertinent circumstances.
In principle, we welcome manuscripts of any type, long or short, drawing on any appropriate methodology. This includes laboratory experiments, online surveys, field studies, meta-analyses, and replications, direct or conceptual.
We also welcome theoretical papers, literature reviews, and commentaries on published work.
The principal aim of this Research Topic is to advance knowledge of the psychological antecedents of pro-social behavior, understood broadly. This can be achieved by refining our understanding of known mechanisms, reconciling competing claims in the literature, developing new theory, presenting new evidence of altogether novel mechanisms, undertaking replication projects, aggregating empirical evidence from the (non)published record, or synthesizing the literature(s).
A subgoal is to address the ongoing debate about the role of dual processes in pro-social behavior, in general, and in specific settings with well-defined incentive-structures — such as charitable giving, (un)conditional giving, and strong/weak reciprocity — paradigms featuring prominently in the experimental economics literature.
Another subgoal is to bridge literatures that have studied related questions, but with slight conceptual distinctions and different empirical methodologies. Pro-social behavior encompasses subtopics ranging from behavioral ethics and (dis)honesty in every-day life to cooperation and trust in controlled laboratory experiments. Can we improve our understanding of the cognitive foundations of pro-social behavior by looking across traditionally separate literatures?
We welcome manuscripts that offer insight on the psychological antecedents of pro-social behavior. Manuscripts can present new findings, replicate published results, develop theory, reinterpret or challenge published work, or synthesize the literature.
Pro-social behavior is understood broadly, encompassing all reasonable forms, including those that are ‘strategic’ or ‘impure’. Relevant antecedents include cognitive processes, personality traits, neural mechanisms, emotional states, and other psychologically pertinent circumstances.
In principle, we welcome manuscripts of any type, long or short, drawing on any appropriate methodology. This includes laboratory experiments, online surveys, field studies, meta-analyses, and replications, direct or conceptual.
We also welcome theoretical papers, literature reviews, and commentaries on published work.
Keywords: pro-social behavior, cooperation, altruism, behavioral ethics, reciprocity
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
