The Effect Of Subjective Social Class And Self-signaling On Prosocial Behavior

Prosocial behavior refers to all behaviors that are beneficial to others and society,including helping behavior,altruistic behavior,sharing,comforting,cooperating,donating,caring,etc.It plays an important role in the enhancement of individual selfesteem,maintenance of interpersonal relationships,and social harmony and stability,therefore.Prosocial behavior has always been a hot research topic in the field of psychology.Social class is shaped by an individual’s material resources and the perception of hierarchy relative to others in society,including objective social class,which depends on the material wealth(income)and social resources(education,professional prestige)possessed by an individual,and subjective social class,which depends on the perceived position of oneself in society when comparing with others.The social cognitive theory of social class suggests that social class has a profound effect on the way individuals construct themselves and behave by influencing the environment in which they live over time.Numerous studies have shown that subjective social class influences prosocial behavior,but there are no uniform results on the relationship between the two: some studies have found that social class inversely predicts individuals’ prosocial behavior,while others have found that higher social class positively predicts individuals’ prosocial behavior.This suggests that there are many factors that influence the relationship between the two.Therefore,exploring the conditions and internal mechanisms of subjective social class on prosocial behavior can help us clarify the relationship between the two and improve individuals’ pro-social level to promote social welfare and social harmony.This study aims to investigate the influence of subjective social class on individuals’ prosocial behavior and the role of self-signaling and situational openness in it.Study 1 used the 2017 China General Social Survey data as research data to initially explore the effect of subjective social class on prosocial behavior.After screening,2578 valid data were obtained,and it was found that the lower the subjective social class,the more pro-social behaviors.Study 2 introduced the variable of self-signaling to explore whether it mediates the relationship between subjective social class on prosocial behavior.The study used a questionnaire method to obtain a valid sample of 201 college students.The results showed that self-signaling mediated the relationship between individuals’ subjective social class and prosocial behavior.The lower the individual’s subjective social class,the stronger the ego signal,and the more prosocial behaviors.Study 3 further explored the role of contextual openness and self-signaling in the relationship between subjective social class and prosocial behavior.The study manipulated situational openness through an experimental method and obtained a total valid sample of 231 college students in school.The results indicate that there is a moderating mediating role of contextual openness and self-signaling in the influence of subjective social class on prosocial behavior;contextual openness moderates the influence of subjective social class on self-signaling.In summary,the above three studies have specifically explored the influence of subjective social class on prosocial behavior and some of the underlying mechanisms and contextual dependencies around the relationship between subjective social class and prosocial behavior.The following conclusions were drawn:Firstly,subjective social class has a significant negative predictive effect on prosocial behavior,and individuals with lower subjective class will show more prosocial behavior.Secondly,the effect of subjective social class on prosocial behavior is achieved through the mediating effect of self-signaling;the lower the subjective social class,the higher the strength of self-signaling,and the more prosocial behaviors are made.Thirdly,in the influence of subjective social class on pro-social behavior,there is a moderating mediating role of the openness of the situation and self-signaling;the openness of the situation moderates the influence of subjective social class on selfsignaling;when in an open situation,the lower the subjective social class,the stronger the self-signaling,and the more prosocial behavior.