Being Poor But Generous-the Influence Of Financial Deprivation On Altruistic Behavior

In our daily life,there are many individuals who are not very rich but kind and generous.We call this phenomenon “being poor but generous”.However,what is the psychological mechanism underlying this phenomenon? Why the phenomenon is so pervasive? In what situation does this phenomenon appear? Based on fluid compensation theory and connotation of “Face”(“LIAN” and “MIAN”),the current study uses five experiments to explore the influence of financial deprivation on altruism,the related boundary conditions and psychological mechanism.Experiment 1 used social comparison task to explore the facilitation effect of financial deprivation on altruism.Experiment 2 used a different manipulation paradigm to test the main effect of financial deprivation.Experiment 3 explored the influence of context(public vs.private)on this effect.Experiment 4 repeatedly proved that individuals financially deprived focused more on the public context of altruistic behavior using eye-tracking technique,and further explored the role of the form of altruism(monetary vs.non-monetary ways)in this effect.Experiment 5 tested the mediation effect of face-saving consciousness.We draw the following conclusions:(1)individuals financially deprived are more altruistic than their non-deprived counterparts;(2)individuals financially deprived act more altruistic than those non-deprived in the public context,but this effect disappears in the private context;(3)compared with individuals financially non-deprived,individuals financially deprived conduct more altruistic behavior in non-monetary ways(e.g.,taking efforts or time),and the effect disappears when individuals are needed to donate money directly;(4)the influence of financial deprivation on altruism is mediated by the face-saving consciousness.This research is among the first few to explore the phenomenon of “being poor but generous”.Our findings are important by showing how temporary financial deprivation influences altruistic behavior,which make contributions to the growing literature on financial deprivation and altruistic behavior.At the same time,the current research verifies the mediation role of face-saving consciousness in the effect of financial deprivation,which extends the existing research on face.Furthermore,the current research provides insightful implications for individuals' adaptive function and the policy makers of public welfare affairs.