Help that works
The effects of aid on subsequent task performance
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 6205220 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Bella M Depaulo (0000-0002-7014-0821, corresponding author), Pamela L Brown, Sylvia Ishii, Jeffrey D Fisher (0000-0001-9068-7499) |
| Year | 1981 |
| Volume | 41 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 478-487 |
| Publication date | 1981-09-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0022-3514 • E-ISSN: 1939-1315 |
| Publisher | American Psychological Association (APA) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1037//0022-3514.41.3.478 |
| OpenAlex | W4235081614 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 9 |
| References cited | 9 |
University of ConnecticutThis study explores the interactive effects of aid, situational demandingness(i.e., task difficulty and threatening aspects of the helper's behavior), and help-recipients' self-esteem on recipients' task performance. Based on Fisher, Nadler,and Whitcher-Alagna's threat-to-self-esteem model of reactions to help and pastresearch by Sigall and Gould, it was predicted that if aid is threatening orchallenging, then only high self-esteem subjects will respond with especially com-petent postaid task performance. Aspects of the helping context that exacerbatethe threat or highlight the challenge posed by aid will further accentuate thedifference in performance between the high and the low self-esteem subjects.Overall, these predictions were confirmed. The implications of the findings arediscussed.Research on helping has focused primarilyon the persons who give the help and on theconditions for giving help. In comparison,very little research has been done on helprecipients and the consequences of their re-ceiving help. It was assumed that helping isa good thing, that it should be encouraged,and that recipients are usually grateful forhelp received. Although positive responsesometimes does occur following aid, recentresearch indicates that negative reactionsalso occur. Some of these negative effects ofaid include feelings of discomfort and obli-gation, decrements in self-esteem and socialstatus, and derogations of the helper and thehelp. (For a review, see Fisher, DePaulo,& Nadler, 1981.)Receiving help, then, can sometimes be anemotionally charged event. Accordingly, the
Cognitive psychology · Developmental psychology · Task (project management · Applied Psychology · Attachment and Relationship Dynamics · Early Childhood Education and Development · Educational and Psychological Assessments · Job Satisfaction and Organizational Behavior · Psychology · Social Psychology · Work-Family Balance Challenges
Recipient reactions to aid
Effects of self-esteem, hypothetical explanations, and verbalization of expectancies on future performance
The Role of Threat to Self-Esteem and Perceived Control in Recipient Reaction to Help
Sex differences in recipients' reactions to aid
The effects of receiving help
With a little help from my friend
Self-esteem and clarity of the self-concept
The relation of trait self‐esteem and positive inequity to productivity
The Social Risk Hypothesis of Depressed Mood
The attraction paradigm
When helping hurts
Helping is not enough
The Dynamics of Benefice among East European Jews
The effects of self-esteem and evaluator demandingness on effort expenditure
Hot and crowded
Effect of donor resources on recipient self-esteem and self-help
A Theory of Social Comparison Processes
Recipient reactions to aid
| Unique citing works | 9 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,2 |
| Citation span | 1982 - 2003 (22) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 7 |