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Essay An Evaluation Of Cognitive Sociocultural And Biological Theories Of Prosocial Behavior

713 Words3 Pages

An Evaluation of Cognitive, Sociocultural and Biological Theories of Prosocial Behavior

Candidate Name: Prajakta Kulkarni
Subject: Psychology
May 2016
Word Count: 3,493 words

Abstract This essay explained and evaluated the theories of prosocial behavior under three categories: cognitive, sociocultural, and biological theories. The interest in this topic was motivated by the daily significance of prosocial behavior. Helping others is so prevalent in everyday life and the theories provide an explanation of why humans choose to help others. Additionally, many times in history, heroic acts have been performed such as in the case of Everett Sanderson saving the little girl from being killed by the train in 1975. The theories of prosocial behavior provide an explanation for why people choose to perform these heroic acts and put themselves in danger in order to help others. Psychologists have done research on prosocial behavior in cognitive psychology, social psychology, and evolutionary psychology. Based on the background question, the research topic investigated in this essay is: An evaluation of cognitive, sociocultural and biological theories of prosocial behavior. …show more content…

The, each study was evaluated for limitations, biases, and validity, and counter-claims. Finally each theory was evaluated against the original news case of Everett Sanderson. In conclusion, while there were limitations to each study and therefore made it hard to generalize findings, each theory provided a different approach to explaining prosocial behavior and all theories investigated were valid

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