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Helping While Social Distancing: Pathogen Avoidance Motives Influence People’s Helping Intentions during the COVID-19 Pandemic

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  • Yi Ding

    (School of Psychology, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing 210097, China)

  • Tingting Ji

    (School of Psychology, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing 210097, China)

  • Yongyu Guo

    (School of Psychology, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing 210097, China)

Abstract

The behavioral immune system (BIS) theory suggests that pathogen avoidance motives relate to greater behavioral avoidance against social interactions that pose potential risks of pathogen transmission. Based on the BIS theory, pathogen avoidance motives would decrease people’s helping behavior towards others. However, would pathogen avoidance motives decrease all types of helping behavior towards others during the Coronavirus disease 2019 (i.e., COVID-19) pandemic indiscriminately? In the present study, we conducted a within-subjects design to compare people’s helping intentions toward voluntary work with and without social contact. Specifically, participants ( N = 1562) completed an online survey at the early stage of the COVID-19 pandemic in China measuring pathogen disgust sensitivity, state anxiety, and intentions to perform volunteer work with and without social contact. Results revealed that pathogen disgust sensitivity negatively predicted intentions to perform voluntary work with social contact yet had no influence on intentions to perform socially distanced voluntary work. Moreover, the effect of pathogen disgust sensitivity on socially distanced volunteering preference was mediated by the state anxiety people experienced during the pandemic. The findings have implications for understanding people’s helping behavior during the pandemic.

Suggested Citation

  • Yi Ding & Tingting Ji & Yongyu Guo, 2021. "Helping While Social Distancing: Pathogen Avoidance Motives Influence People’s Helping Intentions during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(22), pages 1-10, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:22:p:12113-:d:682125
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    1. Marieke Van Willigen, 2000. "Differential Benefits of Volunteering Across the Life Course," The Journals of Gerontology: Series B, The Gerontological Society of America, vol. 55(5), pages 308-318.
    2. Yi Ding & Jie Yang & Tingting Ji & Yongyu Guo, 2021. "Women Suffered More Emotional and Life Distress than Men during the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Role of Pathogen Disgust Sensitivity," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(16), pages 1-9, August.
    3. Natalie J Shook & Barış Sevi & Jerin Lee & Benjamin Oosterhoff & Holly N Fitzgerald, 2020. "Disease avoidance in the time of COVID-19: The behavioral immune system is associated with concern and preventative health behaviors," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(8), pages 1-15, August.
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    1. Yun Geng & Shannon P. Cheung & Chien-Chung Huang & Jinyu Liao, 2022. "Volunteering among Chinese College Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(9), pages 1-15, April.

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