TO PROTECT AND SAVE: EFFECTS OF SELF-TRANSCENDENT MOTIVATION ON PROSOCIAL BEHAVIOUR IN FIREFIGHTER TRAINEES

Abstract

Even though self-transcendent motivation is primarily concerned with the welfare of others, its direct link with prosocial behaviour has not been examined. Existing research supports the notion that self-transcendent motivation leads to increased individual performance, as well as psychological processes that facilitates prosocial behaviour. In situations where the pursuit of prosocial behaviour and individual performance expends a common pool of resources, a tension between the two behaviours arises, whereby pursuing one behaviour may be to the detriment of the other. To investigate the effects of self-transcendent motivation under such challenging circumstances, a participant pool of firefighter trainees was recruited. Through a correlational study, it was hypothesized that self-transcendent motivation in individuals will positively predict both self and peer-reports of prosocial behaviour and performance. A second study with the same population investigated if an experimental manipulation of self-transcendent motivation can lead to an increase in prosocial behaviour. While findings from the correlational study were inconclusive, a moderating role of self-transcendent motivation was observed in the experimental manipulation. Implications on how prosocial behaviour can be facilitated through self-transcendent motivation were discussed.