Whose Hands Reach Out to the Homeless? Patterns of Helping Among High and Low Communally Oriented Individuals

Abstract

The communal orientation construct (Clark & Mills, 1979), may be useful in determining why people choose to help the homeless. Participants were presented with videotapes (Study 1) or transcripts (Study 2) of interviews with homeless people who were portrayed as having sad or neutral affect. Participants higher on communal orientation were more likely to display attitudes, empathy, and intentions supportive of helping the homeless. Portraying homeless people as being sad had a negative effect on attitudes and intentions to help them. In Study 2, communal orientation interacted with sadness such that for those high in communal orientation, sadness increased positive attitudes; while for those low in communal orientation, sadness decreased positive attitudes.

Building relationships through accountability: An expanded idea of accountability

“…Instead, we offer an expanded framework of accountability by focusing on internally assumed accountability. Moreover, we explore causes of different accountability behaviors and provide explanations of why and how organizational members may account to stakeholders differently by being subjected to alternative combinations of organizationally based culture norms (Sadri & Lees, 2001) and personal orientations (Bryan, Hammer, & Fisher, 2000). Based on Bandura’s (2001) social cognitive theory of interactive agency, behaviors result from both contextual norms and personal orientation.…”

The personal and interpersonal rewards of communal orientation

“…In giving care to others across a variety of relationships, we expect that communally oriented people experience associated feelings of love within their close relationships as well as toward people in general or humanity as a whole. Consistent with research documenting that communally oriented people care for others whom they do not know or have never met, such as with strangers and the homeless (Bryan et al, 2000;Clark et al, 1987), and that people can and do indeed experience deep care for humanity as a whole (McFarland, Webb, & Brown, 2012;Sprecher & Fehr, 2005), we sought to investigate whether communally oriented people experience love not only within their close relationships but also more broadly for the human collective.…”

“…To the extent that communally oriented people are inclined to give care to others across a variety of relationships, be it through sacrifice in romantic relationships or care for the homeless (Bryan et al, 2000), it is likely that the greater levels of care that people high in communal orientation are inclined to give, to both close and distant, others in their daily lives prompts them to experience greater positive emotion due to the association between giving to others and feeling positive emotion. Thus, we expect that communally oriented people feel good in daily life as a function of the care they give to others.…”

“…However, a growing body of research is beginning to show that giving care to others can paradoxically be rewarding for the person who provides care (Canevello & Crocker, 2010;Crocker & Canevello, 2008;Crocker, Olivier, & Nuer, 2009;Kogan et al, 2010;Piferi & Lawler, 2006;Williamson & Clark, 1992). Individuals with a communal orientation are dispositionally inclined to give care to people ranging from those within their close relationships to strangers (Bryan, Hammer, & Fisher, 2000;Clark, Oullette, Powell, & Milberg, 1987;Williamson & Schulz, 1990). As a consequence of these inclinations, there are many instances in which communally oriented people give communal care without expecting to receive anything in return; in fact, communally motivated people actually avoid tracking the given and received inputs in their relationships (Clark, 1984), which brings to question what the personal and interpersonal consequences are of being inclined to give communal care to others.…”

Vyrų Benamystė Nakvynės Namuose Ir Gatvėje: Išgyvenimo Naratyvai

“…Lietuvos mokslininkų darbų, analizuojančių benamystę išgyvenimo kontekste, aptikti nepavyko. Tuo tarpu užsienio mokslininkų darbuose benamystė tyrinėjama įvairiais aspektais -sveikatos, senatvės, tapatumo, maskulinizmo, socialinių paslaugų, politikos formavimo ir socialinio teisingumo kontekstuose (Hwang, 2001;Christensen, 2013;Hartnett, Postmus, 2010;Nyamathi, Leake, Gelberg, 2000;Bryan, Hammer, Fisher, 2000;Rowe, 2002;Anderson, Serpa, 2013;Watts, 2013;Bretherton, Hunter, Johnsen, 2013;Martinsson, Weiss, Zierler, 2013;Lindovska, 2014;Coker, Meyer, Smith, Price, 2010;Kore, Kiik, Boswinkel, 2006;Feher, 2011). Išgyvenimo strategijas analizuojančių mokslinių darbų aptikti nepavyko, todėl akivaizdu, kad tai nauja, mažai tyrinėta sritis.…”