In this blog post, we will look at why people practice kindness even at their own expense through the communication hypothesis, using examples of altruistic behavior on public transportation.
When using public transportation, you always see seats reserved for the elderly and pregnant women. If you look closely, you will notice that even during rush hour, when public transportation is heavily used, almost no one sits in these seats unless they are the intended recipients. From an individual’s point of view, not sitting down even though there are empty seats is not beneficial and is actually considered a loss. On public transportation, acts that benefit others, such as elderly people and pregnant women, but are disadvantageous to the person performing the act are defined as altruistic behavior. If an act is socially valuable but requires the individual to suffer a loss, whether large or small, in order to perform it, then that act is altruistic.
Such altruistic cooperation is commonly found around us, but from an evolutionary perspective, it is not well understood. This is because, in evolutionary theory, individuals in a population must struggle for the survival of themselves and their offspring, and altruistic behavior is not considered necessary as it does not contribute to the survival of oneself or one’s offspring.
Then how can we explain the reality that there are many altruistic behaviors? Let’s go back to the example of public transportation and elderly and pregnant women. There are several reasons why healthy people do not sit in seats reserved for the elderly and pregnant women. First, there are public service announcements on public transportation asking people to give up their seats to the elderly and pregnant women.
Even if they ignore the public service announcements and sit down, they will encounter negative reactions to their behavior from the looks and facial expressions of the people around them. In other words, it can be said that verbal and nonverbal elements of communication lead to altruistic behavior, which we call the communication hypothesis. There are various hypotheses to explain altruistic behavior. The communication hypothesis is one of the hypotheses that explain altruistic behavior, and it clearly states that altruistic behavior exists even in situations where there is no communication. Therefore, we will narrow down the situation to one where communication is possible and consider why communication influences altruistic behavior. We know from experience that meeting and talking to each other is more helpful, and we can feel that communication has a significant influence.
However, the communication hypothesis is still not theoretically explained. Therefore, there are detailed hypotheses to explain the influence of communication revealed in reality. Some examples include the hypothesis that communication enables us to understand what behavior is most socially desirable, and the hypothesis that communication instills a sense of guilt in people who behave unselfishly.
In the case of seats for the elderly and pregnant women, people who sit in these seats are socially vulnerable and must be protected, so it is desirable for those who are relatively healthy to give up their seats. This is consistent with the first detailed hypothesis presented above. Through communication, such as public service announcements and education from childhood, people understand what behavior is most socially desirable. And, as mentioned earlier, healthy people who sit in these seats are exposed to nonverbal cues, which make them feel that they are doing something wrong. In other words, it instills a sense of guilt in people who behave unselfishly. As a result, elements of communication lead to altruistic behavior.
Ultimately, altruistic behavior, which is not well understood from an evolutionary perspective, can be explained to some extent by the communication hypothesis. We have learned that the altruistic behavior of many people giving up their seats on public transportation is caused by communication consisting of verbal and nonverbal elements. In other words, although it cannot yet be clearly explained in theory, we can see that communication causes altruistic behavior in situations where communication is possible.
Among the communication hypotheses proposed to explain communication that triggers altruistic behavior, there are some that have been refuted several times, and some that are difficult to verify. Currently, more intensive research is being conducted. However, regardless of how we understand these hypotheses, it is clear that communication influences people’s altruistic behavior and that communication is not just “cheap talk.”
In addition, it is necessary to examine how such altruistic behavior can be reinforced by social structures and institutions. For example, campaigns to designate seats for the elderly and pregnant women on public transportation and to promote them can be seen as examples of altruistic behavior that goes beyond simple communication and induces altruistic behavior at the institutional level. When such institutional mechanisms are combined with communication, people naturally engage in altruistic behavior. This shows that altruistic behavior does not depend solely on the voluntary morality of individuals, but can be promoted by social systems and cultural norms.
In this context, the role of education and the media is also important. Moral education from an early age and campaigns through the mass media encourage people to feel a sense of social responsibility and engage in altruistic behavior. In the long term, this will contribute to increasing the frequency of altruistic behavior throughout society.
In conclusion, altruistic behavior is the result of the interaction of complex social, cultural, and biological factors. The communication hypothesis is a useful tool for explaining such altruistic behavior, and through it, we can understand why people want to help others. Although further research and discussion are needed, studies to date suggest that communication is an important factor in promoting altruistic behavior.
