Frontiers in Psychology (Aug 2022)

Prosocial priming and bystander effect in an online context

  • Costanza Scaffidi Abbate,
  • Raffaella Misuraca,
  • Chiara Vaccaro,
  • Michele Roccella,
  • Luigi Vetri,
  • Silvana Miceli

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.945630
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 13

Abstract

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The present study tested the effect of priming the concept of prosociality on the bystander effect in an online environment. Participants were sent an e-mail requesting a plea for help and randomly assigned to one of four conditions in a 2 (Bystander: 0 vs. 14) × 2 (Priming: present vs. absent) design. The results demonstrated support for the study hypothesis. As expected, the virtual presence of many others significantly reduced e-mail responsiveness except when the request for help is preceded by prosocial priming. Implications of these findings for the literature on the bystander effect and priming are discussed.

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