Prosocial behavior predicts meaning in life during the COVID-19 pandemic: The longitudinal mediating role of perceived social support

Yumei He; Yumei He; Qun Liu; Ofir Turel; Qinghua He; Shuyue Zhang; Shuyue Zhang; Shuyue Zhang

doi:10.3389/fpubh.2023.1115780

Frontiers in Public Health (Mar 2023)

Prosocial behavior predicts meaning in life during the COVID-19 pandemic: The longitudinal mediating role of perceived social support

Yumei He,
Yumei He,
Qun Liu,
Ofir Turel,
Qinghua He,
Shuyue Zhang,
Shuyue Zhang,
Shuyue Zhang

Affiliations

Yumei He: Department of Psychology, Faculty of Education, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin, China
Yumei He: Guangxi University and College Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Applied Psychology, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin, China
Qun Liu: The School of Marxism, Neijiang Normal University, Neijiang, China
Ofir Turel: School of Computing and Information Systems, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia
Qinghua He: MOE Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
Shuyue Zhang: Department of Psychology, Faculty of Education, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin, China
Shuyue Zhang: Guangxi University and College Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Applied Psychology, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin, China
Shuyue Zhang: Ethnic Education Development Research Center of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Guilin, China

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2023.1115780
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 11

Abstract

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The COVID-19 pandemic was an unexpected, long-term negative event. Meaning in life has been linked to better psychological adjustment to such events. The current study uses longitudinal data collected during the COVID-19 pandemic to discover whether perceived social support mediates the relationship between six dimensions of prosocial behavior (Altruistic, Anonymous, Public, Compliant, Emotional, and Dire) and meaning in life. A sample of Chinese college students (N = 514) was tracked at three time points (T1, T2, and T3) during the COVID-19 outbreak. A cross-lagged panel model (CLPM) was used for mediation analysis. The mediation effect was found in all the dimensions of prosocial behavior except for Public prosocial behavior. We also found a longitudinal, bidirectional association between perceived social support and meaning in life. The current study contributes to the growing literature on the significance of prosocial behavior in predicting meaning in life.

Published in Frontiers in Public Health

ISSN: 2296-2565 (Online)
Publisher: Frontiers Media S.A.
Country of publisher: Switzerland
LCC subjects: Medicine: Public aspects of medicine
Website: https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/public-health

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