Cialdini's Negative-state Relief Model

Why negative-state relief model relevant to cognitive approach to psychology?

It has an emotional dimension

What are the studies supporting Negative-state Relief model?

Cialdini et al (1973) Regan (1972)

Where the negative state comes from?

Exposure to any kind of distressing situation, specifically, the situations in which another person needs help, induces a negative mood state

Why Cialdini et al (1973) describes altruism as hedonistic?

Importantly, that negative mood state may be relieved by helping another person, which means that an act of apparent altruism is ultimately selfish, or egoistic, because it is motivated not by concern for the welfare of others, but by concern for one's own mood state. Cialdini et al. (1973) went so far as to describe the negative state relief model as hedonistic.

Core idea

altruism happens because individuals want to relieve stress and negative feelings that arise when someone else needs help

The steps of the model

1. Person observes emergency (e.g. death) 2. Negative affect included (e.g. sadness, guilt) 3. elicit helping behaviors/mood-lifting behaviors to reduce own negative affect and make helper feel better