IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v19y2022i11p6466-d824618.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Awe and Prosocial Behavior: The Mediating Role of Presence of Meaning in Life and the Moderating Role of Perceived Social Support

Author

Listed:
  • Ya-Nan Fu

    (Department of Psychology, Faculty of Education, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541004, China
    Guangxi University and College Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Applied Psychology, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541004, China)

  • Ruodan Feng

    (Department of Psychology, Faculty of Education, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541004, China
    Guangxi University and College Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Applied Psychology, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541004, China)

  • Qun Liu

    (Department of Psychology, Faculty of Education, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541004, China
    Guangxi University and College Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Applied Psychology, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541004, China
    School of Marxism, Neijiang Normal University, Neijiang 641112, China)

  • Yumei He

    (Department of Psychology, Faculty of Education, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541004, China
    Guangxi University and College Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Applied Psychology, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541004, China)

  • Ofir Turel

    (School of Computing and Information Systems, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia)

  • Shuyue Zhang

    (Department of Psychology, Faculty of Education, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541004, China
    Guangxi University and College Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Applied Psychology, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541004, China)

  • Qinghua He

    (Department of Psychology, Faculty of Education, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541004, China
    MOE Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China)

Abstract

Although awe has been shown to increase prosocial behavior, there is limited knowledge about the mechanisms underlying this relationship, and about this relationship during unique periods. To bridge these gaps, this study examined the influence of awe on prosocial behaviors, the mediating role of the presence of meaning in life, and the moderating role of perceived social support. Based on longitudinal surveys from 676 Chinese college students we showed that: (1) awe was positively associated with prosocial behavior; (2) the presence of meaning in life mediated this association, and; (3) these associations were moderated by perceived social support. Specifically, the positive relationship between awe and the presence of meaning in life was only significant for college students with low perceived social support; and the positive relationship between the presence of meaning in life and prosocial behavior was stronger for college students with high perceived social support.

Suggested Citation

  • Ya-Nan Fu & Ruodan Feng & Qun Liu & Yumei He & Ofir Turel & Shuyue Zhang & Qinghua He, 2022. "Awe and Prosocial Behavior: The Mediating Role of Presence of Meaning in Life and the Moderating Role of Perceived Social Support," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(11), pages 1-13, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:11:p:6466-:d:824618
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/11/6466/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/11/6466/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Rebecca L. Utz & Kristin L. Swenson & Michael Caserta & Dale Lund & Brian deVries, 2014. "Feeling Lonely Versus Being Alone: Loneliness and Social Support Among Recently Bereaved Persons," The Journals of Gerontology: Series B, The Gerontological Society of America, vol. 69(1), pages 85-94.
    2. Binder, Martin & Freytag, Andreas, 2013. "Volunteering, subjective well-being and public policy," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 97-119.
    3. Xixiang Sun & Weihuan Su & Xiaodong Guo & Ziyuan Tian, 2021. "The Impact of Awe Induced by COVID-19 Pandemic on Green Consumption Behavior in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(2), pages 1-14, January.
    4. Suzanne van de Groep & Kiki Zanolie & Kayla H Green & Sophie W Sweijen & Eveline A Crone, 2020. "A daily diary study on adolescents’ mood, empathy, and prosocial behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(10), pages 1-20, October.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Liming Jiao & Li Luo, 2022. "Dispositional Awe Positively Predicts Prosocial Tendencies: The Multiple Mediation Effects of Connectedness and Empathy," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(24), pages 1-10, December.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Cinzia Di Novi & Rowena Jacobs & Matteo Migheli, 2013. "The quality of life of female informal caregivers: from Scandinavia to the Mediterranean Sea," Working Papers 084cherp, Centre for Health Economics, University of York.
    2. Sjoerd Halem & Eeske Roekel & Jaap Denissen, 2024. "Understanding the Dynamics of Hedonic and Eudaimonic Motives on Daily Well-Being: Insights from Experience Sampling Data," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 25(7), pages 1-25, October.
    3. Peter G van der Velden & Ivan Komproe & Carlo Contino & Marika de Bruijne & Rolf J Kleber & Marcel Das & Henk Schut, 2020. "Which groups affected by Potentially Traumatic Events (PTEs) are most at risk for a lack of social support? A prospective population-based study on the 12-month prevalence of PTEs and risk factors for," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(5), pages 1-19, May.
    4. Dolan, Paul & Krekel, Christian & Shreedhar, Ganga & Lee, Helen & Marshall, Claire & Smith, Allison, 2021. "Happy to help: the welfare effects of a nationwide micro-volunteering programme," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 114387, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    5. Binder, Martin & Coad, Alex, 2013. "“I'm afraid I have bad news for you…” Estimating the impact of different health impairments on subjective well-being," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 155-167.
    6. Binder, Martin, 2016. "“…Do it with joy!” – Subjective well-being outcomes of working in non-profit organizations," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 64-84.
    7. Mock, Mirijam & Omann, Ines & Polzin, Christine & Spekkink, Wouter & Schuler, Julia & Pandur, Vlad & Brizi, Ambra & Panno, Angelo, 2019. "“Something inside me has been set in motion”: Exploring the psychological wellbeing of people engaged in sustainability initiatives," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 160(C), pages 1-11.
    8. Stijn Baert & Sunčica Vujić, 2018. "Does it pay to care? Volunteering and employment opportunities," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 31(3), pages 819-836, July.
    9. Blanco, Esther & Baier, Alexandra & Holzmeister, Felix & Jaber-Lopez, Tarek & Struwe, Natalie, 2022. "Substitution of social sustainability concerns under the Covid-19 pandemic," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 192(C).
    10. Rui Guo & Xiaoying Liu & Hakjun Song, 2021. "Structural Relationships among Strategic Experiential Modules, Motivation, Serious Leisure, Satisfaction and Quality of Life in Bicycle Tourism," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(23), pages 1-13, December.
    11. Lubna Rashid & Silvia Cepeda-García, 2021. "Self-Categorising and Othering in Migrant Integration: The Case of Entrepreneurs in Berlin," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-14, February.
    12. Matthias Lühr & Maria K. Pavlova & Maike Luhmann, 2022. "Nonpolitical Versus Political Participation: Longitudinal Associations with Mental Health and Social Well-Being in Different Age Groups," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 159(3), pages 865-884, February.
    13. Hulin Pan, 2023. "Effect of the ecological environment on the residents’ happiness: the mechanism and an evidence from Zhejiang Province of China," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 25(3), pages 2716-2734, March.
    14. Martin Binder, 2015. "Do it with joy: Subjective well-being outcomes of working in non-profit organizations," Papers on Economics and Evolution 2015-03, Philipps University Marburg, Department of Geography.
    15. Maurizio Pugno, 2015. "Capability and Happiness: A Suggested Integration From a Dynamic Perspective," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 16(6), pages 1383-1399, December.
    16. Heng Qu, 2022. "Differential Associations Between Volunteering and Subjective Well-Being by Labor Force Status: An Investigation of Experiential and Evaluative Well-Being Using Time Use Data," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 23(4), pages 1737-1770, April.
    17. Magnani, Elisabetta & Zhu, Rong, 2018. "Does kindness lead to happiness? Voluntary activities and subjective well-being," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 20-28.
    18. Binder, Martin & Blankenberg, Ann-Kathrin & Guardiola, Jorge, 2020. "Does it have to be a sacrifice? Different notions of the good life, pro-environmental behavior and their heterogeneous impact on well-being," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 167(C).
    19. Anna-Maria Lahti & Tuija M. Mikkola & Minna Salonen & Niko Wasenius & Anneli Sarvimäki & Johan G. Eriksson & Mikaela B. von Bonsdorff, 2021. "Mental, Physical and Social Functioning in Independently Living Senior House Residents and Community-Dwelling Older Adults," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(23), pages 1-11, November.
    20. Ying Yang & Peipei Li & Xinyuan Fu & Yu Kou, 2017. "Orientations to Happiness and Subjective Well-Being in Chinese Adolescents: The Roles of Prosocial Behavior and Internet Addictive Behavior," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 18(6), pages 1747-1762, December.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:11:p:6466-:d:824618. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.