ABSTRACT
Research across economics, neuroscience, and psychology finds that altruism - defined as giving to another at a current cost to the self - has longer-term benefits, including propagating one’s own genes, increasing cooperation within social groups, and improving societal wellbeing. On balance, these benefits offset the immediate costs of seemingly irrational decisions to give, rendering them rational and beneficial at evolutionary, physiological, and psychological levels. Our evolution as a caregiving, social species shaped a physiological capacity to feel into others’ emotions, which promotes empathy and altruism for those in need. Providing care and giving to others also feeds back to reward givers at multiple levels, including furnishing the warm glow of giving, the pleasure of receiving gratitude, and increased social cohesion - all of which enhance wellbeing and vice versa. Based on the literature, we can extend this bi-directional link among empathy, altruism, and wellbeing through policies that frame those in need as within one’s own social group (e.g. at a state or national level rather than by race) and as clearly suffering from injustice. Such policies will enhance group cooperation and stimulate the drive to contribute to public goods, which can reduce inequality while also improving health and wellbeing. We review the impacts of empathy and altruism on wellbeing, as well as the reverse impact of wellbeing on altruism, before discussing policies that promote both. Policy-makers can extend this work to increase support for distributive wealth policies that can improve the health and wellbeing of society.
