Date of Award

2010

Publisher

North Dakota State University

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Awarded

Master of Science (MS)

Program

Human Development and Family Science

Department

Human Development and Family Science

College

Human Sciences and Education

Faculty Advisor

Randall, Brandy A.

Description

Proponents of social identity theory assert that individuals are motivated to behave in ways consistent with the norms of the social groups in which they belong. The goal of the study was to test the relationship between group norms, specifically residential groups and religious groups, and prosocial behavior. The linkages between participants' degree of identification with their current community, perceived encouragement of prosocial behavior by the community, and self-reports of prosocial behavior were examined. Based on previous research on social identity theory and the role of prosocial behavior norms in religious communities (Saraglou, Pichon, Trompette, Verschueren, & Demelle, 2005; Y ouniss, McLellan, & Yates, 1999), it was hypothesized that participants who rated religion as more important would report higher levels of pro social behavior than participants who rated religion as less important. It was also hypothesized that participants who identified strongly with their community and resided in a community that supported pro social behavior would report higher levels of pro social behavior than those who did not identify strongly with their community and/or those whose community did not support prosocial behavior. Women reported higher levels of prosocial behavior than did men. There was not a significant association between the importance of religion and individual prosocial behavior. At the bivariate level, there were significant positive correlations among the perception that the community encouraged prosocial behavior, identification with the community, and the individual's self-reported level of prosocial behavior. A multiple regression analysis showed that only identification with the community significantly predicted prosocial behavior, and there was no interaction between community encouragement of prosocial behavior and identification with the community. Explanations for findings and directions for future research are discussed.

Rights

NDSU policy 190.6.2

Rights Link

https://www.ndsu.edu/fileadmin/policy/190.pdf

Handle Identifier

https://hdl.handle.net/10365/33630

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