Identification with all humanity promotes prosocial psychological processes and behavioral patterns and its underlying mechanisms

doi:10.3724/SP.J.1042.2024.01697

Abstract

Abstract: As globalization advances, individuals may develop an increased awareness and concern for the entire human race. “Identification with all humanity (IWAH)” captures this psychological trait, encompassing the recognition of all humans as part of one’s ingroup and fostering care for every member of the global human family. Building on the clarification of the concept and measurement of IWAH, our current work aims to explore the relationships between IWAH and prosocial psychology and behaviors across diverse domains. Additionally, we seek to uncover the psychological mechanisms underlying them. Our goal is to provide researchers and policymakers with a deeper understanding of IWAH and its effects, fostering global cooperation to address pressing challenges and build a more peaceful, prosperous and sustainable world.
The concept of IWAH was proposed by McFarland and colleagues, encompassing two dimensions: bond and concern. The bond dimension implies a sense of social membership, indicating a cognitive and emotional connection with the humanity. The concern dimension refers to a willingness to help and care for others and a sense of responsibility towards the human well-being. Given the comprehensiveness of the concept and the effectiveness and reliability of its measurement tools, IWAH has attracted widespread attention across the globe.
Taking the social identity theory and common ingroup identity model, previous research has found that IWAH had significant effects on prosocial psychology and behaviors across diverse domains, including intergroup interactions, environmental sustainability, and public health crises responses. Regarding intergroup interactions, previous studies have found that IWAH promoted individuals' willingness to help others, fosters close relationships with ethnically diverse partners, increases intergroup forgiveness, and enhances concern for global equity and global justice. Caring for the welfare of humanity as a whole may motivate individuals to take environmental issues seriously and adopt behaviors that promote environmental sustainability. Research on IWAH and pro-environmental behaviors has confirmed a robust positive correlation between them. Prior research on responses to public health crises has revealed a positive relationship with IWAH and proactive health behaviors, such as maintaining physical distance and wearing masks. It is noteworthy that the contextual activation of IWAH does not significantly influence health behaviors during pandemics, and the two dimensions of IWAH have distinct roles in responding to public health crises.
According to the theory of planned behavior, the theory of psychological distance, the norm activation model, and existing studies, we proposed that the positive effects of IWAH operated through multiple factors such as relevance, responsibility, obligation, and emotional processes. Relevance, which refers to how people appraise and relate themselves to others and social issues, the stronger the relevance, the closer the psychological distance. The bond to humanity increases individuals' perceived relevance to others and social issues, heightening the urgency and necessity to assist those nearby and address problems, thereby promoting prosocial attitude and behaviors. Identifying as part of humanity motivates individuals to prioritize the interests of humanity as a whole, which can inspire a sense of responsibility towards social issues and lead to prosocial behaviors. Similarly, IWAH may deepen an individual's understanding of interdependence with others and the larger environment, enhancing the sense of obligation to safeguard the interests of humanity, and thus promote prosocial psychology and behaviors. IWAH enhances individuals’ perceptions of humans globally as highly similar to themselves, fostering sympathy and empathy for victims and thereby promoting prosocial psychology and behaviors. In addition, individuals' negative emotional responses to actions harmful to human interests and positive emotional responses to actions defending these interests may mediate the relationship between IWAH and pro-sociality.
However, the interaction among the four psychological constructs mentioned above is complex, necessitating the exploration of a comprehensive psychological mechanism model. Future research should investigate the evolutionary and biological mechanisms underlying the impacts of IWAH on prosocial psychology and behavior, as well as the boundary conditions of those effects. Additionally, it is highly recommended to probe how this relationship evolves in the era of artificial intelligence and the cultural variations within the context of globalization.

Key words: identification with all humanity, prosocial behavior, intergroup interaction, environmental sustainability, public health crises

ZHAO Siqi, LIU Ruoting, HU Xiaomeng. Identification with all humanity promotes prosocial psychological processes and behavioral patterns and its underlying mechanisms[J]. Advances in Psychological Science, 2024, 32(10): 1697-1708.

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