What Price, Good Will? All-Truism-ish...

The debate continues: In grad school in animated discussions regarding 'higher order' psychological constructs, virtues --animated in part thanks to the instant java we consumed prior to and throughout class (when was the last time you gulped down an instant joe, yuk!!) one of the perennial favorites was  "Is there true altruism, or is it just an 'act'?" Do people really "act on the belief in or practice of disinterested and selfless concern for the well-being of others?" or, as in zoology, "the behavior of an animal that benefits another at its own expense". And we held such debates decades before the culture of 'selfie' came into prominence. Some aspiring psychologists in our group held the viewpoint that if you did something in the spirit of selflessness, primarily driven by good will, that was sufficient to label it as an act of altruism, whereas others argued that even if you experienced an internal 'warm fuzzy' as a result of a good deed, this was a type of gain and thus, short of 'pure' altruism. A third view, held by the 'relativists' among us, suggested there was/is simply a continuum of altruism, that you could be doing things on behalf of another due more or less to extrinsic or intrinsic motives. The debate continues, as in:

Historical, contemporary 'Acts' of Good Will: Throughout the pandemic months we have all seen and heard, of course, of acts, actors depicting both selflessness and selfishness, the whole continuum of what we discussed in class back in the late 70's to early 80's...acts driven by what at least appeared to be driven by pure altruism, to those of pure self gain, to the sacrifice of others around them. Whether giving up a place in line at the grocery store (or, on the other hand, taking cuts), giving a roll of TP from your cart to another unknown shopper (or, swiping someone else's wipes when they weren't looking), to more dramatic, life saving acts in and out of the ER/ICU, putting themselves in harm's way, volunteering to work an extra shift so a co-worker could be home with their family in need...serving as surrogate family members when they were not allowed in the hospital, a conduit for both information and words of reassurance, way beyond the call of duty. From the casual to the dramatic -- while not unique in history, the contrast was probably portrayed more frequently for us the past year or so. Whether through mainline media or when we...

Google It! In addition to bringing us news about altruists and their counterparts, "Google" itself was a topic of conversation on "World News" this very morning, the focus of an investigation into the motive(s) behind the announcement they would be investing one billion dollars (866 million Euros per BBC), to "improve internet access in the African continent...to support Africa's digital transformation...". Admirable, selfless, an Uber amount of good will, eh? Well, perhaps, relatively speaking...as the interviewer pushing the Google rep about what returns the organization might experience in the future beyond an Uber amount of warm fuzzies in world opinion...predated by about two years by another forerunner article, "Technology Giants in Africa", detailing the sharp vector, the significant increase in smart phone connections across Africa, doubling the past two years..."coupled with the growing number of technology hubs...why Microsoft and Google and other influential tech companies are staking their claims in this continent..." (include China here, of course). So, they are not alone in their 'acts' of good will. Neither are their acts born solely out of pure selflessness, nor completely self-serving, but more of a combo...'hybrid' altruistic behavior in today's language. So, perhaps the relativists in our grad psych class come closest to the truth, in these cases at least. On the other hand...

Speaking of Relative Altruism: Or the oft contemporary cases of altruism on behalf of relatives, such as a wealthy benefactor making an Uber sized contribution to a college or university and then, coincidentally having a relative gain entry, this is something else entirely, usually referred to as contributions driven by nepotism, which has eventuated in a few abbreviated prison terms in our country recently.

Back to Basics, Instincts: So, on a scale from 1-10, where do you fall?