Why are we unwilling to help sometimes? Reconsideration and integration of the attribution-affect model and the arousal: cost-reward model

Helping is a virtue, but people are unwilling to help sometimes. The present study reconsidered and integrated the attribution-affect model and the arousal: cost-reward model to reveal decisive factors in the process of deciding whether to help. In two experiments, different groups of participants responded to different helping scenarios. Experiment 1 ( N A = 100, N B = 100, N C = 196) confirmed that controllability of cause of another’s need, luxury of another’s need and cost independently affected willingness to help. Experiment 2 ( N = 790) found interactive effects of these situational factors on willingness to help. The underlying process was that perceived luxury of another’s need moderated the relationship between perceived controllability of cause of another’s need and sympathy or anger, and these emotions then moderated the relationship between perceived cost and willingness to help. Specifically, when perceived luxury of another’s need was higher, sympathy was generally lower (or anger was generally higher), no matter the perceived controllability of cause of another’s need; when sympathy was lower (or anger was higher), willingness to help was generally lower, no matter perceived cost. Therefore, the present study reveals that the nature of need rather than attribution and cost plays a decisive role in the process of deciding whether to help.