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A series of four studies explored how the ability to comprehend and transform probability numbers relates to performance on judgment and decision tasks. On the surface, the tasks in the four studies appear to be widely different; at a conceptual level, however, they all involve processing numbers and the potential to show an influence of affect. Findings were consistent with highly numerate individuals being more likely to retrieve and use appropriate numerical principles, thus making themselves less susceptible to framing effects, compared with less numerate individuals. In addition, the highly numerate tended to draw different (generally stronger or more precise) affective meaning from numbers and numerical comparisons, and their affective responses were more precise. Although generally helpful, this tendency may sometimes lead to worse decisions. The less numerate were influenced more by competing, irrelevant affective considerations. Analyses showed that the effect of numeracy was not due to general intelligence. Numerical ability appears to matter to judgments and decisions in important ways.

To understand human prosocial behaviour, one must consider not only the helpers and the requesters, but also the characteristics of the beneficiaries. To this aim, this articles reviews research on beneficiary effects in prosocial decision making, which implies that some human lives are valued higher than others. We focus on eight beneficiary attributes that increase willingness to help: (1) Temporal proximity, (2) Young age, (3) Female gender, (4) Misery, (5) Innocence, (6) Ingroup, (7) Identifiability (8) High proportion. We demonstrate that different psychological mechanisms explain different beneficiary effects, that the size and direction of beneficiary effects varies as a function of response mode (separate evaluation, joint evaluation, or forced choice), and outcome measure (attitudes or helping behaviour). We propose that beneficiary attributes differ in their evaluability, justifiability, and prominence, and conclude by discussing theoretical, moral, and applied aspects of beneficiary effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While more work is needed to understand whether (or when) empathy is best conceptualized as a value-based choice or if it is, as often suggested, an automatic, intuitive response unaffected by value processes, empathy can be a dynamic system that shifts with changing values. The malleability of empathy implies that suggestions to discard empathy as a poor moral compass may be premature because empathy can be shaped toward more positive outcomes. Defining Empathy Much of the disagreement surrounding the utility of empathy can be attributed to the non-overlapping definitions of empathy used in the field. Keywords: empathy; compassion; affective empathy; norms; value-based choice; rationality EN empathy compassion affective empathy norms value-based choice rationality 1 4 4 01/31/22 20220127 NES 220127 Introduction A plethora of research conducted in the past decades has shown that empathy can be essential in guiding and motivating prosocial behavior (e.g., Batson et al., [4]; Eisenberg and Miller, [28]; Batson, [3]; Dickert et al., [25]; Erlandsson et al., [30]). [Extracted from the article]

Charitable giving entails the act of foregoing personal resources in order to improve the conditions of other people. In the present paper, we systematically examine two dimensions integral to donation decisions that have thus far received relatively little attention but can explain charitable behavior rather well: the perceptions of cost for the donor and benefit for the recipients. In line with current theories in judgment and decision making, we hypothesize that people weigh these dimensions subjectively and perceive them asymmetrically, consistent with prospect theory. Costs for the donor are typically perceived as losses, whereas benefits for recipients are perceived as gains. In four studies, we presented several scenarios to participants in which both donation amounts (costs) and number of lives helped (benefits) were manipulated while keeping the ratio of costs and benefits constant. Results from Studies 1 and 2 showed that willingness to help decreased as donation amounts and number of lives helped increased. Additionally, Studies 3 and 4 provide evidence for a solution to reduce the asymmetry and increase donation amounts as the number of lives at risk increases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Older adults have been shown to avoid negative and prefer positive information to a higher extent than younger adults. This positivity bias influences their information processing as well as decision-making. We investigate age-related positivity bias in charitable giving in two studies. In Study 1 we examine motivational factors in monetary donations, while Study 2 focuses on the emotional effect of actual monetary donations. In Study 1, participants (n = 353, age range 20-74 years) were asked to rate their affect toward a person in need and then state how much money they would be willing to donate to help this person. In Study 2, participants (n = 108, age range 19-89) were asked to rate their affect toward a donation made a few days prior. Regression analysis was used to investigate whether or not the positivity bias influences the relationship between affect and donations. In Study 1, we found that older adults felt more sympathy and compassion and were less motivated by negative affect when compared to younger adults, who were motivated by both negative and positive affect. In Study 2, we found that the level of positive emotional reactions from monetary donations was higher in older participants compared to younger participants. We find support for an age-related positivity bias in charitable giving. This is true for motivation to make a future donation, as well as affective thinking about a previous donation. We conclude that older adults draw more positive affect from both the planning and outcome of monetary donations and hence benefit more from engaging in monetary charity than their younger counterparts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Numerical information often serves as a basis for evaluations, decisions and behavior. In requests for charitable giving, three numerical cues in the donation description are of particular importance: the number of potential recipients of a donation, the total number of people in need, and their proportion. In three studies, we examined the effects of numeracy on the weight given to these numerical cues in donations. Study 1 contrasted the importance of a higher absolute number (of potential recipients and the number of people in need) vs. a higher proportion of recipients. In Study 2, we investigated the effects of the total number of people in need and Study 3 was designed to focus on the impact of the absolute number of potential recipients. Our results revealed a consistent pattern demonstrating that highly numerate individuals were willing to donate more for projects that offered assistance to the greatest proportion of recipients. Conversely, less numerate individuals were insensitive to this proportion; they tended to donate more with increases in both the number of recipients and the total number of people in need. The meaning of numbers in donation decisions and the resulting motivation to help depends on numeric skill. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

We employed simple gambles to investigate information processing in relation to the compatibility effect. Subjects should be more likely to engage in a deliberative thinking strategy when completing a pricing task rather than a rating task. We used eye-tracking methodology to measure information acquisition and processing in order to test the above hypothesis as well as to show that losses and alternatives with uncertain outcomes are more likely than gains and alternatives with sure outcomes to be processed through a deliberative thinking process. Results showed that pupil dilations, fixation duration and number of fixations increased when subjects evaluated the gambles with a pricing task. Additionally, the number of fixations increased as the gamble outcome became increasingly negative and when the outcome was uncertain (vs. sure). Fixations were also predictive of subjects' final evaluations of the gambles. We discuss our results in light of the cognitive processes underlying different response modes in economic preferences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Donation requests often convey numerical information about the people in need. In two studies we investigated the effects of numeracy and presentation format on the underlying affective and cognitive mechanisms of donation decisions. In Study 1, participants were presented with information about a victim in need, either in a frequency format or in a percentage format. In Study 2, we manipulated the identifiability and number of target victims. Our results demonstrate that donations of individuals lower in numeracy were more susceptible to changes in numeric presentation format than those higher in numeracy. Importantly, the underlying mechanisms for donations differed by numeracy. Whereas the mental image of the victim influenced donation decisions of less numerate people only, the estimated impact of a donation was positively correlated with donation amounts for both more and less numerate individuals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors discuss a commentary regarding their article "Greater Emotional Gain from Giving in Older Adults: Age-Related Positivity Bias in Charitable Giving," focusing on age-related changes in decision making. They explore topics including prosocial behavior, the compassion fade, and the lack of research and understanding about age related changes in cognition, affect and motivation, and being in agreement that positivity bias is not the only process related to affect.