Memory Lane and Morality: How Childhood Memories Promote Prosocial Behavior

Copyright ©2011 by Francesca Gino and Sreedhari D. Desai
Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics, Harvard University & Women & Public Policy Program, Harvard Kennedy School of Government

Abstract: Four experiments demonstrated that recalling memories from one’s own childhood lead people to experience feelings of moral purity and to behave prosocially. In Experiment 1, participants instructed to recall memories from their childhood were more likely to help the experimenter with a supplementary task than were participants in a control condition, and this effect was mediated by self-reported feelings of moral purity. In Experiment 2, the same manipulation increased the amount of money participants donated to a good cause, and self-reported feelings of moral purity mediated this relationship. In Experiment 3, participants who recalled childhood memories judged the ethically-questionable behavior of others more harshly, suggesting that childhood memories lead to altruistic punishment. Finally, in Experiment 4, compared to a control condition, both positively-valenced and negatively-valenced childhood memories led to higher empathic concern for a person in need, which, in turn increased intentions to help.

Too often the news reports stories of injustice, dishonesty, and human violence: longlived conflicts in different parts of the world, terrorist attacks, and corporate corruption. These and other, more ordinary instances of unethical behavior are all examples of how human nature seems to be driven by self-interest and impure motives. Yet, throughout history, there are equally compelling stories of small and large acts of helping, honesty, and prosocial behavior more generally.

One example is provided by the actions of several people across Europe who risked their life during World War II by welcoming and rescuing Jews and other victims of the Holocaust. Similarly, the news often reports stories of exemplar altruistic acts, such as those of people saving others during fires, those of individuals generously helping abandoned children or needy families, those of people contributing large sums of money or time to good causes, or those of organizations founded to help others. In contrast to the first set of examples, these stories seem to suggest that humans may be prosocial in nature.

Scholars have long debated the question of what traits and behaviors are inherent in humanity, and have concluded that whether individuals are more self-oriented or other-oriented in their actions depends on cultural norms and on a complex interaction between biological potentialities and environmental experiences.

Scholars have also recognized that, together with these factors, situational cues can promote prosocial and unethical behavior across time and across cultures. For instance, in a recent investigation, Zhong, Bohns and Gino (2010) found that ambient darkness leads people to be less generous towards others in a dictator game. Situational cues may signal or activate implicit or explicit norms in a given social context. Cialdini, Reno and Kallgren (1990), for example, demonstrated that the amount of litter in the environment regulates littering behavior by subtly activating norms prescribing what is appropriate or inappropriate in a given setting and by providing implicit social proof.

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Memory Lane and Morality: How Childhood Memories Promote Prosocial Behavior

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