BELIEFS AND MORALSselfish gain. What motivates a person to donate large sums of money
each year to charity to help people on the other side of the world? Or
what about the mundane kind of altruism that leads someone to help
a stranger carry a pushchair up an escalator? One compelling answer is
that visible demonstrations of altruism, especially by men, are appealing
to the opposite sex. By this account, men who are more altruistic are
more attractive to women and therefore the genes that influence altru-
istic behaviour are more likely to be passed down the generations.
In support of this idea, research has shown that men in the early,
wooing stages of a romantic relationship are more inclined to give
money to street beggars than men in a more established, long-term
relationship. For instance, a study by Wendy Iredale at the University
of Kent involved men and women playing a financial game and then
being asked at the end how much of their winnings they’d like to donate
to charity. If an attractive woman was watching when they made their
donating decision, the male participants donated more money than if a
man was watching or no one at all. In contrast, the female participants’
donating decisions weren’t affected in this way.
So it seems there’s evidence that men are motivated to impress women
with their altruism. What about the female perspective – do they find
altruistic men more attractive? Iredale had female participants rate the
appeal of a physically attractive man shown in a video either giving £30 to
a beggar, giving him £1, or just passing him by. The women who watched
the most generous video version rated the man as the most attractive.
Similarly, research by Tim Phillips at the University of Nottingham found
that more women than men rated altruistic behaviours, such as “regularly
helps an elderly neighbour”, as particularly attractive in a potential mate.
Psychologists believe there are two evolutionary reasons why women
have come to see altruism as attractive. Whereas men are attracted to
young women who appear fertile, women tend to be attracted to men
with more status and resources. Consistent with this, altruistic behav-
iours involving giving are a clear sign that a man has ample resources
at his disposal. The second reason for altruism’s appeal has to do with
gene quality. Acts of altruistic heroism by a man, be it donating blood or
fending off a threat, are a sign that the man is fit and strong and there-
fore a good choice of mate.
What about contemporary forms of altruism – all those anonymous
editors on Wikipedia and helpful amateur bloggers? These seem to be
clear-cut examples of people helping others with no obvious benefit
for themselves. The theory of altruism as a mating strategy won’t wash,