Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
1972, Vol.
21, No.
3, 384-388
EFFECT OF FEELING GOOD ON HELPING:
COOKIES AND KINDNESS1
ALICE M.
ISEN a
Franklin and Marshall College
PAULA F.
LEVIN3
Swarthmore College
Two experiments with adult subjects...
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Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
1972, Vol.
21, No.
3, 384-388
EFFECT OF FEELING GOOD ON HELPING:
COOKIES AND KINDNESS1
ALICE M.
ISEN a
Franklin and Marshall College
PAULA F.
LEVIN3
Swarthmore College
Two experiments with adult subjects investigated the effects of a person s
positive affective state on his or her subsequent helpfulness to others.
"Feeling
good" was induced by having received cookies while studying in a library
(Study I) and by having found a dime in the coin return of a public telephone while making a call (Study II).
In Study I, where the dependent
measure involved volunteering in reply to a student s request, a distinction
was made between specific willingness to help and general willingness to engage
in any subsequent activity.
In Study II, the dependent measure was whether
subjects spontaneously helped to pick up papers that were dropped in front
of them.
On the basis of previous research, it was predicted that subjects who
were thus made to "fe
Less
