You are given 20 dollars in cash. You can use it as you wish, but with one condition: you have to use it to treat yourself.

Now imagine getting another 20 dollars next week. This time, the rules have changed: you must use the money to treat someone else. 

Which do you think will make you feel better?

Contrary to many people's predictions, we tend to feel much better after spending the money on others. Whether we act it out or not, it seems that the human psyche is fine-tuned for generosity.

Why? And why am I so confident about this anyway? Is the effect really a universal part of humanity? Does it take place across cultures and ages? What about those who give too much and experience a burnout? And if giving feels good, why don’t we do it more? 

Lara Aknin is one of the world’s leading scientists working on generosity. Her master’s thesis led to a publication in Science — something I used to think was undoable — and she has studied generosity ever since.

In this episode, Prof Aknin and I discuss:

The original evidence / Cross-cultural research / Alternative explanations / Do toddlers like giving? / Why does generosity feel good? / Why don’t we give more then? / What about giving too much (or caring for someone with dementia)? / Selfish generosity?

As always, we finish with my guest's reflections on humanity.

LINKS

You can read my essays and get the On Humans newsletter at ⁠⁠⁠⁠OnHumans.Substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Feeling generous on the 2nd annviersary of On Humans? Join the wonderful group of my patrons at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon.com/OnHumans⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, or get in touch for other ways to support!

Get in touch: ⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠.

MENTIONS

Scholars

Elizabeth Dunn | Tania Broesch | Josh V. Kane | Benjamin J. Newman | Richard Dawkins

Articles

Links to articles is available here. Get these and other resources at OnHumans.Substack.com.

Episodes

16 | Does Poverty Make Us Selfish ~ Jacqueline Mattis

20 | Distorting Darwinism – Or Why Evolution Does Not Prove That We Are Selfish ~ Solo

22 | Do Young Children Care About Others? ~ Amrisha Vaish

Keywords

Psychology | Anthropology | Behavioral Economics | Prosociality | Generosity | Happiness | Warm glow | Altruism | Charity | Prosocial spending | Cross-cultural research | Reciprocity | Cultural similarities | Spending choices | Happiness experiments | Emotional well-being | Social connection | Financial generosity | Helping behavior