TY - JOUR
T1 - Prosocial behavior mitigates the negative effects of stress in everyday life
AU - Raposa, Elizabeth B.
AU - Laws, Holly B.
AU - Ansell, Emily B.
N1 - Funding Information:
This study was supported by a grant from the National on Drug Abuse (K08-DA029641; E.B.A.). Additional support was provided by a training grant from the National Institute of Mental Health (T32-MH062994; H.B.L.). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of NIDA, NIMH, or the National Institutes of Health.
Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2015.
PY - 2016/7
Y1 - 2016/7
N2 - Recent theories of stress reactivity posit that, when stressed, individuals tend to seek out opportunities to affiliate with and nurture others to prevent or mitigate the negative effects of stress. However, few studies have tested empirically the role of prosocial behavior in reducing negative emotional responses to stress. The current analyses used daily diary data to investigate whether engaging in prosocial behavior buffered the negative effects of naturally occurring stressors on emotional well-being. Results showed that on a given day, prosocial behavior moderated the effects of stress on positive affect, negative affect, and overall mental health. Findings suggest that affiliative behavior may be an important component of coping with stress and indicate that engaging in prosocial behavior might be an effective strategy for reducing the impact of stress on emotional functioning.
AB - Recent theories of stress reactivity posit that, when stressed, individuals tend to seek out opportunities to affiliate with and nurture others to prevent or mitigate the negative effects of stress. However, few studies have tested empirically the role of prosocial behavior in reducing negative emotional responses to stress. The current analyses used daily diary data to investigate whether engaging in prosocial behavior buffered the negative effects of naturally occurring stressors on emotional well-being. Results showed that on a given day, prosocial behavior moderated the effects of stress on positive affect, negative affect, and overall mental health. Findings suggest that affiliative behavior may be an important component of coping with stress and indicate that engaging in prosocial behavior might be an effective strategy for reducing the impact of stress on emotional functioning.
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U2 - 10.1177/2167702615611073
DO - 10.1177/2167702615611073
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84986903072
SN - 2167-7026
VL - 4
SP - 691
EP - 698
JO - Clinical Psychological Science
JF - Clinical Psychological Science
IS - 4
ER -
