BECE. Newsletter 

Vol.6, No.1, 2020 791 

 

 

 

 

The Benefits to Students of Helping Others 

By Lu, C., Jiang, Y., Zhao, X., & Fang, P. 

Correspondence to: Fang, P. Email: pingf2007@126.com 

EACHERS would be grateful if students adopted the positive social cus-

tom of “one for all, all for one”. However, would helping others be ben-

eficial to the students themselves? A recent study published in Journal of 

Happiness Studies examined whether the altruistic personality trait of Chi-

nese students contributed to their life satisfaction. 

The study conducted a survey of 428 students from schools in East 

China, of which 148, 139, and 141 were drawn from, respectively, primary 

schools, junior high schools, and senior high schools. Students were assessed 

for their altruism, life satisfaction, positive and negative emotions. Altruism 

was measured in terms of sociability, empathy, social responsibility, and in-

terpersonal trust. The findings were as follows:  

 Adolescents who have higher levels of altruism were found to 

have more positive emotions, fewer negative emotions. Their life 

satisfaction was also higher.  

 Empathy, social responsibility, and interpersonal trust positively 

predicted life satisfaction. 

 On the other hand, no direct relationships were found between so-

ciability and life satisfaction.  

The authors suggested that the results revealed insights for educating 

adolescents. They recommended providing students with empathy training, 

cultivation of social responsibility, and education on interpersonal trust. 

 
Source: Journal of Happiness Studies, 2020; 21(4):1407-1425. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 

 

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