Cyber-kindness: Spreading kindness in cyberspace

Lee Rowland
University of Oxford and kindness.org

Dana Klisanin, Ph.D.
Evolutionary Guidance Media R&D, Inc.

In contrast to the widely reported negative aspects of human behavior online, a growing body of research is exploring the use of the Internet for spreading and facilitating prosocial behavior. Here we report on a survey (n=1013) that investigated the prevalence of altruistic and kindness-based online behavior, termed cyber-kindness. Motivations for cyber-kindness and the relationship between online and offline kind behavior were also explored. Results show that cyber-kindness is widespread within this sample, and is predominantly driven by other-oriented motivations as well as by a transpersonal sense of identity. Non-correlational self-report data provides evidence for a positive relationship between online and offline kindness. Limitations of the current study are discussed and we conclude that the phenomenon of cyber-kindness merits further empirical investigation.

Keywords: cyber-kindness; digital altruism; kindness; altruism; prosocial behavior