The present study investigated the effects of experimentally induced high and low self-esteem on altruistic behavior. While 31% of the female Ss and 46% of the male Ss in the experimental groups offered to help a female passerby carry a bulky load of boxes, these figures did not differ from those of a control group, even when competence feedback was augmented by verbal confrontation. The findings stressed the importance of using a nonreactive, unobtrusive measure of altruism and suggest that an aiding response may most appreciably be encouraged by dealing directly with the behavior rather than by manipulating antecedent affective or cognitive states.
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