THE GIFT OF GOODWILL

GIVING AND DOING GOOD HELPS OTHERS WHILE MAKING YOU A HAPPIER PERSON TOO. BUT ONLY IF YOU DO IT FOR THE RIGHT REASONS

The buzz of giving to others is one of the fundamental pleasures of the festive period. Whether we’re buying charity greetings cards, donating to telethons or sending presents to children in far-flung places, this is a month when we’re quick to put hands in our pockets for people in need.

It feels good to give. Not just our money, but also our time and care. The official name for it is altruism, defined by the Oxford Dictionary as “disinterested and selfless concern for the wellbeing of others”. But it’s not only the wellbeing of others that benefits. The Mental Health Foundation says altruistic acts have a positive impact on our psychological health, making us feel fulfilled and energised. The US charity Project Happiness lists altruism as one of its seven sciencebacked ‘happiness habits’, alongside mindfulness, gratitude, physical health, social connection, being yourself and doing something meaningful. Such observations are backed by a wealth of academic study showing that altruists feel happier, live longer and even have better sex lives.

Why does altruism have this effect on us? Is it simply because it makes us feel less guilty about our own rampant consumerism – especially at this time of year? Certainly the Mental Health Foundation advises that spending time with people in need can make us feel better about our own circumstances and give us a better perspective on life – which sounds like a rather selfish reason to act with kindness.

HARD-WIRED TO CARE

In fact, academics who study altruism believe that human beings are hard-wired for caring. Emma Seppälä is associate director of the Center for Compassion and

“Intuitively we know our connections with others are the most meaningful parts of our lives”

Altruism Research and Education at Stanford University ( how wonderful that such a place exists). In The

Happiness Track (Piatkus), she says that humans are not self-interested creatures.“Intuitively we know that our connections with others are the most meaningful elements of our lives,” she writes, referring to a Stanford study that asked 500 people how they’d spend their time if they were told they only had three days to live. The most popular responses were spending time with loved ones and helping people. “When our brains move from a modality of self-focus and stress to a new modality of caring and connecting, our heart rate decelerates…and we release hormones that are key for connection and bonding, such as oxytocin.”

GOOD FOR YOU – BUT ONLY INCIDENTALLY

Doing good deeds reduces stress, strengthens the immune system and boosts levels of dopamine and endorphins (the brain chemicals that make us feel rewarded and happy). So no matter how busy or broke you think you are, making time to bake a cake for a charity coffee morning or forgoing your morning latte to give a few pounds to a homeless person is worth it, right? It’s an investment in your own wellbeing? Well, not quite. “Research shows that if the altruistic act is done out of selfish reasons [to make yourself look good, for example], you will not reap the benefits,” Dr Seppälä says. To have an impact on your wellbeing, she says, pure altruism – “doing something of benefit to someone else” – must be done with compassion: “feeling someone’s pain with the desire to alleviate this pain in some way.”

She recommends “exercising your compassion muscle”, for example by putting yourself in other people’s shoes to cultivate a genuine desire to help them. That might sound like common sense: surely we can all empathise with the the local who can’t afford Christmas. But with 24-hour news and social media keeping us only too well informed about all the suffering in the world, the sheer scale of need can feel overwhelming. We can’t possibly make a difference, we think. And the nagging knowledge that we should be doing more becomes another unticked item on the to-do list.

REALLY MAKING A DIFFERENCE

This is where effective altruism comes in. William MacAskill, associate professor of philosophy at Lincoln College, Oxford, is the leading light of the ‘effective altruism’ movement, which takes a scientific approach to the question, ‘How can I make the biggest difference?’. The time it takes to read his lively book Doing Good

Better (Faber) could be among the most life-changing hours you ever spend – and we’re not just talking about

your life. Effective altruism, he explains, is about doing as much good as you can with whatever resources you have. Pointing out that anyone who earns more than £10,000 per year is in the top 10% of world earners (more than £34,000 puts you in the top 1%), he reminds us just how easy it is to help others. “Sometimes we look at the

size of the problems in the world and think: ‘Anything I do would be just a drop in the bucket,’” he writes. “It’s the size of the drop that matters, not the size of the bucket, and, if we choose, we can create an enormous splash.”

Some commentators see altruism as less of a big splash, more of a drip feed… The Buddhist monk, humanitarian and happiness guru Matthieu Ricard concludes in Altruism: the Power of Compassion to

Change Yourself and the World (Atlantic Books), altruism is “the essential key” to resolving the world’s social, economic and ecological crises. “Altruism shows us what is good to do, but also how one should be… Starting with a kindly motivation, altruism should be integrated into our everyday lives.”

So, altruism is for life, not just for Christmas. And there’s no need to give away your worldly goods or feel guilty about your good fortune. Altruism isn’t about sacrifice; it’s about kindness. “I always encourage people to find whatever it is that motivates them and suits their abilities,” Emma Seppälä suggests. “An introvert might be happy to donate hours of time coding for a non-profit; someone who loves animals can work at a shelter. Even the simple act of going about every day with the intention of uplifting those around you, of smiling and being friendly, can be enough.”