Self-transcendence through the lens of ontological addiction: correlates of prosociality, competitiveness and pro-nature behavior

• Published in: Current psychology (New Brunswick, N.J.) Vol. 43; no. 36; pp. 28950 - 28964
• Main Authors: Barrows, Paul, Van Gordon, William, Richardson, Miles
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01.09.2024; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Addiction; Addictions; Addictive behaviors; Behavior; Behavioral Science and Psychology; Competition (Psychology); Helping behavior; Ontology; Psychological aspects; Psychology; Self; Social aspects; Social Sciences; Transcendence (Philosophy); United Kingdom; Environmentalism; Buddhism; Pro-nature behavior; Transcendence; Ontological addiction; Prosociality; Competitiveness; Self-transcendence; Mental illness
• ISSN: 1046-1310; 1936-4733
• DOI: 10.1007/s12144-024-06403-9

Self-transcendence and the associated decrease in ego-centeredness are understood to foster altruistic and positive behaviors that promote prosociality and pro-environmental actions. However, the lack of an agreed valid and reliable measure of self-transcendence has posed difficulties in examining this subject. The main aim of this study was to use the recently developed Ontological Addiction Scale (OAS), which assesses dysfunctional ego-centeredness as an inhibiter of self-transcendent change, as a proxy measure to examine whether self-transcendence is indeed related to such “selfless” prosocial and pro-nature behaviors. Secondary aims were to examine ontological addiction (OA) and these behaviors in relation to competitiveness and ego-driven manifestations of prosociality. These relationships were examined via self-report measures in a cross-sectional cohort study of 287 UK adult participants. Findings revealed associations with competitiveness that broadly reflect its association with ego-centeredness through significant correlations with OA, and significant negative correlations with both prosociality and pro-nature behavior. They also supported earlier findings of a significant relationship between OA and measures of anxiety and depression. However, the expected negative correlations between OA and both prosociality and pro-nature behavior were not evidenced, which raises questions regarding the notion of OA as a conceptual antithesis of self-transcendence and/or whether measures of pro-sociality and pro-nature behavior adequately account for “selfish” or “impure” motivations that may underly these behaviors. Implications and future research directions are discussed.