Altruism Isn't Real

[Martin Hash]

People are driven by positive feedback, a dose of one of the neurotransmitters in the brain, usually dopamine, but also serotonin, acetylcholine, glutamate and others. Only the most basic of emotions are triggers, and altruism, the supposed motivation behind charity, isn't one of them. What is it then? Why do people get positive feedback from altruism? People do charity work for masochistic reasons, or as a desperate substitute for lack of achievements in their own life. It's clear this is the case because people will substitute charity for getting their own house in order first. There's also the sense of superiority that doing charity work brings.

[Haumana]

This has been my position for over a decade. Nobody does anything that doesn't benifit them first in some way, even parents. The myth that there are people out there doing things that actually sabotage their lives for the "greater good" is just another fable. It sure seems to be the hardest of pills to swallow. "I am a good person" is the clearest signal that they are not.