@Article{jpa.2026.075703,
AUTHOR = {Chao Zhang, Yi Chen, Dexin Hu},
TITLE = {Are recipients more cooperative when helped by high-hierarchy individuals?},
JOURNAL = {Journal of Psychology in Africa},
VOLUME = {},
YEAR = {},
NUMBER = {},
PAGES = {{pages}},
URL = {http://www.techscience.com/jpa/online/detail/27743},
ISSN = {1815-5626},
ABSTRACT = {Drawing on social exchange theory and attribution theory, our study examined how helpers’ hierarchical characteristics, including hierarchical level (high vs. low) and hierarchical type (power vs. status), influenced recipients’ cooperative behavior. Across three scenario experiments, participants received help from a colleague who differed in hierarchical level or type and then reported their gratitude and cooperative behavior. Study 1 (n = 107) revealed that receiving help from a high-power (vs. low-power) colleague increased participants’ cooperative behavior by eliciting greater gratitude, supporting H1 and H3. Study 2 (n = 108) focused on status hierarchy using a similar design. Participants who received help from a high-status (vs. low-status) colleague showed greater cooperation, supporting H2; however, gratitude did not significantly mediate this relationship, and thus H4 was not supported. Study 3 (n = 225) employed a 2 (hierarchical level: high vs. low) × 2 (hierarchical type: power vs. status) scenario experiment to test the integrated model. The results were consistent with the preceding two studies; additionally, there was no significant difference between the effects of power and status hierarchies on cooperation, which was inconsistent with H5. Crucially, the mediating role of gratitude differed significantly between power and status hierarchies, supporting H6. The findings disentangle hierarchical level and hierarchical type in helping contexts and provide new insights into how hierarchy shapes cooperative responses following helping interactions.},
DOI = {10.32604/jpa.2026.075703}
}