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The motivation to sacrifice for a cause reflects a basic cognitive bias
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 27 December 2018
Abstract
Many extreme forms of self-sacrifice occur without identity fusion or out-group threats. For example, people willingly participate in extreme charity fundraisers – exerting effort, enduring pain, and risking bodily injury – to advance desired causes. Therefore, it seems plausible that the motivation to engage in extreme self-sacrifice reflects a basic cognitive bias, rather than an evolutionary-cultural adaption specifically designed for intergroup conflict.
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- Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2018
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Target article
Dying for the group: Towards a general theory of extreme self-sacrifice
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