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Time Poverty Predicts an Imbalance Between Help-Seeking and Help-Giving: The Mediating Effect of Zero-Sum Beliefs
Peiling Cao1, Rongzi Ma1, Yue Yuan1
1Beijing Key Laboratory of Applied Experimental Psychology, National Demonstration Center for Experimental Psychology Education (Beijing Normal University), Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China.
Abstract:
Time poverty, a persistent feeling of insufficient time, significantly affects interpersonal dynamics, particularly help-seeking and help-giving. Across five studies using hypothetical scenarios (Studies 1a and 1b), academic (Study 2), and everyday contexts (Study 3), we found that time poverty consistently fosters a mismatch wherein individuals' help-seeking behaviors exceed their willingness to provide help, regardless of task interdependence (Studies 1a and 1b). Zero-sum beliefs about time emerge as a key mediator explaining the effect of time poverty on this imbalance, a mechanism substantiated by both correlational (Studies 2 and 3) and causal (Study 4) evidence. Moreover, findings reveal that time poverty reduces both help-provider's and help-seeker's preference for autonomy-oriented help relative to dependency-oriented help (Studies 1b and 3), suggesting an additional adverse consequence for personal growth and development.
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