Can true altruism exist, or are all act of kindness selfish at their core? I look into it like...

Michmich · 41-45, F

Does it matter if someone does a whole lot of good because they get rewarded for it somehow?

I you actually help someone then that's all that matters and the reward doesn't make it less good or more good. Because I think that if you're helping someone to like gain their trust so you can abuse their trust later is not actually helping them in the first place..

Convivial · 26-30, F

I wonder if true altruism actually exists...i feel there's always a reward for the person, not necessarily public but a private one... It may be the good deed for the day, it may be living up some ideal they have, but it's still a reward... And nothing i day above takes away the goodness of what they do

CountScrofula · 41-45, M

Behaviour matters way more than intent.

The most giving person in the world could perish having never committed a selfish act but what of the entire time they were doing I to feel better about themselves, which is selfish.

Does it matter?

wackidywack · 26-30

some people like to be able to help, there's no need to look deeper into it other than a human sense of empathy

ChipmunkErnie · 70-79, M

Kind of an unaswerable conundrum: if you are altruistic and feel good about being altruistic then are you being altruistic selflessly or because it makes you feel good? And if it makes you feel good, is that truly altruism?

DareToSayIT · 31-35, M

Some do not because they want anything in return, but they care truly feel the pain of others by placing themselves in their shoes. When you can’t handle something, you just don’t do that to others.

SW-User

You can tell true altruism from someone who doesn’t announce it or record it

Mamapolo2016 · F

If they are helping people and not harming them, I don’t care why they do it.

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DDonde · 31-35, M

sometimes it feels like every act of kindness is just a step in the grand plan to secure a spot in the afterlife’s VIP parking lane.

This would only be relevant for specific religions yeah?

I think boiling all behavior down to "selfish" is unhelpful and really ignores what people mean and what people are comparing to when they use that word.