Pure Prosociality? A Daily Diary Study of Moral Foundations and Prosocial Giving Intentions with a Yearly Follow-up

Based on the moral foundations theory and the social intuitionist model, in our 10-day diary study, we investigated how moral foundations predict the generalized, everyday prosocial intentions to donate coins or time to others. We conducted the study twice in Poland on the same sample: Wave 1 in December 2022/February 2023 and then Wave 2 one year later. Our approach allowed us to test whether the pattern of predictors remains stable over time, or whether it depends on the socio-political context in which people respond to environmental cues (in our case, the questions about the propensity to help). N = 74 people aged 18–55 completed both waves of the study. Our results showed that the moral foundation of purity/sanctity was the only moral foundation related to prosocial intentions to donate coins (at both waves) and time (at wave 1), suggesting its particular role in the case of self-reported behaviour. We discuss the findings in relation to the role of context in the activation of moral foundations and the role of congruence with social expectations in the display of prosociality.