We have all seen at some point a diner at our table or the adjacent one help the waiter clear the table, passing him the plates or even piling them up before he arrived. Sometimes we ourselves have performed this gesture in a restaurant, and it is usually attributed to a gesture of courtesy or politeness. However, psychology gives this human behavior another nature, specifically social psychology.
This behavior is considered to reveal to others the intrinsic motivations of the person performing it, such as their personal values based on empathy, respect for others’ work, and the ability to acknowledge the efforts of others. They are particularly descriptive acts that do not require verbal expression. This type of behavior is defined by psychology as prosocial behavior, referring to voluntary actions aimed at benefiting others without the need for a reward. The journalist specializing in human behavior, Lachlan Brown, relates these behaviors as essential indicators of a sense of community and altruism.
What exactly is Psychology?
Many people, out of ignorance and lack of knowledge, associate psychology with being crazy, with being weak, or with the place to go when one has a trauma. However, the reality of what psychology means and its usefulness has nothing to do with popular beliefs. Freud defined psychology as the scientific study of the human mind, while the International University of La Rioja (UNIR), one of the most prestigious online universities in Spain, defines it as the pseudoscience that studies and analyzes the human mind to solve emotional, mental, social, or learning problems. On its website, we can see the breakdown of the areas that psychology encompasses, including psychoanalysis, behaviorism, cognitivism and cognitive psychology, humanism, functionalism, and systemic psychology.
Social psychology
According to the European University of Madrid (UE), Social Psychology is the branch of Psychology that studies human behavior in society. Through it, social processes and interpersonal relationships that influence people’s behavior and the formation of their personality can be analyzed. Aspects such as collective consciousness, social identity, teamwork, and leadership are social roles that can be analyzed thanks to this branch of psychology.
Prosocial behavior
All human behaviors have a reason for being, an origin, and a motivation that can be explained by psychology and sociology. One of them is helping a waiter clear the table in a restaurant. What may initially be considered a gesture of courtesy has an underlying explanation that psychology can bring to the surface.
This gesture involves being acutely aware of values such as empathy, respect for others’ work, and the ability to recognize the efforts of others. This relates to a term known in psychology as prosocial behavior: voluntary actions aimed at benefiting other people without any need for reward. The journalist specialized in human behavior, Lachlan Brown, explains that it is a quality of social sensitivity, essential in an increasingly individualized world.
More characteristics
In addition to empathy and prosocial motivations, gestures like helping to clear a table for a waiter are strongly linked to humility. This seems almost obvious, but there are people who do feel a sense of superiority over hospitality staff. These gestures show recognition of the work of others, as well as a demonstration of solid principles. It is important for there to be coherence between personal principles and the way we relate to our environment and the world, carrying out gestures like this that do not require obligation, but arise from one’s own initiative.