The foundations of volunteering, charitable giving, voluntary associations, voluntary agencies, and other aspects of the Voluntary Nonprofit Sector (VNPS) collectively and of individual voluntary action lie in various aspects of human nature and societies. These foundations may be referred to variously as altruism, morality, ethics, virtue, kindness, generosity, cooperation, social solidarity, and prosociality (eusociality). These foundations of the VNPS, and specifically of social solidarity and prosociality, are the subjects of this literature review article/book. The central goal is providing a comprehensive and interdisciplinary theoretical framework for understanding, explaining, and predicting such phenomena, based on two versions of the author’s S-Theory: (1) Individual-System-Level General S-Theory of Human Behavior, as presented briefly here and in greater detail elsewhere (Smith, 2015, 2020a, 2020b; Smith & van Puyvelde, 2016); (2) Social-System-Level General S-Theory of Collective Prosociality-Social Solidarity, as partially sketched here for the first time in print. Social-System-Level General S-Theory of collective Prosociality-Social Solidarity argues that collective social solidarity can be better explained with a broader than usual range of factors as major causal influences, beyond normative systems. Individual prosociality behavior can be best explained and understood using the author’s Individual-System-Level General S-Theory of Human Behavior. Prosociality includes (a) instrumental (task-oriented) helping behavior, such as formal and informal volunteering or charitable giving for non-household/non-immediate family persons and also informal care of residential household/immediate family persons, plus (b) expressive prosociality or sociability that involves positive interpersonal relations with one or more other persons, both in the residential household/immediate family or outside of it, based on feelings of attachment, fellowship, friendship, affection, and/or love. Prosociality and social solidarity are clearly human universals, as Brown (1991) concludes from anthropological studies on hundreds of mostly preliterate societies on all continents. Such individual human prosociality activities often have positive short- and long-term consequences for the people who do them.

How do we know when we are investing wisely in security? Answering this question requires investigating what things are worth securing (and why); what threatens them; how best to protect them; and how to think about it. Is it possible to protect them? How best go about protecting them? What trade-offs are involved in allocating resources to security problems? This book responds to these questions by stripping down our preconceptions and rebuilding an understanding of security from the ground up on the basis of a common-sense ontology and an explicit theory of value. It argues for a clear distinction between objective and subjective security threats, a non-anthropocentric understanding of security, and a particular hierarchy of security referents, looking closely at four in particular-the ecosphere, the state, culture, and individual human beings. The analysis will be of interest not only to students and scholars of International Relations, but also to practitioners.

Publications on arts-related amateur, hobbyist, some professional, and mixed-member associations and some agencies are reviewed. Their mission is to foster, present, and sometimes chronicle the art its members prize. Excluded from this review are the studies of art support organizations, formed to help fund an art, lobby government for support of it, drum up public interest, seek employment for its professionals, and the like. Also excluded are analyses of broad social and cultural effects of an arts association organization. The review covers works bearing on small arts clubs and societies, music associations and agencies (jazz ensembles, symphony orchestras, opera companies), dance associations and agencies, theater associations and agencies, graphic art associations (graffiti, painting, photography), writers’ and readers’ associations, and craft associations.

Reviews historical impacts of some Deviant Voluntary Associations (DVAs) as moral dark energy. Dissenting DVAs, like the American Anti-Slavery Society (mid-1800s) and National Woman’s Party (early 1900s), worked effectively fostering U.S. socio-cultural progress and ethical evolution in global rights revolution.

Social Behavior and Human Psychology Introduction: Understanding the Complexities of Human Interaction The Role of Culture in Shaping Social Behavior The Psychology of Conformity and Group Dynamics Nonverbal Communication and Its Importance Attachment Theory and Its Impact on Social Relationships The Influence of Emotions on Social Behavior Cognitive Biases and Their Impact on Social Judgments Prosocial Behavior: Why We Help Others The Psychology of Interpersonal Attraction The Dark Side of Social Behavior: Aggression and Bullying The Impact of Technology on Social Interactions Developing Effective Communication Skills Applying Social Psychology Principles in the Real World Conclusion: Embracing the Richness of Human Social Behavior

In this text, contributors explore the historical, conceptual methodological and empirical foundations that link the two fields of personality psychology and social psychology across numerous domains.

Applied Social Psychology What is Social Psychology? Attitudes and Behavior Attribution Theory The Self-Concept Conformity and Obedience Group Dynamics Prosocial Behavior Aggression and Antisocial Behavior Stereotyping, Prejudice, and Discrimination Persuasion and Influence Applications in the Real World Ethical Considerations Conclusion and Key Takeaway