altruism

Bounded candidate

Record the conduct, actor, occasion and assessment unit without presuming that it qualifies as altruism.

1. Which action, decision or sustained practice is being assessed? definition
2. What would be an unjustified extension of this assessment to the actor's other conduct or character? boundary

Recipient and benefit

Record who is meant to benefit, what improvement is sought and whose account establishes that need.

1. Whose welfare is the actor trying to improve, and in what specific respect? definition
2. Does the account of the need come from recipients, the actor or another source? provenance

Welfare as an end

Record evidence supporting or challenging the interpretation that helping others is a purpose rather than only an instrument.

1. What statements or choices support the interpretation that the beneficiary's welfare matters independently of the actor's gain? provenance
2. Which alternative explanations remain consistent with the observed conduct? boundary

Mixed motives and reciprocity

Record anticipated repayment, recognition, satisfaction and advantage without treating their presence as a conclusive classification.

1. What personal returns did the actor anticipate, and was any repayment explicitly or implicitly expected? provenance
2. What evidence, if any, indicates whether the actor would still help without recognition or repayment? boundary

Cost, risk and opportunity

Record expected and actual burdens separately, including opportunities forgone and burdens transferred to others.

1. What time, resources, opportunities or safety did the actor expect to give up, and what did the act actually cost? measurement
2. Which burdens fall on dependants or other parties rather than on the actor? boundary

Discretion under pressure

Record duties, sanctions, social expectations and meaningful alternatives relevant to the act.

1. What obligations or pressures applied, and what choices remained available to the actor? boundary
2. What changes would preserve useful help while allowing the actor a meaningful choice to reduce or stop the contribution? action

Wanted and authorised help

Record requests, acceptance, refusal and uncertainty about representing recipient interests.

1. Have recipients requested, accepted or refused this help, and how was that established? provenance
2. If recipients cannot express a preference, what grounds support acting on their behalf? action

Welfare consequences

Record benefit, harm, distribution and uncertainty without inferring motive from success or failure.

1. Compared with what likely would have happened otherwise, what benefits or harms are supported by evidence? measurement
2. What recipient feedback or harmful effects would justify adapting or stopping the help? action

Criteria and confidence

Record the operative criteria, evidence gaps and disagreements underlying a provisional classification.

1. Under the interpretation being used, what evidence supports or fails to support calling this act altruistic? definition
2. Which missing or conflicting evidence could materially change that assessment? provenance

Sustainable welfare-directed action

Record ways to pursue recipient welfare within the actor's resources, consent and responsibilities.

1. What feasible alternative could preserve or improve the intended benefit with less harm or avoidable burden? action
2. What changes in recipient wishes, actor capacity or expected benefit should trigger reassessment? action

Kinds and varieties

Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.

1. Which of these kinds and varieties hold for the sense of altruism this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance

Identifiers and schemes

Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.

1. Which of these identifiers and schemes hold for the sense of altruism this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance

Standards and regulation

Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.

1. Which of these standards and regulation hold for the sense of altruism this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance

Real-world use

Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.

1. Which of these real-world use hold for the sense of altruism this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance

Typical measurements

Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.

1. Which of these typical measurements hold for the sense of altruism this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance

Failure modes and hazards

Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.

1. Which of these failure modes and hazards hold for the sense of altruism this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance

Regional variation

Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.

1. Which of these regional variation hold for the sense of altruism this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance

Neighbouring kinds and how to tell them apart

Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.

1. Which of these neighbouring kinds and how to tell them apart hold for the sense of altruism this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance