More Than Grateful: Interpersonal Gratitude Cultivates Empathy and Transcendent Indebtedness, Leading to Prosocial Behavior

This study compared the effects of two gratitude interventions—weekly gratitude lists and gratitude letters—across four weeks. It also examined the role of the gratitude benefactor (God vs. humans) and the nature of the benefit recalled (abstract vs. concrete). Participants (N = 1,176) were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: (1) gratitude list, (2) gratitude letter to a human, or (3) gratitude letter to God. In the gratitude letter conditions, participants reflected on either abstract or concrete gifts. Results indicated that expressing gratitude toward a benefactor (God or a human) enhanced empathy and transcendent indebtedness relative to listing benefits without a benefactor. In contrast, participants in the gratitude list condition exhibited suppressed levels of empathy and transcendent indebtedness throughout the intervention. Letters directed to God and those focused on abstract gifts yielded the strongest positive outcomes. Finally, empathy and transcendent indebtedness mediated the relationship between intervention type and post-intervention prosocial giving, controlling for gratitude. These findings suggest that prosocial reciprocity was primarily motivated by empathy and transcendent indebtedness, rather than gratitude alone.