ProSocial Research
With science at the heart of what we do, research plays an important role in our work.
Our research investigates the impacts and outcomes of integrating modern evolutionary science, contextual behavioral science, and self-development practices through the ProSocial framework, which is designed to enhance cooperation, psychological flexibility, and shared purpose across diverse contexts.
Our Research Approach
ProSocial World focuses on collaborative approaches, exploring what works for individuals and groups and continuously improving on these processes. Our approach evolves on the basis of our research to continually drive positive cultural change in the context and areas of focus that matter to you and your group most. These include:
ProSocial research dives into a number of tools like tracking changes over time, analyzing conversations, creating collaborative videos with participants, and mapping out social connections — all to better understand the positive cultural change.
How We Do It
ProSocial World’s applied research and evaluation services are designed to improve practice through real-time feedback and iterative learning cycles.
Our monitoring and evaluation framework integrates with the ProSocial Process to capture both individual and collective outcomes. By measuring key constructs — such as basic psychological needs satisfaction (autonomy, belonging, competency), psychological flexibility, trust, group commitment, and satisfaction — we build an evidence base that informs the evolution of prosocial behaviors and socio-ecological outcomes. Anticipated outcomes include increased psychological flexibility, shared group identity and values, and enhanced group cooperation.
How we collaborate
ProSocial World’s Participatory Action Research (PAR) approach prioritizes collaboration at every stage of the research process, ensuring that the communities and groups we work with are active partners, not just subjects.
We co-develop research questions, evaluation plans, and data collection strategies with stakeholders, aligning these efforts with the unique goals and values of each group. Our approach empowers and supports participants to interpret their own data, fostering a shared understanding of results and co-creating actionable insights. By integrating input from diverse perspectives, ProSocial ensures that the research remains relevant and responsive to evolving community needs. This approach not only enhances the accuracy and relevance of our research, but also strengthens participants to drive meaningful, prosocial change within their own communities.
ProSocial Insights
Our ProSocial Insights tool provides an accessible, standardized method for consistent data collection and evaluation across multiple field sites. By offering a centralized platform for inputting, tracking, and analyzing data, this tool enables field sites to align their reporting with ProSocial’s objectives, fostering a unified approach to measuring prosocial behaviors and outcomes.
How we can help
Our research isn’t just something we do internally at ProSocial. Our team is equipped to provide services that can be tailored for individuals, groups, and organizations—including practitioners, policymakers, educators, and nonprofits, and government agencies —seeking to evaluate the effectiveness of their prosocial interventions.
Evaluation is essential for refining strategies, enhancing cooperation, and fostering sustainable, adaptive change. By offering rigorous, iterative evaluation processes, we empower partners to make data-driven decisions that amplify the impact of their initiatives. Whether you are looking to conduct short-term evaluations or manage complex, long-term research projects, our tiered service offerings provide scalable support tailored to your needs.
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