Social value orientation and cooperative behavior: A moderated mediation model

Previous research has shown that social value orientation is closely associated with cooperative behavior, but the psychological judgments and boundary conditions involved in this relationship require further clarification. Considering the potential roles of cooperative expectations and betrayal aversion in cooperative decision-making, the present study tested a statistical moderated mediation model to examine whether cooperative expectations accounted for part of the association between social value orientation and cooperative behavior, and whether this indirect association varied across different levels of betrayal aversion. The results showed that cooperative expectations played a significant mediating role in the relationship between social value orientation and cooperative behavior. Meanwhile, betrayal aversion moderated the latter half of the mediating effect of cooperative expectations. That is, the indirect association between social value orientation and cooperative behavior through cooperative expectations became stronger when betrayal aversion was higher. The current findings may help further clarify the psychological pathway and boundary condition linking social value orientation with cooperative behavior in social dilemma contexts.