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Aiding And Altruism: A Mythopsycholegal Analysis, Thomas C. Galligan Jr.
Aiding And Altruism: A Mythopsycholegal Analysis, Thomas C. Galligan Jr.
University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform
This Article asserts that traditional tort law should be modified to provide for a duty to act in situations in which a reasonable person would act altruistically. Part I examines traditional and more recent tort doctrine governing the duty to aid. Part II discusses compassion from philosophical, literary, and mythological points of view and explores how these viewpoints inform compassion's possible relationship to a legal duty to help. Part III considers the connections between psychological theories and studies of action, altruism, and empathy. In addition to Batson's work, I reexamine the classic studies of Latan6 and Darley and the application …