ThatHelps team believes in order to spread altruism, you should show it off. Altruism can be something big, like volunteering your time for a cause or donating money, or something small, like helping a neighbor carry their groceries from the car.

Not only is altruism good for your health, talking about good deeds has a ripple effect on other people, inspiring them to give and do more to help.

A study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science shows that when one person behaves generously, it inspires observers to behave generously later, in different ways. The researchers found that altruism could spread by multiple networks, from person to person to person to person. “Each person in a network can influence dozens or even hundreds of people, some of whom he or she does not know and has not met,” the study’s authors wrote.

With the proven ripple effect of kindness in mind, we created a “Thanks” button on ThatHelps’ app to encourage members to show off their altruism and encourage more positive behaviors.

ThatHelps’ members can thank any person, cause partner, or companies for their Helps by clicking the orange heart underneath a post. When you click “Thanks” the heart fills with color.

Gratitude doesn’t just foster social bonds between loved ones and strangers. Research also found that it is integral to happiness and health, too. Altruism + gratitude = a good life and spreading more good in the world. Altruism is not a chore you need to check off a list, nor should it cause feelings of guilt. Giving a simple “Thanks” to a person or cause or company who’s done something good for the world is enough to pay it forward. That’s why we made the app.

Download the ThatHelps app to say Thanks find and simple ways to support great organizations like the International Rescue Committee, SeriousFun Camps, Panthera, and more!

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