Willingness to help following the sichuan earthquake: Modeling the effects of media involvement, stress, trust, and relational resources

Examining individuals' TV and Internet involvement following the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, this study demonstrates that involvement with disaster media renders positive and negative effects on viewers. Although TV involvement increases perceived stress, TV and Internet involvement predict perceived gains of social-relational resources (e.g., companionship and intimacy with friends and family) and social trust. Media involvement, in general, is also positively related to individuals' willingness to help people in the affected areas, though this link was mediated by individuals' perceived social-relational resource gain and social trust. This suggests that individuals' willingness to help disaster victims is partly shaped by their relatively proximal and personal responses to the disaster coverage.