Subjective social class and Internet altruistic behavior among Chinese college students: Mediating role of self-esteem

We explored the role of self-esteem as a mediator in the relationship between subjective social class and Internet altruistic behavior. Participants were 520 Chinese college students from a range of rural and urban areas who were attending a public university in Jiangxi Province. Results show that subjective social class and self-esteem were significantly associated with Internet altruistic behavior, and that self-esteem was a significant indirect mediator of the relationship between subjective social class and Internet altruistic behavior. Implications of the findings are discussed.