The paper is centered on the analysis of the concept of institutional altruism and its studies in the professional practice with preschool educators in kindergartens as research object. Social researchers studied the concept of ‘professional altruism’ on the example of socially important intellectual professions in the spheres of health, law and education. In our research we consider the dual nature of the professional behavior. Some of professional actions may be concerned with self-enhancement, but the reverse side of the coin is that what they provide is still an ethical service for their clients. On the basis of qualitative and quantitative research in three Russian cities we conclude that preschool educators consider altruism to be an important part of their professional life and culture. Many of them state their work does not depend on the income they earn. They highly rate the quality of professional work of their colleagues.