Introduction Moral judgment is of critical importance in the work context because of its implicit or explicit omnipresence in a wide range of work-place practices. The moral aspects of actual behaviors, intentions, and consequences represent areas of deep preoccupation, as exemplified in current corporate social responsibility programs, yet there remain ongoing debates on the best understanding of how such aspects of morality (behaviors, intentions, and consequences) interact. The ADC Model of moral judgment integrates the theoretical insights of three major moral theories (virtue ethics, deontology, and consequentialism) into a single model, which explains how moral judgment occurs in parallel evaluation processes of three different components: the character of a person (Agent-component); their actions (Deed-component); and the consequences brought about in the situation (Consequences-component). The model offers the possibility of overcoming difficulties encountered by single or dual-component theories. Methods We designed a 2 × 2 × 2-between-subjects design vignette experiment with a Germany-wide sample of employed respondents ( N = 1,349) to test this model. Results Results showed that the Deed-component affects willingness to cooperate in the work context, which is mediated via moral judgments. These effects also varied depending on the levels of the Agent- and Consequences-component. Discussion Thereby, the results exemplify the usefulness of the ADC Model in the work context by showing how the distinct components of morality affect moral judgment.
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Disgraced professionals: Revelation of immorality decreases evaluations of professional competence and accomplishment
Competence and morality are two of the most important
dimensions in social evaluation. Recent studies have suggested
the primacy of morality, showing that information about
immorality of an ordinary target person decreases evaluation of
their competence. We examined the effect of moral taint on
multiple non-moral judgments: ratings of the competence,
accomplishment, and contribution of fictitious professionals
who were described as highly successful in various fields.
Moral taint significantly decreased participants’ non-moral
social evaluations of professionals regardless of their field.
Mediation analyses showed that the negative impact of
immoral character on competence judgments is more strongly
mediated by the decrease in participants’ psychological
involvement with the target, rather than a decrease in perceived
social intelligence of the target. These findings suggest that
motivation to distance oneself from immoral others plays a
critical role in the revision of social evaluations.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1827374
- NSF-PAR ID:
- 10231804
- Editor(s):
- Fitch, T.; Lamm, C.; Leder, H.; Teßmar-Raible, K.
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Proceedings of the 43rd Annual Meeting of the Cognitive Science Society
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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