Social Perception in Moral Judgments of Interpersonal Transgressions

When people express a moral judgment, others make inferences about their personality, such as whether they are warm or competent. People may use this interpersonal process to present themselves in a way that is socially acceptable in the current circumstances. Across four studies, we investigated this hypothesis in Chinese culture and showed that college student participants tended to associate others’ deontological moral judgments with warmth and utilitarian moral judgments with competence (Study 1, Mage = 21.1, SD = 2.45; Study 2, Mage = 20.53, SD = 1.87). In addition, participants made more deontological judgments after preparing to be interviewed for a job requiring them to be in a warm social role, and more utilitarian judgments after preparing for a job requiring them to be in a competent social role (Study 3, Mage = 19.5, SD = 1.63). This effect held true in moral dilemmas involving different degrees of hypothetical personal involvement, and appeared to be mediated by the perception of others’ expectations (Study 4, Mage = 19.92, SD = 1.97). The results suggest an important role for social cognition as an influence on moral judgments in Chinese culture.

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Cautiously optimistic rationalism may not be cautious enough

Behavioral and Brain Sciences ◽

10.1017/s0140525x18002613 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 42 ◽

Author(s):

Justin F. Landy

Keyword(s):

Moral Knowledge ◽

Moral Judgments

Abstract May expresses optimism about the source, content, and consequences of moral judgments. However, even if we are optimistic about their source (i.e., reasoning), some pessimism is warranted about their content, and therefore their consequences. Good reasoners can attain moral knowledge, but evidence suggests that most people are not good reasoners, which implies that most people do not attain moral knowledge.

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How Sexual Objectification Generates Dehumanization in Western and Eastern Cultures

Swiss Journal of Psychology ◽

10.1024/1421-0185/a000209 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 77 (2) ◽

pp. 69-82 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Robin Wollast ◽

Elisa Puvia ◽

Philippe Bernard ◽

Passagorn Tevichapong ◽

Olivier Klein

Keyword(s):

Social Perception ◽

Past Research ◽

Objectification Theory ◽

Southeast Asian ◽

Sexual Objectification ◽

Intense Pain ◽

Eastern Cultures ◽

Theory Research ◽

Self Objectification ◽

Asian Sample

Abstract. Ever since Fredrickson and Roberts (1997) proposed objectification theory, research on self-objectification and – by extension – other-objectification has experienced a considerable expansion. However, most of the studies on sexual objectification have been conducted solely in Western populations. This study investigates whether the effect of target sexualization on social perception differs as a function of culture (Western vs. Eastern). Specifically, we asked a Western sample (Belgian, N = 62) and a Southeast Asian sample (Thai, N = 98) to rate sexualized versus nonsexualized targets. We found that sexual objectification results in dehumanization in both Western (Belgium) and Eastern (Thailand) cultures. Specifically, participants from both countries attributed less competence and less agency to sexualized than to nonsexualized targets, and they reported that they would administer more intense pain to sexualized than to nonsexualized targets. Thus, building on past research, this study suggests that the effect of target sexualization on dehumanization is a more general rather than a culture-specific phenomenon.

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Animals as Social Objects

European Psychologist ◽

10.1027/1016-9040/a000268 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 21 (3) ◽

pp. 206-217 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Verónica Sevillano ◽

Susan T. Fiske

Keyword(s):

Social Perception ◽

Animal Species ◽

Social Groups ◽

Social Responses ◽

Content Model ◽

Stereotype Content ◽

Nonhuman Animals ◽

Behavioral Tendencies ◽

Similarities And Differences ◽

Sphere Of Influence

Abstract. Nonhuman animals are typically excluded from the scope of social psychology. This article presents animals as social objects – targets of human social responses – overviewing the similarities and differences with human targets. The focus here is on perceiving animal species as social groups. Reflecting the two fundamental dimensions of humans’ social cognition – perceived warmth (benign or ill intent) and competence (high or low ability), proposed within the Stereotype Content Model ( Fiske, Cuddy, Glick, & Xu, 2002 ) – animal stereotypes are identified, together with associated prejudices and behavioral tendencies. In line with human intergroup threats, both realistic and symbolic threats associated with animals are reviewed. As a whole, animals appear to be social perception targets within the human sphere of influence and a valid topic for research.

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Effects of Power on Social Perception

Social Psychology ◽

10.1027/1864-9335/a000139 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 44 (2) ◽

pp. 138-146 ◽

Cited By ~ 16

Author(s):

Aleksandra Cislak

Keyword(s):

Social Perception ◽

Task Orientation ◽

Relative Power ◽

Agency And Communion ◽

The Relationship

Three studies explored the relationship between power and the perception of others in terms of agency and communion. In Study 1, participants taking a manager perspective were more interested in the agency of their future employee than those asked to take a subordinate perspective were in the agency of their future employer. Moreover, they showed more interest in the agency than in the communion of their future employee. Study 2 extended these findings to perceptions of others unrelated to the context of work. In Study 3, participants taking the manager perspective favored agency traits in their employee more than those taking the subordinate perspective favored agency in their employer. This effect was mediated by an increased task orientation among those in positions of greater relative power. Using two manipulations and three dependent measures, power was found to enhance the focus on the agency dimension across the three studies, mediated by increases in orientation to tasks versus relationships.

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Neuroscience and Ethics

Experimental Psychology (formerly Zeitschrift für Experimentelle Psychologie) ◽

10.1027/1618-3169/a000352 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 64 (2) ◽

pp. 82-92 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

S. Matthew Liao

Keyword(s):

Empirical Evidence ◽

Moral Judgments ◽

Empirical Results ◽

Joshua Greene

Abstract. A number of people believe that results from neuroscience have the potential to settle seemingly intractable debates concerning the nature, practice, and reliability of moral judgments. In particular, Joshua Greene has argued that evidence from neuroscience can be used to advance the long-standing debate between consequentialism and deontology. This paper first argues that charitably interpreted, Greene’s neuroscientific evidence can contribute to substantive ethical discussions by being part of an epistemic debunking argument. It then argues that taken as an epistemic debunking argument, Greene’s argument falls short in undermining deontological judgments. Lastly, it proposes that accepting Greene’s methodology at face value, neuroimaging results may in fact call into question the reliability of consequentialist judgments. The upshot is that Greene’s empirical results do not undermine deontology and that Greene’s project points toward a way by which empirical evidence such as neuroscientific evidence can play a role in normative debates.

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Why People With High Alexithymia Make More Utilitarian Judgments

Experimental Psychology (formerly Zeitschrift für Experimentelle Psychologie) ◽

10.1027/1618-3169/a000474 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 67 (1) ◽

pp. 23-30

Author(s):

Xiangyi Zhang ◽

Zhihui Wu ◽

Shenglan Li ◽

Ji Lai ◽

Meng Han ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Empathic Concern ◽

Moral Judgments ◽

Affective Processing ◽

Process Dissociation ◽

The Difference

Abstract. Although recent studies have investigated the effect of alexithymia on moral judgments, such an effect remains elusive. Furthermore, moral judgments have been conflated with the moral inclinations underlying those judgments in previous studies. Using a process dissociation approach to independently quantify the strength of utilitarian and deontological inclinations, the present study investigated the effect of alexithymia on moral judgments. We found that deontological inclinations were significantly lower in the high alexithymia group than in the low alexithymia group, whereas the difference in the utilitarian inclinations between the two groups was nonsignificant. Furthermore, empathic concern and deontological inclinations mediated the association between alexithymia and conventional relative judgments (i.e., more utilitarian judgments over deontological judgments), showing that people with high alexithymia have low empathic concern, which, in turn, decreases deontological inclinations and contributes to conventional relative judgments. These findings underscore the importance of empathy and deontological inclinations in moral judgments and indicate that individuals with high alexithymia make more utilitarian judgments over deontological judgments possibly due to a deficit in affective processing.

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