Research Details

Abstract

How does engaging in behaviors that are incongruent with one’s values shape subsequent conduct? Participants experimentally assigned to perform tasks that were value incongruent ? versus value congruent or neutral ? reported higher moral disengagement and cheated more in subsequent incidental and integral actions. After transcribing a note to help a person with obese (vs. unspecified) body type, participants with stronger anti-obese attitudes indicated higher likelihood of cheating on their romantic partner (Study 1) and cheated more in an incentivized dice roll game (Studies 3, 5, 6). Participants with anti (pro)-abortion access attitudes, who purchased from a pro (anti)-abortion access retailer were more likely to make dishonest free returns in Study 2. This effect was replicated in Study 4 using gun rights attitudes with a neutral baseline issue, showing that dishonesty effects are driven by value incongruence rather than value congruence. The underlying process of moral disengagement is tested using mediation by state (Studies 1 and 2), moderation by trait (Study 5) disengagement, and attenuation when incentives for cheating were removed (Study 6). Our findings expand the understanding of moral agency by highlighting that even seemingly benign behaviors could antecede moral disengagement and shape unrelated downstream conduct.

Type

Working Paper

Author(s)

Chethana Achar, Jiaqian Wang

Date Published

2024

Citations

Achar, Chethana, and Jiaqian Wang. 2024. Value incongruent behaviors as antecedents of moral disengagement..