Moral disengagement

Question 1

What was social cognitive theory of moral thought and action 1991?

Answer 1

People develop moral standards throughout childhood; when people violate moral standards, they feel bad; people don’t behave antisocial as people don’t like to experience negative emotions

Question 2

How was social cognitive theory of moral thought and action adjusted in 1999?

Answer 2

People do not always act as they should; people are able to act badly without experiencing negative emotion by using social and psychological manoeuvres to disengage moral self sanctions from bad behaviour

Question 3

What is moral disengagement?

Answer 3

A set of mechanisms individuals use to justify antisocial behaviour; minimised negative effect that normally results from engaging in harmful behaviour

Question 4

What are four groups of mechanisms used for social disengagement?

Answer 4

Cognitively restructuring bad behaviour; removing responsibility; distorting consequences of behaviour; acting on the victim

Question 5

What mechanisms fall under cognitive restructuring bad behaviour?

Answer 5

Moral justification; euphemistic labelling; advantageous comparison

Question 6

What is moral justification?

Answer 6

Detrimental conduct mad personally and socially acceptable by portraying it in the service of valued social or moral purposes

Question 7

What is euphemistic labelling?

Answer 7

The selective use of language to cognitively disguise culpable activities as less harmful

Question 8

What is advantageous comparison?

Answer 8

Comparing transgressive behaviours with more reprehensible activities

Question 9

What mechanisms fall under removing responsibility?

Answer 9

Displacement and diffusion of responsibility

Question 10

What is displacement of responsibility?

Answer 10

Viewing actions as a result of social pressure or dictates of others

Question 11

What is diffusion of responsibility?

Answer 11

Achieved through division of labour, group decision making, or group action

Question 12

What is the distortion of consequences?

Answer 12

Avoiding/minimising the harm caused

Question 13

What mechanisms fall under acting on the victim?

Answer 13

Dehumanisation and attribution of blame

Question 14

What is dehumanisation?

Answer 14

Cognitively depriving opponents of human qualities/ attributing animalistic qualities to them

Question 15

What is attribution of blame?

Answer 15

Viewing themselves as faultless victims driven to injurious conduct by forcible provocation

Question 16

Which team sports showed highest moral disengagement, and which showed the lowest?

Answer 16

Rugby and football showed highest moral disengagement; netball showed lowest moral disengagement

Question 17

How does moral disengagement affect doping?

Answer 17

Guilt reduces likeliness of doping; moral disengagement decreases guilt; moral disengagement increases likeliness of doping

Question 18

How does moral identity affect doping?

Answer 18

Guilt reduces likeliness of doping; moral identity decreases moral disengagement; moral identity increases guilt; moral identity decreases likeliness of doping