Tutorial 6 - Article 1 - Ethically adrift Flashcards
What is meant with the moral compass?
An individuals’ inner sense of right and wrong
What are the three stages of how our moral compass can be socially redirected?
1) Moral neglect
2) Moral justification
3) Moral inaction
What is moral neglect?
Neglecting the moral import/impact of our actions
What is moral justification?
Finding and creating justifications for our immoral actions
What is moral inaction?
The failure to behave ethically
What are social psychological facilitators of moral neglect?
1) Social norms
2) Social categorization
Why is social norms a facilitator of moral neglect?
Expectations regarding our behavior in specific contexts are a strong influence on how we behave. Others establish a standard for (un)ethical behavior
Why is social categorization a facilitator of moral neglect?
Social categorization is the process by which individuals differentiate between those who are like them and whose who are unlike them. It amplifies the effect of social norms. Norms are stronger if we perceive those enacting them to be similar to ourselves
What are organizational aggravators of moral neglect?
1) Organizational socialization
2) Roles
3) Goals
Why is organizational socialization an aggravator of moral neglect?
It sets up behavioral expectations for individuals with regards to organizational practices and goals
Why are roles an organizational aggravator of moral neglect?
It establishes behavioral expectations surrounding one’s position, which may instigate immoral behavior too
Why are goals an organizational aggravator of moral neglect?
People are more likely to behave unethically in order to achieve goals set out for them by an organization
What is the psychological consequence of moral neglect?
Moral fading - inattentiveness to moral content of our decisions over the longer term
What are social psychological facilitators of moral justification?
1) Social comparison
2) Self-verification
Why is social comparison a facilitator of moral justification?
We use others (similar others, in a similar job/function) as our points of comparison due to lack of objective standards
Why is self-verification a facilitator of moral justification?
People tend to verify, validate and sustain existing views of themselves
What are organizational aggravators of moral justification?
1) Organizational identificaion
2) Group loyalty
3) Business framing / euphemistic language
Why is organizational identification an organizational aggravator of moral justificaion?
Individuals can appeal to the organization (higher cause) to make practices appear morally worthy
Why is group loyalty an organizational aggravator of moral justification?
People abandon moral norms in order to give preferences to local group norms
Why is business framing an organizational aggravator of moral justification?
Business language specifies what is important and expected in organizations
What are the psychological consequences of moral justification?
1) Moral disengagement
2) Moral hypocrisy
3) Moral licensing
Why is moral disengagement a consequence of moral justification?
A set of cognitive mechanisms that deactives the self-sanctions that typically compel us to behave morally
Why is moral hypocrisy a consequence of moral justification?
People can easily engage in immoral actions without affecting their self-image as a moral person if they can justify these actions
Why is moral licensing a consequence of moral justification?
Prior moral actions can be used as a license to commit later immoral actions
What are the social psychological facilitators of moral inaction?
1) Social conformity
2) Diffusion of responsibility
3) Obedience to authority
Why is social conformity a facilitator of moral inaction?
Fear of potential social embarrassment weighs larger then the fear of inaccuracy (Asch experiment)
Why is diffusion of responsibility a facilitator of moral inaction?
Individuals are less likely to take responsibility for actions if the cost can be shared among multiple parties
Why is obedience to authority a facilitator of moral inaction?
Moral inaction is facilited by the tendency to obey legitimate authority figures (Milgram)
What are the organizational aggravators of moral inaction?
1) Bureaucracy and anonymity
2) Hierarchy
Why is bureaucracy and anonymity an organizational aggravator of moral inaction?
People feel shielded from personal responsibility
Why is hierarchy an organizational aggravator of moral inaction?
People can use the hierarchy to absolve themselves from personal responsibility for acts undertaken
What are the psychological consequences of moral inaction?
1) Delegation of moral agency
2) Denial and self-deception
Why is delegation of moral agency a psychological consequence of moral inaction?
It becomes possible to commit unethical acts without commensurate feelings of personal responsibility
Why is denial and self-deception a psychological consequence of moral inaction?
They help individuals protect the self-concept from negative attributions caused by moral inaction
