Knowing Right from Wrong Quiz 4

List the five neutralization techniques, give an example of each, and say how they can used to protect one's "moral identity"

1. Denial of Responsibility - EX: 'it wasn't my fault'/'I had no choice' 2. Denial of Injury - EX: 'They're going to be fine'/'They won't even miss it'/'They can afford it' 3. Denial of Victim - EX: 'They deserved it'/'They were asking for it' 4. Condemning the Condemners - EX: 'Who are they to point fingers? Pot calling that kettle black 5. Appeal to Higher Loyalty - EX: 'I did it out of friendship'/'I did for my family, my cause, my country'... They can be used to protect one's moral identity because they allow us to account for our bad behavior by defining it as less immoral or not immoral at all. They neutralize the sting of guilt and shame. We use them persuade ourselves and others that we're really not so bad.

List the three questions Homo economicus is likely to ask herself when confronted with a criminal or immoral opportunity; say which question Homo economicus is likely to leave out of his/her decision making

1. How much can I gain? 2. How likely am I to be caught? 3. How severe is the punishment? They won't ask "How badly will I feel I feel?"

List at least 2 pieces of evidence suggesting that judging the character of others may be innate in humans.

1. The babies in the baby lab trusted the nicer puppets (with good character) 2. Adults make judgments of trustworthiness in milliseconds 3. fMRI studies show that the amygdala is active during such judgments and that it works quickly.

What is essentialism? How does it relate to our judgments of other people?

It means to infer hidden qualities that make up a person's true nature or "essence". Basically, we focus on what we can see to infer what we can't see. Some behaviors or traits are more identity-conferring.

Know approximately what percent of people will cheat by the maximum amount possible if given the chance

Less than 1 percent!

Describe what was found in the study where people were given the opportunity to cheat (by being overpaid for a task) and what the experimenters changed to reduce people's likelihood of cheating

Less than 1% cheat by the maximum amount allowed by the opportunity. IOW, less than 1% act like Homo economicus (by maximizing their material gain with no regard to morality). Having the cashier ask "is the amount correct" reduced the amount of people who kept the excess change.

When given the opportunity, will most people cheat? If so, by how much? And why will they only cheat by that much? Explain how the example of cheating on college work might relate to these questions.

Most people will cheat, but only a little, and not enough to change their belief in themselves as basically good. Students with strong moral identities have a harder time justifying cheating on college work. Their sense of self is threatened by the thought of cheating; their threshold for being able to justify cheating is set very high.

Define the term 'act-person dissociation' and give an example.

Our assessments of moral character can diverge from our assessments of the total harm done. Ex: Managers A and B have 50 employees, 3 are obese. Manager A is rude to all and B is rude only to obese employees. Ex: two men find out their gf is cheating... A beats her and B beats her dog.

Explain what partner choice theory is and how it is linked to our evolutionary past.

Partner choice theory states that our minds were designed by evolution to judge people for their potential as relationship partners. Partner choice theory emphasizes the role of reputation (for trust) as a selection factor in early human evolution. Self domestication: selection by reputation helped produce deontological intuitions in humans.

Describe Socrates' position regarding the difference between being seeming good, and what metaphor (or comparison) he used to argue his position

Socrates represents the position that being good is better than seeming good. He argued morality in people is like morality in a city. In a moral city there is harmony and cooperation between all classes and castes. But, in an immoral city, the people are divided... one group's gain is another's loss and all suffer.

Give an example of how the same behavior or decision can have different implications for judging a person's moral character (what subtle difference in how the behavior, or decision, is done did we suggest matters?)

Someone who reluctantly does something immoral is seen as having a better character than someone who does it easily. Ex: two friends are tempted to cheat on their partner. Friend 1 doesn't hesitate and friend 2 is torn. Additionally, someone who immediately and easily does something good or self-sacrificing is seen as having better moral character than one who deliberates first or is reluctant.

Define the term categorization malleability and give an example of how it works to influence behavior

Stealing different things is categorized differently in our minds. Ex: stealing $20 of office supplies feels less wrong than stealing $20 cash.

Describe what systems of accountability are and how they relate to Glaucon's idea about why people are moral

Systems of accountability are defined as a social system in which we expect to be called upon to justify our beliefs, feelings, or actions to others. Two options: conform or deviate & justify. They encourage us to be Glauconian... we mist manage our impressions by acting like intuitive politicians seeking the good will of our constituencies. This one of the rider's jobs: to keep the elephant accountable & in good social standing.

What are the three characteristics that studies find people value most in others?

Trustworthiness, compassion, and loyalty

What is virtue ethics? How is it different from both utilitarianism and deontology?

Virtue ethics focuses on what it means to be a good person. It asks whether an actor is virtuous, so it is "person-centered". The goal of virtue ethics is to cultivate a virtuous moral character and to achieve a state of human flourishing or blessedness (Eudaimonia).

Define each of these terms and give an example of each: Virtue/vice: Golden mean: Moral exemplars: Eudaimonia:

Virtue/Vice: the midpoint or "golden mean" between excess vice and deficiency vice. Doing the right thing at the right time; have good judgment Golden mean: the middle between two vices Moral exemplars: people who already possess virtue; we are built to recognize them and emulate them. Eudaimonia: Human flourishing; comes from achieving something really difficult

What does it mean to say that humans are intuitive virtue ethicists?

We apply the judgment side of virtue ethics automatically and effortlessly- without thinking! Figuring out who's virtuous (and trustworthy) and who's not is what most of our judgments seem to be about.

How do moral and immoral behaviors differ in how informative they are for judging moral character?

We draw stronger inferences from immoral behavior than from moral behavior. We get more information about a person's character when they do something immoral than when they do something moral. Therefore, immoral behavior is more "diagnostic" of character than moral behavior.

Describe how act-person dissociation relates to moral dumbfounding.

We often have a hard time explaining why a harmless taboo violation is morally wrong. But we usually have no trouble explaining why the actor is a poor partner choice. The fact that judging character is easier than judging acts further illustrates act-person dissociation.

Define the phrase 'diagnosticity of behavior' and give an example of how it works.

We use behavior to 'diagnose' character. It's not just what they do, but how they do it. Moral people rarely engage in extremely immoral behavior, so immoral behavior is more "diagnostic" of a person's character.

Be able to describe Identity Theory Model, including the concepts of moral identity, behavior, audience feedback, and comparator

You can think of your moral identity as the strength of your inner feeling that you must "do the right thing". You can think of your definition of the "right thing" as being tied to your moral foundations or your moral code. The three elements (moral identity, behavior, audience feedback) get run through our comparator.

Describe Glaucon's position regarding the difference between being good and seeming good, and what metaphor (rhetorical device) he used to argue his position

Glaucon: people want to seem moral more than they want to be moral. Glaucon the rhetorical metaphor of the Ring of Gyges (my mythical gold ring that makes it wearer invisible)

Explain what a counterfactual taboo question is and why it's risky to answer one, and how this riskiness relates to act-person dissociation.

It is a hypothetical situation; a possible future that did not occur. We judge someone's character negatively simply for even entertaining a question like this, even if they never acted on it. A person willing to entertain such hypotheticals seems more likely to betray us.

Describe what reflective equilibrium is and how it relates to the diagram of Moral Identity Theory

It is an inner sense that our past behavior aligns with our moral identity. We can achieve reflective equilibrium by behaving in ways that are consistent with our moral identity - "What will I have wanted to do?" Reflective equilibrium recognizes that our overall happiness comes mostly from the activity of our remembering self.

Be able to explain how partner choice theory can help explain why our moral intuitions tend to align with deontology (rather than utilitarian).

The evolutionary link is that deontological actors were perceived as more trustworthy and therefore favored as cooperation partners; this increased their survival and fitness; so deontological tendencies were selected for. We are the descendants of our deontologically-oriented ancestors.

Describe what moral filtering refers to and give an example of how it works.

The moral filter idea combines morality and self-control. When one's moral identity is very strong, self-control doesn't matter as much because immoral choices are filtered out of awareness. Ex: imagine someone leaves an expensive item unattended. A person with a strong moral identity wouldn't consider stealing it - no self-control needed. The person with a weak moral identity sees a theft opportunity - self-control is needed.

Describe what the term identity salience refers to and give an example of how it influences behavior

The salience of our moral identity in the moment of opportunity also affects how dishonest we're willing to be. If our moral identity is NOT salient in our minds, we're less likely to compare our behavior to it.

Describe the role of the comparator in the Identity Theory Model, explain what two experiences it can produce, and list the specific feelings associated with each experience

Think of the comparator as a program running in the background of our brains that compares the 3 elements. We feel best when all three are in alignment. Identity verification occurs when our behavior, audience feedback and our moral identity all match. Identity non-verification occurs when there's a mismatch between our behavior, audience feedback & our moral identity.