Study moral is infected

Moral behavior apparently translates to others

09/12/2014

"Morality" is a difficult concept to grasp, because there are many different opinions about what is morally reprehensible and what is not. Now, a new study by the Cologne social professor Wilhelm Hofmann has shown that moral behavior seems to be contagious to other people. Thus, people who feel well treated by others are likely to do just as well.

Different ideas of morality
What constitutes moral behavior depends to a large extent on one's own self-image and is therefore sometimes judged completely differently. Now the social professor Wilhelm Hofmann of the University of Cologne, together with international colleagues, has presented a new study on this subject in order to better understand the moral behavior and moral principles of people. The central result: "Morals are obviously contagious, because who feels well treated by his fellow human beings, in hindsight in all likelihood is also good."

Scientists use App as a research tool
The psychologist used an innovative research tool for the project "Moral Everyday Life" in the USA: A mobile "app" developed by colleagues and installed on their smartphones by 1200 subjects. Over three days, each participant received five short messages (SMS) each, asking them to document online how they had experienced or observed moral or immoral behavior in themselves or in others the previous hour. According to information from the University of Cologne, researchers received about 13,000 answers in this way, about 30% of which dealt with morally relevant events, whereas in the remaining 70%, according to the respondents, nothing morally relevant had occurred.

"Good does to whom good happens"
The result of the evaluation surprised, because moral behavior is apparently contagious. Subjects to whom e.g. had been helped by others without consideration, in turn, most likely helped in the further course of the day also another person. In addition, the researchers came to the realization that people seem to tend to value their own moral behavior higher than others do. Accordingly, more would be reported on their own "top performances", while others would focus on morally reprehensible behavior.

Religiosity of participants has little influence on moral behavior
It also showed that the religiosity of the participants had little influence on their own moral or immoral behavior. For Hofmann comprehensible, because it should be considered that for moral development in addition to religious and many other, lasting formative socialization influences would be important. It would also be possible to explain to the psychologist why morality is "contagious" because "in the course of socialization people would learn to reciprocate good with good". Accordingly, the subjects also felt best when they had experienced something positive: "Being the recipient of a moral or immoral act has had the greatest effect on happiness, while moral or immoral behavior has the greatest effect on others' experience Meaningfulness had, "the researchers currently in the journal" Science "and summarize:" The analyzes of the daily dynamics provide evidence for both moral contagion as well as moral licensing. In sum, moral science can benefit from a closer look at the prehistory, dynamics and consequences of everyday moral experience. "(Nr)