Moral credential

Moral credential

An individual's track record as a good egalitarian individual can establish an unconscious ethical certification, endorsement, or license within that individual and this will increase their likelihood of making less egalitarian decisions later. This moral credentialing effect occurs even when the individual's audience is unaware of the individual's previously established moral credential. For example, individuals who had the opportunity to recruit a woman or African American in one setting were more likely to say later, in a different setting, that a job would be better suited for a man or a Caucasian.[1] Similar effects also appear to occur when a person observes another person from a group they identify with making an egalitarian decision.[2]

Quotes

Innocent corruption. In all institutions that do not feel the sharp wind of public criticism (as, for example, in scholarly organizations and senates), an innocent corruption grows up, like a mushroom.[3][4]

References

  1. ^ Monin, B. & Miller, D. T. (2001). "Moral credentials and the expression of prejudice." Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 81(1), 33-43.
  2. ^ Kouchaki, M. (Jul 2011). "Vicarious moral licensing: The influence of others' past moral actions on moral behavior.". J Pers Soc Psychol. doi:10.1037/a0024552. PMID 21744973. 
  3. ^ Human, All Too Human, § 468
  4. ^ Zimmern, Helen (translator) (1909). "8. A Look at the State". Human, All Too Human. London, England: Wordsworth Editions Limited. p. 210. ISBN 9781840220834. http://www.wordsworthclassics.com/wordsworth/details2.aspx?isbn=9781840220834&cat=world. 

See also

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