Does power influence moral thinking?:
Yes, and profoundly:
The authors conducted 5 studies to test the idea that both thinking about and having power affects the way in which people resolve moral dilemmas. It is shown that high power increases the use of rule-based (deontological) moral thinking styles, whereas low power increases reliance on outcome-based (consequentialist) moral thinking. Stated differently, in determining whether an act is right or wrong, the powerful focus on whether rules and principles are violated, whereas the powerless focus on the consequences. For this reason, the powerful are also more inclined to stick to the rules, irrespective of whether this has positive or negative effects, whereas the powerless are more inclined to make exceptions. The first 3 experiments show that thinking about power increases rule-based thinking and decreases outcome-based thinking in participants’ moral decision making. A 4th experiment shows the mediating role of moral orientation in the effect of power on moral decisions. The 5th experiment demonstrates the role of self-interest by showing that the power–moral link is reversed when rule-based decisions threaten participants’ own self-interests.
Source: “How power influences moral thinking.” from “Journal of Personality and Social Psychology”I wonder how this varies depending on type of power – wealth, race, gender, contextual… So would a poor white male be rule-based when discussing issues of race and gender, but more focused on consequences economically? I’m sure you can’t slice it than fine (and these issues are influenced by many, many factors) but it’s interesting to think about how this might affect us in varying situations where we do or don’t have power. I’d also be curious to see how this works in personal relationships, an area where how much power we have or cede is almost entirely up to us.
I also wonder about how this relates to standard assumptions about gender differences. Men are usually seen as more rule-based and women as more empathetic and people-focused. How much of this is due to biology/society and how much could be do to power, actual or perceived?
I also get a kick out of the results of experiment 5: we like rules until they don’t benefit us.
Thoughts? Post a comment.
Wanna learn more about power? I recommend this book.
Does power make you hypocritical?
What happens when the powerful feel incompetent?
Are people who believe themselves to be powerful more effective liars?
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