Morality Bites
We’ve watched all things personal undergo very public makeovers on reality TV—our noses, our houses, our cars and jobs and spouses. But something more fundamental may have quietly fallen victim to a makeover as well: our moral identities.
Moral identity is how you view and describe yourself in ethical terms—honest, caring, opposed to cheating, committed to doing the right thing, etc. But two business researchers say people with a strong sense of moral awareness can actually become the biggest failures in the face of moral challenges.
In a study reported by LiveScience.com and originally published in the Journal of Applied Psychology, the researchers asked a group of people if they considered themselves moral, and if they would cheat on a test.
The people who said they would never cheat described themselves as very moral—no surprise. But the people who said they would indeed cheat also described themselves as very moral. Huh?
The study deduced that when a person with a strong moral identity is faced with a moral decision, they choose their fate—for good or bad—and then pursue it until the extreme end, driven by their extreme moral identity.
In other words, they justify cheating as a means to a moral end, as in this example given by one of the researchers: “If I cheat, then I’ll get into get into graduate school. And if I get into graduate school, then I can become a doctor. And think about all the people I’m going to help when I’m a doctor.”
Is doing the wrong thing—but claiming it’s for the right reasons—ever really right?
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You must be joking
If you know it is right to hide someone from a great outside evil, then that is right. The question is whether or not cheating, or any other act that one would consider immoral, could be justified as an end to a means. Committing an act of civil disobedience requires an understanding of what one is doing. One must also accept the consequences of that act.
If you and I were in agreement that to pay a tax for what we knew to be an immoral war, would you allow yourself to go to jail, or just stand on the outside wondering what I was doing in there?
cf: Ralph David and Henry David.
Peace.
James Allard | 1 year, 10 months ago
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I'll take the Jail Time!
I would never be on the outside of something I firmly believed was worth standing up for. I would go to jail, if that were the consequence for not paying a tax to support an immoral war – oh wait, we are doing that.
I think we are going way off track here…the issue is cheating and I still believe that there are times when cheating, as with lying or any other “wrong” doing, is the right thing to do.
“It is not my business what others think of me”, Eckhart Tolle. Again, it is only unacceptable “without” (where others make the rules) “within” is what should rule us. I realize we do not all believe that, but I do, “within.”
Rules are made by human beings, we are human beings and yes we should follow the rules, but to say that there is never a time where cheating is the right thing to do, just doesn’t sit with me. Can we all say that we have never “abetted” cheating by letting a friend copy our homework? Maybe so, but I can’t say that and I carry no guilt for it. But, I’ll take the jail time…just kidding.
AnnMarie Cunniff | 1 year, 10 months ago
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Who decides?
We do. The issues that arise between people are when we cannot come to an understanding of what we each believe, or how to disagree without being disagreeable. A wise woman of my acquaintance was known for always being able to see the good in all human beings, and she was asked what was good about Hitler… her answer? “He was a good example of what we must stand against, and in the future, hopefully, we will have to courage to stand up more quickly.”
For what it is worth…
Peace
James Allard | 1 year, 10 months ago
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WHAT??!!
“If I cheat, then I’ll get into get into graduate school. And if I get into graduate school, then I can become a doctor. And think about all the people I’m going to help when I’m a doctor.” …Oh my gosh, please tell me who this is so I don’t EVER take a loved one into this doctor’s office – PLEASE! What a twisted logic and messed-up outlook on ethics and critical thinking!
Joyce B. | 1 year, 10 months ago
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Twisted Logic...
Anyone who thinks this way (that is, thinking it’s OK to cheat his way through med school so that he can help people) is really only trying to help himself in the end, which is why that excuse doesn’t fly with me. I would question why this person REALLY wants to be a doctor (possibly for the money and/or status). Someone who struggles their way through med school through hard work, sleepless nights and possible nervous breakdowns and STILL wants to be a doctor, with all the stress and baggage that comes with the medical profession – now, that’s someone to whom I would entrust my life because he has proven that he is actually capable AND wants to save lives. Anyone can cheat and shirk responsibility; not everyone is strong enough to overcome weaknesses on the road to greatness.
Lee Wilson | 1 year, 10 months ago
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Morality
I believe morality is a concept that exists outside of religion. What is just and moral to a Christian does not hold for a Muslim. Let’s not forget that some of the greatest atrocities in history were done under the banner of religion. Ultimately, morality is a choice that is dictated by circumstance and the individual.
juan mendez | 1 year, 10 months ago
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I agree with Juan that “some of the greatest atrocities in history were done under the banner of religion.” I also agree with “morality is a choice that is dictated by circumstances and the individual.As individuals we all hold ourselves to different standards. Expecting the approval of others for what we do, is “ego” and if we choose to listen to “ego” then we are not functioning from “within”. Religion aside, there still exists a higher power and if religion enters, so does the misconception of morality. It is only when we attach standards that morality even exists, and the standards are set outside of ourselves.
Whatever takes place “without” is our own doing and we are subject to the consequences of our actions by “society”. Anything outside of ourself is not anyone else’s business.
“It is not my business what you think of me.” ……Eckhart Tolle.
So the existence of morality alone…is redundant under those circumstances.
AnnMarie Cunniff | 1 year, 10 months ago
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There is only one way to do things and that is the right way. People think that there is always a short cut to something like cheating but there are no cuts in life. There is always a price to pay. Work hard, study hard, play hard and gain success easy.
Anonymous | 1 year, 2 months ago
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If somebody cheats ...
If somebody cheats, that is wrong. Cheating is impolite, unpleasant, unfair, and irrefutably looked down upon. If somebody cheats for a good reason, that is understandable, and perhaps even necessary depending on the situation in question. But it’s still wrong. If everybody cheats, then everybody is doing the wrong thing.
Anonymous | 1 year, 2 months ago
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Hypocrisy
I’ve noticed that a lot of times the people who are most adamantly against cheating or lying are the ones most likely to do so.
Anonymous | 1 year, 2 months ago
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