Abstract
We studied the emotional processes that allow people to balance two competing desires: benefitting from dishonesty and keeping a positive self-image. We recorded physiological arousal (skin conductance and heart rate) during a computer card game in which participants could cheat and fail to report a certain card when presented on the screen to avoid losing their money. We found that higher skin conductance corresponded to lower cheating rates. Importantly, emotional intelligence regulated this effect; participants with high emotional intelligence were less affected by their physiological reactions than those with low emotional intelligence. As a result, they were more likely to profit from dishonesty. However, no interaction emerged between heart rate and emotional intelligence. We suggest that the ability to manage and control emotions can allow people to overcome the tension between doing right or wrong and license them to bend the rules.
Highlights
We studied the emotional processes that allow people to balance two competing desires: benefitting from dishonesty and keeping a positive self-image
In line with previous work (Motro et al, 2016; Pittarello, et al, 2016), participants were accurate in 99.3% of the filler trials, showing that errors in reporting a card are associated with the presence of a Joker; they represent actual cheating behavior
heart rate (HR), trait EI, and cheating behavior Two participants were excluded from the analyses due to technical difficulties in recording the HR during the task, and five participants did not complete the trait EI questionnaire
Summary
We studied the emotional processes that allow people to balance two competing desires: benefitting from dishonesty and keeping a positive self-image. We suggest that people who can successfully manage and control their emotions will be less affected by the arousal elicited by ethical dilemmas (Gu, Zhong, & Page-Gould, 2013; Wilkinson, 1987) than those who are less capable to do so As a result, they will be more likely to serve their self-interest dishonestly. Moral concerns can be a source of distress, because they confront people with desires that are inconsistent with their moral principles (Allport, 1955; Hochman, Glöckner, Fiedler, & Ayal, 2015; Rosenberg, 1979; Wilkinson, 1987) These concerns trigger a stress reaction linked to the autonomic nervous system (ANS) response. Such acceleration reflects higher arousal (Appelhans & Luecken, 2006)
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