Moral Attitudes Research Articles

Transparency, disclosure and autonomy: Moral judgment and attitudes toward branded content among media workers

This study extends the media sociology literature on moral judgment by comparing moral orientations among journalists and non-journalistic media professionals as well as attitudinal differences regarding branded content and related perceptions of transparency, disclosure standards, and perceived job autonomy. Based on a survey sample of the Online News Association membership ( n = 226), journalists placed greater emphasis on organizational disclosure standards than non-journalist counterparts, and branded-content producers had less favorable attitudes toward disclosure. Also, perceived disclosure standards of their organizations negatively predicted individuals’ disclosure attitude. Regression modeling showed morally related variables accounted for a small but notable variance in disclosure-related attitudes.

MIAMI: development and validation of a revised measure of academic misconduct

Academic misconduct remains a perennial concern in tertiary education around the globe. Research intended to explain this phenomenon has been conducted for almost 100 years. One of the most cited researchers is Donald McCabe, whose work was rooted in a survey instrument he developed in the late 1980s and distributed to 100,000 + students over the following two decades. Recognizing the need to continue to understand academic misconduct in the 21st century context, the present study updated and validated the original McCabe instrument as an inventory of academic misconduct behaviors, and derived psychometrically sound factors of the same to enable researchers to examine the predictors of these behaviors. Specifically, our updated instrument (named MIAMI: McCabe/ICAI Academic Misconduct Inventory) was shown to have construct validity through associations with the following predictors in a survey of tertiary students (n = 2329): academic integrity climate, peer norms, moral attitudes, and achievement goal structures. The updated survey will facilitate further research that will advance our understanding of academic misconduct and test the efficacy of interventions designed to promote academic integrity.

Does Momentary Outcome-Based Reflection Shape Bioethical Views? A Pre-Post Intervention Design.

Many bioliberals endorse broadly consequentialist frameworks in normative ethics, implying that a progressive stance on matters of bioethical controversy could stem from outcome-based reasoning. This raises an intriguing empirical prediction: encouraging outcome-based reflection could yield a shift toward bioliberal views among nonexperts as well. To evaluate this hypothesis, we identified empirical premises that underlie moral disagreements on seven divisive issues (e.g., vaccines, abortion, or genetically modified organisms). In exploratory and confirmatory experiments, we assessed whether people spontaneously engage in outcome-based reasoning by asking how their moral views change after momentarily reflecting on the underlying empirical questions. Our findings indicate that momentary reflection had no overall treatment effect on the central tendency or the dispersion in moral attitudes when compared to prereflection measures collected 1 week prior. Autoregressive models provided evidence that participants engaged in consequentialist moral reasoning, but this self-guided reflection produced neither moral "progress" (shifts in the distributions' central tendency) nor moral "consensus" (reductions in their dispersion). These results imply that flexibility in people's search for empirical answers may limit the potential for outcome-based reflection to foster moral consensus.

Primary physical education teachers as ethical and moral agents of the alpha generation students

Ethics is a set of rules and principles in human life, and schools are at the forefront of developing moral education through physical education subjects. The purpose of this study is to investigate the role of physical education teachers in instilling attitudes of universal values in sports. The method used was descriptive. Data collection was conducted through forum group discussions and the distribution of a questionnaire consisting of 18 questions. The participants in this study were 72 physical education teachers in elementary schools spread across the Malang-raya area. This study produces a description and description of the role of teachers in emphasizing ethical and moral attitudes including, respect for the rules, respect for others, fairplay, self-esteem, honesty, tolerance.

Proenvironmental self identity as a moderator of psychosocial predictors in the purchase of sustainable clothing

Previous research investigated the impact of psychosocial predictors (e.g. attitude, social and moral norm, perceived behavioral control, intention) on sustainable clothing purchasing. To date, no studies considered whether proenvironmental self-identity moderates the effects of these predictors on behavior. In this study, we adopted an intrapersonal approach and a longitudinal design to assess the moderating role of proenvironmental self-identity in predicting intentions and behaviors, considering gender differences. 250 participants completed an initial questionnaire on the predictors of three sustainable clothing purchasing. A month later, they filled out a second questionnaire to self-assess these behaviors. The results showed that social and internalized norms (moral norms) were notably influential of participants’ intentions. Affective attitude influenced behavior positively, while cognitive attitude had a negative influence. When considering the moderating role of proenvironmental self-identity, significant gender differences emerged. Women with a weak proenvironmental self-identity expressed a higher intention to purchase sustainable clothing when they had high affective attitudes and descriptive norm but low cognitive attitudes. Women with a strong proenvironmental self-identity intended to purchase sustainable clothing when they had high moral norms and cognitive attitudes but low descriptive norm. Man with a weak proenvironmental self-identity and high positive affective attitude increased their future SCP.

Legal provisions on medical aid in dying encode moral intuition.

In recent decades, many jurisdictions have moved toward legalizing euthanasia and assisted suicide, alongside a near-universal increase in public acceptance of medical aid in dying. Here, we draw on a comprehensive quantitative review of current laws on assisted dying, experimental survey evidence, and four decades of time-series data to explore the relationship between these legislative transitions and change in moral attitudes. Our analyses reveal that existing laws on medical aid in dying impose a common set of eligibility restrictions, based on the patient's age, decision-making capacity, prognosis, and the nature of their illness. Fulfillment of these eligibility criteria elevates public moral approval of physician-assisted death, equally in countries with (i.e., Spain) and without (i.e., the United Kingdom) assisted dying laws. Finally, historical records of public attitudes toward euthanasia across numerous countries uncovered anticipatory growth in moral approval leading up to legalization, but no accelerated growth thereafter. Taken together, our findings suggest that the enactment of medical aid in dying laws, and their specific provisions, crystallize patterns in moral intuition.

Disagreeing to Agree: Populism and Consensus Among Members of Parliaments and Their Voters

Populism is theoretically associated with an antagonistic interpretation of politics. Populists tend to morally delegitimize their adversaries, exhibit “bad manners” toward them, and sometimes even try to exclude them from “the people.” They are also more inclined to prioritize radical policy and institutional changes. Therefore, populism appears to be directly at odds with consensus politics. This research aims to empirically test this relationship. Using two original surveys focused on the Spanish context, we investigate the relationship between populist attitudes and the propensity to consensual political solutions, examining both citizens and their political representatives. Our results confirm that populist attitudes contribute to low support for consensual approaches toward politics among both members of parliament (MPs) and citizens, but this relationship depends on the individual’s specific dimensions of populism. Anti-systemic and moral Manichaean attitudes are associated with less consensual preferences both for MPs and citizens, whereas people-centrist and identitarian populist attitudes exhibit this negative effect only among citizens. These results provide new insights into the ramifications of populist attitudes and underscore the importance of empirically examining the concept of populism across its various dimensions.

Comparing the effects of movie-based versus case-based methods among bachelor nursing students: A quasi-experimental study

BackgroundIt is challenging for educators to select and apply the most effective educational strategies in teaching ethics to undergraduate nursing students. AimThe study aimed to compare the effect of movies-based and case-based methods, on moral sensitivity and moral courage of nursing students. MethodsThis was a quasi-experimental study conducted on 79 nursing students that divided into case-based and Movie-based groups. Data were collected using the standardized Persian versions of Lützén's moral sensitivity and Sekerka moral courage questionnaires and analysed using SPSS version 16. ResultsThe case-based and movie-based methods were significantly different only in promoting some subscales of moral sensitivity and moral courage (p < .05). However, no statistically significant difference was seen in improving the total score of moral sensitivity and courage (p > .05). ConclusionsThe case-based method may lead to the improvement of the application aspects of moral sensitivity, and the movie-based method, by engagement of emotions and visual, auditory senses, can improve some aspects of moral courage attitude. Therefore, the simultaneous use of these two methods in teaching ethics to nursing students is recommended.

Investigating the Relationship between Moral Intelligence and Attitude towards Patient Safety in Nurses Working at Shahid Sadoughi Teaching Hospital in Yazd in 2023

Background: Moral intelligence in nurses is of particular importance due to the human and moral nature of their job and profession. Moral intelligence can provide a rule for the correct functioning of humans and is considered a predictive factor of behavior. The moral intelligence of nurses refers to their ability to distinguish right from wrong and adhere to ethical principles. Nurses with higher moral intelligence show more commitment to patient safety and adherence to professional protocols and have a more positive attitude toward patient safety. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between moral intelligence and attitude towards patient safety in nurses working at Shahid Sadoughi Teaching Hospital in Yazd in 2023. Methods: The present study was a descriptive-analytical one conducted cross-sectionally in 2023. The statistical population included 237 nurses working in Shahid Sadoughi Teaching Hospital, Yazd, who were selected by stratified random sampling. Two standard questionnaires with a 5-point Likert scale were used to collect data. Data were analyzed by SPSS24 using descriptive statistics, one-way analysis of variance and Pearson's correlation coefficient. Results: The average moral intelligence of the studied nurses was 135.22 ± 22.30, and the average attitude of the nurses towards patient safety was 72.65 ± 17.32, indicating high moral intelligence and an average attitude towards patients safety in nurses in Shahid Sadoughi University. The results of Pearson's correlation coefficient showed that there is a positive and significant correlation between moral intelligence and nurses' attitude towards patient safety (r = 0.19, p = 0.003). Conclusion: Moral intelligence plays a role in predicting nurses' attitude towards patient safety; therefore, it seems that by strengthening the moral intelligence of nurses, their attitude towards patient safety can be influenced. To strengthen the moral intelligence of nurses and improve their attitude towards patient safety, professional ethics training, development of critical thinking skills and creation of ethical organizational culture can be used. Also, holding workshops to discuss ethical issues and support from ethical management can strengthen nurses in making ethical decisions and more responsible behavior in the field of patient safety.

Wartości i przekonania. Ile etyki jest w etykach stosowanych?

The measure of the usefulness and credibility of applied ethics is its ability to counteract conflicts dividing social and professional groups. To achieve this goal, representatives of applied ethics must meet a basic condition by providing an epistemological justification of the claim to the validity of the judgments they formulate. Yet it is here that they encounter obstacles recognized (earlier) by ethical philosophers and sociologists of knowledge. The problem is not only the variety of moral challenges that an individual faces, but also the way in which their moral attitude is influenced by the group to which they belong. This article attempts to resolve both of these difficulties in a way that is consistent with the goals of applied ethics.

O „deonotologicznych” i „utylitarnych” decyzjach w dylematach etycznych opartych na „dylemacie wagonika” (the Trolley Problem)

Ethical dilemmas facing respondents with a choice between sacrificing the lives of a smaller number of people to save a larger number, formulated in correspondence to the famous Trolley Problem, have been of enduring interest almost since the Philippa Foot’s presentation of the canonical version of this problem. In more recent literature, and especially in publications reporting the results of empirical research, decisions of answerers declaring abstention from taking action that would result in saving a larger group of potential victims at the cost of sacrificing the lives of fewer people have come to be referred to as “deontological” choices. On the other hand, declarations of readiness to take such actions are referred to as “utilitarian” or (less frequently) “consequentialist” choices. The aim of the article is to demonstrate the shortcomings of using the aforementioned labels. The argumentation is supported by empirical material collected in the years 2020–2022 among students of the University of Łódź (N = 302). The analysis of justifications explaining the motives behind both types of decisions left by the respondents shows that in numerous cases, “deontological” decisions, that is, passive decisions, actually stemmed from premises much closer to consequentialist ethics than deontological attitudes. Similarly, active behaviour was not always the outcome of utilitarian motives. The results of our research clearly indicate that the dominant, simplified perception of these choices in the literature leads to a distorted picture of the moral attitudes of respondents, thus posing the danger of drawing false conclusions. We claim that distinguishing between attitudes adopted by respondents in dilemmas based on the Trolley Problem should not refer to ethical doctrines. Instead, judging the moral attitudes of respondents requires an analysis of the motives behind the decisions they make at the very least.

Live Memory Forensic: Capture and Analyzing Volatile Data

As almost 90% of malware is resident in memory, live memory forensics is an essential part of cybersecurity. Live memory forensics refers to the process of analyzing computer RAM or volatile memory (which is lost after rebooting) while the computer is running. This article provides depth on live memory forensics, which is key in the detection and analysis of cyber threats and forensics investigations. Case studies and actual events demonstrate how this method can detect unauthorized access and discover hidden malware, which will help law enforcement investigators. The practical uses of Live Memory Forensics are illustrated using real world examples. Currently, live memory forensics are faced with the temporal nature of volatile data, other technical challenges, the instantiation of indirect data related to data privacy, and evidence handling problems. The paper emphasizes the importance of moral attitude and careful handling of data to keep the forensic process incorrupt. Investigators and cybersecurity professionals should now have a good understanding of live memory forensics and how to utilize live memory forensics to enhance security across borders, not just as a detective technique.

Factors Influencing Nurses’ Intentions to Protect Patient Privacy: A Survey-Based Study Using the Theory of Planned Behavior

Background and Purpose:Patient privacy and confidentiality are fundamental ethical principles in healthcare. Protecting patient privacy, which is accepted as a patient’s right, is one of the responsibilities of nurses. Few studies on patient privacy among nurses have used social cognitive approaches. The purpose of this study is to examine nurses’ intentions to protect patient privacy using the theory of planned behavior (TPB).Methods:This is a cross-sectional and correlational design study. The study sample consisted of 202 nurses working in the emergency departments, operating rooms, inpatient wards, and intensive care units of the hospitals. Research data were collected using a face-to-face questionnaire that included TPB components on patient privacy. The proposed research model was tested using structural equation modeling.Results:Attitude (β= .238,p&lt; .05), subjective norm (β= .295,p&lt; .05), and moral norm (β= .337,p&lt; .05) toward patient privacy are positive predictors of intention. The moral norm is the most effective component of intention. Perceived behavioral control is not a significant predictor of intention (β= .049,p&gt; .05).Implications for Practice:Norms that create a sense of moral obligation in nurses are a significant determinant in increasing the intention to protect patient privacy. Interventions that improve moral norms, attitudes, and subjective norms will increase the intention to protect privacy. Nurse managers should provide nurses with adequate skills, resources, and an appropriate work environment to ensure perceived behavioral control regarding patient privacy.

PSYCHOLOGICAL FACTORS OF MORALITY FORMATION

Background. Перевод The relevance of the study is determined by the fact that in the conditions of economic and social crisis, the former moral values lose their significance. This is especially true for young people who, without sufficient life experience, can easily succumb to negative ideological influence. As a result, they develop certain moral and behavioral attitudes. Purpose – identification of psychological factors and conditions that directly affect the formation of an integral moral structure of a young person's personality. Materials and methods. The object of research in the article is the consciousness of the younger generation, the subject of research is the psychological factors of morality formation. The article uses a systematic approach. The main theoretical research methods are analysis, synthesis and deduction. Results. In this article, the author divides the factors influencing the formation of morality into psychological and social ones. Among the psychological factors, the author identifies the most important ones: the influence of family upbringing, the level of primary education, the opportunity to receive productive feedback. The importance of such a factor as the development of reflexive abilities is emphasized, which the author attributes to the responsibility of a higher educational institution. It seems that taking into account these psychological factors will eventually achieve the expected result – the formation of a citizen of the 21st century with a stable system of moral values and attitudes.

Moral attitudes towards effort and efficiency: a comparison between American and Chinese history

In some cultures, merely exerting effort is considered virtuous, even when the effort is inefficient. Our study examines how this moral attitude towards effort (relative to efficiency) has evolved historically across two distinct sociopolitical and linguistic contexts: the People’s Republic of China and the United States, using natural language processing techniques. Specifically, two formal political corpora were used—the People’s Daily (1950–2021) and the Congressional speeches for the U.S. (1873–2011). We developed dictionaries for each concept based on pre-trained word embedding models in both languages. Moral attitudes towards effort and efficiency were calculated on a year-by-year basis as the cosine similarity between the dictionaries of these concepts and an existing dictionary of morality. We benchmarked the fluctuations of moral attitude towards inefficient effort against critical historical events in the two countries. Additional time series analysis and Granger tests revealed the association and potential directionality between the evolution of moral attitude towards inefficient effort and critical socio-cultural variables such as collectivism and cultural looseness. Our research sheds light on the historical and socio-cultural roots of moralization of effort and has implications for historical psychology research on moral attitudes.

Translation, reliability, and validity of the Chinese version of the Moral Identity Scale in a sample of male offenders

ABSTRACT Moral identity is crucial in offenders’ moral rehabilitation, yet no validated measure exists for Chinese male offenders. The present study translated the Moral Identity Scale (MIS) and examined its construct validity and reliability in Chinese male offenders (n = 542). A confirmatory factor analysis showed an acceptable fit for the data. The convergent validity was demonstrated by its significant positive correlations with the Moral-self subscale of the Moral Identity Questionnaire. Furthermore, MIS displayed negative correlations with Amorality and Moral Disengagement, and positive correlations with Moral Attitude, Empathic Concern, and Moral Responsibility, indicating a good nomological validity. Regarding discriminant validity, the revised MIS exhibited nonsignificant or weak correlations with Social Desirability and Retributive Justice Expectations, while the two subscales exhibited distinct correlations with Imagination with Sympathy and Perceived Social Injustice. The test-retest reliability over 4 weeks was .68 (n=113). These findings underscore the reliability and validity of the revised MIS.

Anticipatory gaps challenge the public governance of heritable human genome editing

Considering public moral attitudes is a hallmark of the anticipatory governance of emerging biotechnologies, such as heritable human genome editing. However, such anticipatory governance often overlooks that future morality is...

ДЕВИАЦИИ ОБЛИКА НАЧАЛЬСТВУЮЩЕГО СОСТАВА РККА (ВТОРАЯ ПОЛОВИНА 1920-Х ГГ.)

The article examines the suicides of the commanding officers of the Red Army in the second half of the 1920s as a very specific and painful symptom of the breakdown of the old and the formation of a new society in general and the folding of its military-corporate structure in particular. This problem is one of the characteristic and poorly studied indicators of the social and moral characteristics and attitudes of military personnel in the conditions of post-war psychological trauma, radical social transformations, political struggle, new economic policy and the consequences of the "military reform of the USSR". The causes, motives and specifics of the official, material, everyday, value, emotional and even medical conditions of the Red Army servicemen have been identified, systematized and analyzed. Special attention is paid to the commanding staff, including former officers as bearers of military traditions and shortcomings of the old Russian army during the formation of continuity with the Red Army. His office and home psychological microclimate during the period under study was characterized by serious lability and deviations, which adversely affected both the purely military sphere and the general socio-political well-being. The bulk of the sources used are represented by archival documents, which are being introduced into scientific circulation for the first time.

Mary Warnock and ‘Public Philosophy’

ABSTRACTThis article responds to the familiar characterisation of Mary Warnock as someone whose major achievements as a public intellectual, such as the Report on human fertilisation and embryology, were at the expense of philosophical rigour and integrity. I explicate her lifelong commitment to practical morality, and her understanding of ethics and of the role of feelings in moral judgments, before analysing her important distinction between the private and public moral attitude. ‘Public philosophy’ is what she believes is necessary for those seeking to make a difference in the world of law and policy. I highlight the importance for her of securing ‘acceptable’ legal outcomes, especially on issues of bioscientific development which are the subject of irreconcilable moral disagreements. I compare her distinction with others and contrast its use with relevant writing by John Rawls and Thomas Nagel. Finally, I defend her against misjudged criticism from her philosophical contemporaries, most notably Richard Hare.

Integrasi Nilai-Nilai Islam dalam Kurikulum PAI

The aim of this research is to develop and evaluate an integrative PAI curriculum, which combines Islamic values ​​in depth with innovative and interactive learning methods, to prepare students well to face the modern world without sacrificing Islamic values ​​and principles. The research uses a literature study approach to analyze literature and documents related to the integration of Islamic values ​​in the PAI curriculum, with a focus on academic literature, policy documents, and electronic sources such as Google Scholar and institutional repositories. Content and comparative analysis are used to explore various approaches and practices in the implementation of Islamic values ​​in Islamic religious education, to develop a comprehensive understanding of their impact globally. The research results show that the integration of Islamic values ​​in the PAI curriculum in Indonesia faces challenges in the form of a lack of teacher authority in implementing changes, a curriculum that is too theoretical, and an inability to adapt to current developments. Research highlights the importance of a PAI curriculum that is more adaptive and responsive to social and technological needs, with a focus on developing competencies that include knowledge, skills and moral attitudes according to Islamic teachings. Efforts to improve teacher training and curriculum flexibility are expected to increase the effectiveness of PAI education in forming character and overcoming the challenges of developing times.