Moral Beliefs Research Articles

Associations between self-compassion and moral injury among healthcare workers: A cross-sectional study.

Healthcare workers (HCWs) can face situations that conflict with their moral beliefs, leading to moral injury, an adverse psychological consequence that was more frequent during the COVID-19 pandemic. Self-compassion is a potential coping mechanism for moral injury by encouraging acceptance of human limitations and suffering. This study aimed to examine the associations between self-compassion components and moral injury prevalence among HCWs in Quebec, Canada, during the COVID-19 pandemic. A cross-sectional study design was employed. Participants: and research context: The sample of this study consisted of HCWs and leaders from the Quebec province. Participants completed validated self-administered questionnaires assessing both positive and negative self-compassion components (self-kindness vs self-judgment; common humanity vs isolation; and mindfulness vs overidentification) and moral injury dimensions (self-oriented and other-oriented). Prevalence ratios (PRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for the associations between self-compassion components and moral injury dimensions were modeled using Poison robust regressions. The models were adjusted for various covariates, including sex, age, gender, and socio-demographic and lifestyle factors. Ethical approval for this study was obtained from the ethics committee of the Centre intégré universitaire de santé et de services sociaux de la Capitale-Nationale in Quebec, Canada. All participants provided written informed consent prior to participating in the study. Additionally, permission was sought and obtained from the original authors of the tools used in this study, including the self-compassion and moral injury scales. The study involved 572 HCWs (60.5% nurses) and leaders. Around half of the participants (50.70%) exhibited moderate levels of self-compassion, while the prevalence of low levels of self-compassion ranged from 21.68% to 48.08% for the positive subscales and from 23.78% to 44.41% for the negative subscales. Regarding moral injury, 10.14% of participants reported moderate to high self-oriented moral injury, 29.19% reported moderate to high other-oriented moral injury, and 13.81% demonstrated moderate to high total moral injury. Higher self-compassion levels were associated with lower moral injury prevalence. HCWs with high self-compassion had a 93% lower likelihood of experiencing moral injury (PR: 0.07, 95% CI: 0.03-0.19). Self-kindness demonstrated the strongest association with reduced moral injury (PR: 0.24, 95% CI: 0.11-0.52), followed by mindfulness (PR: 0.37, 95% CI: 0.18-0.75). However, common humanity did not show a statistically significant association with moral injury prevalence. These findings suggest a potential association between self-compassion and reduced prevalence of moral injury among HCWs, highlighting promising interventions to manage moral injury during crises. Such initiatives could promote the mental wellbeing of HCWs and preventing the negative consequences of moral injury, including anxiety, depression, and burnout.

People update their injunctive norm and moral beliefs after receiving descriptive norm information.

How do descriptive norms shape injunctive norm beliefs, and what does this tell us about the cognitive processes underlying social norm cognition? Across six studies (N = 2,671), we examined whether people update their injunctive norm beliefs-as well as their moral judgments and behavioral intentions-after receiving descriptive norm information about how common (or uncommon) a behavior is. Specifically, we manipulated the descriptive normativity of behaviors, describing behaviors as uncommon (20% of people were doing the behavior) or common (80% of people were doing the behavior), and the type of behavior across studies (fairness, conventional, harm, preference). To measure belief updating, we assessed beliefs prior to and after receiving information about the descriptive norm. We had three main findings: First, participants positively updated their prior injunctive norm beliefs, moral judgments, and behavioral intentions (i.e., rated behaviors more injunctively normative and moral) after receiving a common descriptive norm and negatively updated their beliefs (i.e., rated behaviors less injunctive and moral) after receiving an uncommon descriptive norm, and updated to a larger extent for the common than uncommon descriptive norm. Second, participants were more likely to update their beliefs about what is moral for others compared to what is moral for the self. Third, participants updated their beliefs to a greater extent for fairness and conventional behaviors compared to harm behaviors and preferences. Together, our findings suggest that descriptive norms shape our injunctive norm beliefs and moral judgments and help to paint a fuller picture of the social cognition of social norms. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Moral Comments in Social Media: Analyzing the Role of Ideology-Matching Moral Framing and Impression Motivation in the Persuasive Effect of User Comments on YouTube

ABSTRACT This research explores how users form attitudes when they are presented with online videos and moral comments from their fellow audience. Based on the Heuristic-Systematic Model (HSM) and Moral Foundations Theory (MFT), the study aims to find out how different moral foundations represented in user comments interact with the motivational state, the political orientation, and the moral beliefs of the viewer. In two pre-registered experiments (N = 314 and N = 1015), the inclusion of moral arguments within comments below a YouTube video (harm vs. authority), their valence (positive vs. negative) and the participants’ motivational states (high vs. low impression motivation) were varied. While Experiment 1 revealed no significant effects regarding the persuasive effect of user comments and accompanying moral arguments, Experiment 2 showed a more general effect of comment valence on viewers’ attitude formation. These results help to specify the conditions under which user comments may lead individuals to construct their attitude in a way that fits the perceived majority opinion.

Occupational therapy in the space of artificial intelligence: Ethical considerations and human-centered efforts

Background Artificial intelligence (AI) technology is constantly and rapidly evolving and has the potential to benefit occupational therapy (OT) and OT clients. However, AI developments also pose risks and challenges, for example in relation to the ethical principles of OT. One way to support future AI technology aligned with OT ethical principles may be through human-centered AI (HCAI), an emerging branch within AI research and developments with a notable overlap of OT values and beliefs. Objective To explore the risks and challenges of AI technology, and how the combined expertise, skills, and knowledge of OT and HCAI can contribute to harnessing its potential and shaping its future, from the perspective of OT’s ethical values and beliefs. Results Opportunities for OT and HCAI collaboration related to future AI technology include ensuring a focus on 1) occupational performance and participation, while taking client-centeredness into account; 2) occupational justice and respect for diversity, and 3) transparency and respect for the privacy of occupational performance and participation data. Conclusion and Significance There is need for OTs to engage and ensure that AI is applied in a way that serves OT and OT clients in a meaningful and ethical way through the use of HCAI.

Supplemental Material for People Update Their Injunctive Norm and Moral Beliefs After Receiving Descriptive Norm Information

Supplemental Material for People Update Their Injunctive Norm and Moral Beliefs After Receiving Descriptive Norm Information

Academic Dishonesty from the Perspective of Primary School Teachers

Abstract Introduction: Academic dishonesty is addressed by various experts in pedagogy and psychology who seek to preserve academic integrity in accordance with the moral and ethical principles of contemporary society. Methods: The intention of the research was to find out how teachers evaluate different types of cheating by students during class, how they react to different types of academic dishonesty, and how they themselves were dishonest during their time in college. Teachers (N=272, mean age 40.85 years) responded on a 5-point Likert scale the attitudes towards morality, but also whether students cheated or self-reported their academic dishonesty when they were students. Results: Factor analysis indicated the existence of 4 factors of teachers’ moral beliefs (Trust in implicit morality, Teacher-given morality, Need for explicit rules, and Internalization of moral principles), which were correlated with students’ assessment of academic dishonesty (Use of external resources, Cooperation) and with teachers’ self-reported academic dishonesty (Utilitarianism, Unauthorized advantage, and Helping others). Discussion: The research findings suggest that teachers should focus more on understanding their pupils’ behaviour rather than condemning or punishing academic dishonesty and seek to develop their moral competence. Limitations: The research sample size is not representative, also the research method is not standardized. Conclusions: The role of teachers is to apply teaching strategies that will promote honest and responsible student behaviour.

The Duty of the Highest Good and the Ethical Community in Kant

Abstract In this paper I focus on how the meritorious dimension (or latitude, Spielraum) involved in the promotion of the highest good is closely related to the constitution of an ethical community as a free, open and progressive moral society. I argue that since moral perfection and moral belief/faith as the grounding elements for the promotion of the highest good (synthesis of virtue and happiness) are not objective duties that must be promoted to a definite extent but involve a certain latitude in their employment, the ethical community that emerges out of the pursuit of the highest good does not prove to be a uniform society in terms of the degrees of the pursuit of moral perfection and moral commitment of its citizens. Rather, I point out that the latitude involved in the pursuit of moral perfection and the adoption of moral belief leads to the establishment of an ethical community that emerges as an open and free society entered by its citizens freely and willfully as part of their inner self-constraint. I thus hold that in such an ethical society agents can pursue and promote the highest good not in a strictly prescribed and uniform manner but in various forms and degrees as long as they constantly progress towards a higher form of moral perfection and purer form of religious (or rational) belief/faith.

THE Moral Intuitions in Moral Decision-Making

Moral intuitions are strong, stable, immediate moral beliefs. Scholars have put forward many theories about the origin of moral intuition from different perspectives. Based on many scholars’ theoretical analysis of moral intuition, this paper takes Kant’s moral philosophy as the basic framework. It further introduces caring ethics and utilitarianism as supplements to analyze the role of moral intuition in moral decision-making. This essay argues that while moral intuitions can serve as valuable initial guides, they must be critically examined and refined through a Kantian framework that integrates the categorical imperative with reasoned emotions and utilitarianism, enhancing their trustworthiness by aligning them with rational moral principles.

The Theory of Dyadic Morality and Moral Identity Explain the Public's Response to Harm Done by Government and Organisations

ABSTRACTHarm functions complexly in moral judgement but has been treated differently in the Social Intuitionist Model (SIM) and the Theory of Dyadic Morality (TDM). Both the SIM and TDM see felt harm as an outcome of experienced negative moral emotions (e.g., disgust), but the SIM regards harm as a kind of epiphenomenon in the sense that it does not affect moral judgement or behaviour, whereas the TDM interprets harm as an essential mediator of the link between negative moral emotions and immorality. The TDM also develops an explanation for how harm functions to initiate reactions to triggering events marked by an intentional agent causing injury to a vulnerable social actor. Here norms serve a regulatory function modulating the effects of harm committed by the agent on negative moral emotions. We conduct two experiments on representative samples of adults () and address two different moral contexts (companies doing badly and government doing badly with respect to a threatened health crisis), two different normative moderators (moral identity and belief in conspiracies) and two different moral action tendencies (intentions and word of mouth). Harm is found to have direct and contingent mediated effects on moral action tendencies, in accord with the TDM. Please refer to the Supplementary Material section to find this article's Community and Social Impact Statement.

Prescribing contraceptives to minors without parental knowledge and consent

Abstract Background Sexually active adolescents may seek oral contraceptives without parental consent, posing challenges due to minors’ confidentiality and consent regulations. This is especially the case under the un-nuanced Israeli legal scheme regarding adolescents’ care. Methods Israeli OBGYNs were contacted through mailing lists and social media groups and asked to fill an online questionnaire regarding their experience and protocols concerning prescription of contraceptives to minors. They were also asked about their comprehension of the relevant legal obligations, the importance they ascribe to different ethical interests and considerations, as well as their training. Results Of the 177 responding gynecologists, 75% consulted minors about contraceptives during the past year, most of them without any training on providing care to adolescents. More than a third of respondents believed that parental involvement wasn’t legally required, while only 8% thought it mandatory for all minors under the age of 18. Most (75%) would ‘almost always’ prescribe contraceptives without parental knowledge upon request, while 20% never would. No correlation was found between respondents’ practices and their perception of the legal obligations. Participants agreed that the risk to the health of the minor due to having sex without contraceptives is of utmost importance. Those willing to prescribe gave greater weight to minor’s autonomy consideration, while those who do not prescribe were more concerned with the acts legal ramifications. The majority set the age of 15 as the threshold for consistently prescribing contraceptives to minors without parental involvement. Conclusions Access to contraceptives for mature minors without parental involvement is vital. There is great need for education and training for healthcare providers on providing medical treatment to adolescents, as well as for the development of policies and guidelines, addressing adolescents’ health disparities. Key messages • Israeli legal requirements challenge and hinder adolescents’ care as well contradict OBGYNs ethical and professional beliefs. • There is great need for education and training, as well as for the development of policies and guidelines, addressing adolescents’ health disparities.

Worldviews From Within: A Qualitative Investigation of Metaphysical and Ethical Beliefs Among European Long-Term Buddhist Practitioners and Novice Mindfulness Practitioners

Worldviews From Within: A Qualitative Investigation of Metaphysical and Ethical Beliefs Among European Long-Term Buddhist Practitioners and Novice Mindfulness Practitioners

Moral Injury: A Theme in Search of Definition

Moral injury refers to a complex psychological condition that is assumed to emerge following exposure to distressing events that challenge the moral values or ethical beliefs of individuals by direct commission, omission, observation, or betrayal by a trusted leader. Moral injury can be found across various occupational domains, such as military, healthcare, and law enforcement. Symptoms of moral injury can include guilt, a sense of moral disorientation, struggle with spiritual or existential issues, and more. This paper aims to summarize current debates on the definition, symptomatology, and assessment of moral injury. Furthermore, it discusses the conceptual and psychological overlap and differences between moral injury and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and addresses current therapeutic approaches for treating patients with moral injury.

Reviving small-sized retail: emotional experience and ethical perspectives as keys to customer repurchase intent

ABSTRACT The paper aims to clarify the role of cognitive and emotional shopping experience in small-sized retailers and its impact on satisfaction and repurchase intention. Also, an ethical perspective of the shopping decision is analyzed. Based on prior studies, we develop a quantitative study (n = 390) in Spain, where small-sized retailers represent most of the retail industry. The advent of new retail formats -online and offline- puts pressure on the traditional ones to evolve. Accordingly, results demonstrate that consumers emotional experience and ethical perception have a very notable impact on repurchase intention. Many small-sized retailers base their strategy on experiential marketing, the goal is to enhance consumers positive in shop experience. The findings also reveal that traditional retailers purchase is linked to consumers’ ethical beliefs or perceptions. Facing a shopping decision, consumers ask themselves about the impact it has on society, environment, and nature. Small-sized traditional retailers are facing, consequently, a double challenge. On the one hand, to keep developing awareness of the paramount societal role of this type of retailer and, on the other hand, to provide consumers with shopping options that boost their needs.

The impact of “kidfluencers” on the cultural identity of Kuwaiti middle school students: A parental perspective

In the digital age, “kidfluencers,” or child influencers, have emerged as significant figures in shaping the online experiences of children. This study explores their impact on the cultural identity of Kuwaiti middle school students, as perceived by their parents. Employing a quantitative research design, the researchers collected data via questionnaire from a random sample of 383 parents. The findings reveal the substantial perceived impact which kidfluencers have on various aspects of cultural identity for Kuwaiti middle school students. Notably, they have a significant effect on language acquisition, leading students to adopt non-Kuwaiti vocabulary and slang prevalent in online kidfluencer content. Additionally, kidfluencers affect moderate influences over cultural values, moral beliefs, national identity, and traditions amongst students. This study underscores the need for a nuanced understanding of the multifaceted powers which kidfluencers can wield, thus helping inform educational strategies and parental guidance for the online era.

Self-Interest, Justification, and Moral Belief

Self-Interest, Justification, and Moral Belief

Measuring Perceptions of the Ethical Beliefs of Accountants and Non-Accountants

In this study, a survey was conducted with 210 participants recruited from Amazon Mechanical Turk to examine the perceptions that accountants and non-accountants have of (1) their own ethical beliefs and (2) the ethical beliefs of the typical accountant. The results indicate the following. Firstly, the ethical beliefs of accountants are weaker than those of non-accountants. Secondly, compared with non-accountants, accountants perceive that the typical accountant holds weaker ethical beliefs. Thirdly, while accountants perceive that they hold similar ethical beliefs as the typical accountant, non-accountants perceive that they hold stronger ethical beliefs than the typical accountant. Overall, the findings from this study provide insights for accounting practitioners to reflect on and evaluate the effectiveness of the activities that have been undertaken by the profession to strengthen the ethical beliefs of accountants and to improve the ethical reputation of accountants among internal and external stakeholders.

The limits of experience: Dogmatism and moral epistemology

AbstractLet “phenomenal dogmatism” be the thesis that some experiences provide some beliefs with immediate prima facie justification, and do so purely in virtue of their phenomenal character. A basic question‐mark looms over phenomenal dogmatism: Why should the fact that a person is visited by some phenomenal feel suggest the likely truth of a belief? In this paper, I press this challenge, arguing that perceptually justified beliefs are justified not purely by perceptual experiences’ phenomenology, but also because we have justified second‐order background beliefs to the effect that the occurrence of certain perceptual experiences is indicative of the likely truth of certain corresponding beliefs. To bring this out, I contrast “perceptual dogmatism” with “moral dogmatism”: the thesis that some emotional experiences provide some moral beliefs with immediate prima facie justification, and do so purely in virtue of their phenomenal character. I argue that moral dogmatism is much less antecedently appealing, precisely because the counterpart second‐order beliefs here are much less plausible.

Benevolent and spiritual – undergraduate social care students’ identification with religious beliefs and moral virtues in a Finnish context

ABSTRACT Moral beliefs guide interpersonal behaviour and responses to ethical situations and are an integral element of professionalism in relationship-based social care practice. This qualitative interview-based study focused on identifying the religious and moral beliefs of undergraduate social care students (N = 19) at the Finnish, non-religiously affiliated Metropolia University of Applied Sciences. The participating students’ beliefs are discussed in reference to virtue ethics and efforts to determine positive moral standards for interpersonal relations. The results show that a majority of the students identified as spiritual but not traditionally religious, in accordance with the changing religious landscape in Finland and beyond. However, their moral beliefs were in some respects linked with certain prosocial dimensions of religions; for example, several students stated that they valued the Golden Rule in Christianity. Overall, the students considered benevolence to be the key virtue in character, attitude and action, believing a good person to be someone who respects other people and helps, not harms them. The students’ views are in line with the ethical considerations that recognise social care as a profession that aims to protect and promote human dignity. The implications of this study are discussed in the context of developing future social care professionals’ moral education.

Axiological paradigm in the Russian picture of the world (based on F. M. Dostoevsky’s novel "The Brothers Karamazov")

The article defines the concept of "axiological paradigm" in its broad and narrow senses. Additionally, it considers axiological paradigm types, describes units with value-expressed content belonging to different levels. The characterisation of the anthropocentric paradigm of the conceptual field of the axiological paradigm is formed on the basis of the identified genetic semes and sense-making principles. They reflect the types of human relationships with reality and unreality and determine the boundaries of the core and peripheral zones of the field. Axiological meanings are conveyed primarily by verbs, nouns, and adjectives since these categories are the main expressors of the internal properties and semantic features of a particular conceptual field. Qualitative-quantitative differences in meanings are reflected both in the axiological paradigm and in the literary text: the creation of the lexical semantic field "Value", the use of linguistic units characterising material, intellectual, and spiritual values. The concepts "Faith", "Family", "Honour" dominate the linguo-cognitive axiological paradigm. They reveal the relationship between language, thinking, and communication. In the Russian picture of the world, the dominating moral and spiritual values not only convey the attitude towards God, but also become a qualitative characteristic of man. The analysis of the axiological paradigm in the Russian world picture is performed using the text of F. M. Dostoevsky’s novel "The Brothers Karamazov". The narrator devotes his careful attention to the establishment of moral values, the religious and philosophical beliefs of the characters in the novel, as well as their relationships and conflicts which are based on these values.

Considering the Dark Side of Work: Bullshit Job Perceptions, Deviant Work Behavior, and the Moderating Role of Work Ethic

AbstractThis contribution aims to expand the study of experiences at work by (a) analyzing a theoretical perspective concerning experiences at work which emphasizes both positive aspects as well as negative aspects, (b) exploring the relation of both negative (Bullshit job perceptions; BJP) and positive aspects (Meaningful Work perceptions; MWP) experienced at work to negative work-related behavior (Counterproductive Work Behavior [CWB] and Cyberloafing), (c) investigating the (moderating) role of work ethic, and (d) examining the robustness of these relations when considering additional contextual factors (organizational work values and tightness–looseness reflecting social norms). Three studies were conducted, including two samples of German employees (N = 247 and N = 240), and another one of employees in the USA (N = 253). Our findings reveal that negative experiences at work (BJP) are the main predictor of problematic workplace behavior (CWB and Cyberloafing). Furthermore, their relation was contingent on individuals’ endorsement of work ethic. BJP and CWB (or Cyberloafing) were more closely associated for individuals strongly endorsing work ethic. In contrast, the relation of positive experiences (MWP) to problematic behavior at work was not significantly qualified by work ethic. The observed relations were robust when additional contextual factors were controlled for. The results emphasize the importance and complexity of work experiences including and differentiating positive and negative aspects. They also highlight the significance of work ethic and related beliefs of employees in shaping problematic behavior in work settings.