Moral Self-concept Research Articles

Preschool children’s moral self-concept relates to their guilt-related behaviour

ABSTRACT The emergence of moral emotions such as guilt is central in moral and prosocial development. Guilt is an important psychological factor, which motivates prosocial behaviour and is credited for multiple social functions. Importantly, it remains unclear what determines the extent to which children show guilt. The current study examined two factors that have been proposed to support the emergence of guilt: children’s moral self-concept (MSC) and Theory of Mind (ToM). To this end, guilt-related behaviour and the two potentially explanatory factors were assessed in 5–6-year-old children (Mean age: 5.43 years, N = 133, 51% female). Most relevant, MSC predicted children’s guilt-related behaviour. Children’s ToM was not predictive for guilt-related behaviour. These findings support theoretical approaches proposing that the emergence of guilt is based on children’s developing self-concept.

Recovery and Recidivism: The Aftermath of Helping the Organization Unethically

AbstractThis research draws from moral self-regulation and moral disengagement theories to examine how employees react to their own unethical pro-organizational behavior (UPB). We hypothesize that UPB will elicit mixed moral-based cognitive responses among employees that promote both recovery and recidivism. Results of two studies show that, on the one hand, engaging in UPB damaged perpetrators' moral self-concept, captured by an increase in perceived loss of moral credits; this prompted them to perform customer-directed helping behaviors to recover their damaged moral self-concept; on the other hand, UPB also elicited a cognitive justification process, which was related to an increase in subsequent UPB. This nuanced reaction helps explain why individuals' moral self-regulation does not necessarily remedy for moral failings, while also suggesting practical steps that leaders can take to prevent a "slippery slope" pattern of UPB from taking hold in the organization.

Academic Dishonesty in Online Learning During the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Role of Gender, Moral Self-Concept, and Academic Self-Efficacy

This study aimed to examine the role of gender, moral self-concept, and academic self-efficacy on academic dishonesty among students during periods of online learning. Participants were 305 students aged 18-24 (male = 65, female = 240) who underwent online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study used a survey method conducted online. The measuring instruments used were the Academic Dishonesty Scale to measure academic dishonesty, the Academic Self-Efficacy Scale to measure academic self-efficacy, and the Moral Self-Concept Scale to measure moral self-concept. Males indicated a higher tendency to commit academic dishonesty than females. The initial results of regression analysis showed that moral self-concept predicted academic dishonesty in a negative direction, while academic self-efficacy did not show a significant contribution toward academic dishonesty. Follow-up regression analysis was conducted by entering the two aspects of academic self-efficacy separately into the model, and it was found that while course efficacy did not show a significant contribution toward academic dishonesty, social efficacy contributed significantly in a positive direction.

Multidimensional profiles of head start preschoolers' moral self-concept predict subsequent, but not concurrent, aggression.

The moral self-concept (MSC) describes how children view themselves as moral agents. Research suggests that the MSC may relate to moral behavior, yet little is known about how MSC relates to moral behavior in preschoolers. One hundred six low-income children (M age = 52.78 months, SD = 6.61 months) and their teachers participated in this study. In the fall, children completed a MSC puppet task measure. In the fall and spring, teachers reported via children's survey prosocial behavior and aggressive behavior. We used a person-centered approach to identify profiles of MSC, which revealed two profiles of behavior: comforting prosocials and helpful aggressors. Comforting prosocials showed a moderate preference for comforting, a slight preference for helping, and a slight preference for avoiding aggression. Helpful aggressors had a moderate aversion to comforting, a strong preference for helping, and a slight preference for aggressive behavior. Subsequent analysis of covariance analysis revealed that MSC profiles did not differ in concurrent behavior but did differ in behavior 6 months later. The comforting prosocial group participated in more aggression than the helpful aggressors. Additionally, analysis of covariance analysis of change in aggression scores over time showed that comforting prosocials aggression increased, while helpful aggressors aggression decreased. Both groups over time decreased in prosocial behavior, but to different degrees. Overall, findings reveal that the MSC in preschoolers may relate to future not concurrent moral behavior.

I help, therefore, I am? - A registered report on longitudinal inter-relations of the three-dimensional moral self-concept and prosocial behaviours in preschool children.

Children's moral self-concept (MSC) has been proposed to relate to prosocial behaviour. However, systematic assessments of their inter-relations are scarce. Therefore, this longitudinal study investigated the development, structure and inter-relation of prosocial behaviours and the MSC in childhood, using three measurement points at ages 4, 5 and 6 years. We assessed children's MSC and helping, sharing and comforting behaviours in a laboratory setting. Confirmatory factor analyses revealed a three-dimensional MSC structure at 5 and 6 years, but not at 4 years. There was inconsistent stability across time points regarding prosocial behaviour and MSC. For the comforting domain, but not the other domains, cross-lagged relations between self-concept and behaviour were present. Moreover, helping behaviour and self-concept were inter-related at 6 years. Results provide support for reciprocal associations between MSC and prosocial behaviour, albeit only in the comforting domain. They highlight the importance of distinguishing between types of prosocial behaviour and corresponding dimensions of the self-concept, as different developmental trajectories and associations emerge.

The emergence of a coherent self-concept: A longitudinal study on the development of the moral self.

The moral self-concept (MSC) is an early indicator of how children view themselves as moral agents. It has been proposed that an important feature of an established self-concept (SC) is sufficient coherency in how one views oneself. Furthermore, the MSC is expected to develop into a multidimensional, hierarchical construct which is stable over time. Investigating these theoretical hypotheses, this study aims to take three aspects into account to get a deeper insight into when and how the MSC first emerges: emergence of coherency, stability, and a differentiated structure. Preschoolers were presented with a puppet-interview at two measurement points (T1: M = 4.21 years, T2: M = 5.43 years, N = 108-133; 51%-57% female, largely Caucasian). The interview comprises three moral (helping, sharing, comforting), a physical, and a verbal self-concept scale. To investigate whether children had an established SC and therefore answered coherently, we analyzed children's response patterns resulting in a coherency-score: The greater answers vary within scales, the lower children score. Coherency of the MSC rose significantly across preschool period: At age 5, children answered largely coherently. Coherency of children's MSC related to its stability, meaning that the MSC was mostly stable for children with high coherency at T1. Factor analysis confirmed a multidimensional structure of the MSC at age 5, but not at age 4. The results demonstrate that a coherent and differentiated MSC is acquired within the preschool period. This offers a new approach to investigate the emergence of the SC in early development by integrating the important aspect of coherency into the area of SC research. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Drinking alcohol appears to have no impact on self-perceptions of morality, aggressiveness, or intelligence.

People generally perceive themselves as moral but does this tendency change after alcohol consumption? In the current research, we tested whether alcoholic intoxication affects self-assessments of morality (i.e., the self-importance of moral identity and the moral self-concept), and we also tested self-assessment of aggressiveness and intelligence. We conducted a preregistered laboratory experiment with participants divided into three groups: alcohol intoxication (n = 106), placebo (n = 114), and control condition (n = 109). We did not detect statistically significant differences in self-assessments across conditions. These data are consistent with the conclusion that self-assessments of morality, aggressiveness, and intelligence may be too stable to be affected by the momentary changes in self-perception caused by alcoholic intoxication. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Bridging the gap: A longitudinal study on the relation between preschool children’s moral self-concept, normative stances, and sharing behavior

Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) is significant for providing children with adequate skills so that they can shape a supportive society. Even though children’s moral self-concept (MSC) and their prosocial behavior are critical components of SEL, research on their association and development is comparatively novel. In a longitudinal study, we investigated the associations between children’s MSC, their normative stances, and their sharing behavior. Data of N = 500 preschoolers with an average age of 61 months at t1 (SD = 4.61) were analyzed in a mixed-method design across the period of one year (t1–t3) with structural equation models. Findings revealed sharing behavior as a stable predictor for subsequent MSC across time. As children got older, their normative stances predicted sharing behavior. This connection was further moderated by their MSC. Our findings are the first to depict stable longitudinal predictive effects of prior sharing behavior on subsequent MSC, highlighting preschool age as a critical stage in the formation of MSC. Overall, they demonstrate how in the course of the preschool years, the MSC and normative stances developmentally interact in their relation to prosocial behavior.

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN FAMILY COMMUNICATION PATTERN AND YOUTH SELFCONCEPT IN RURAL MALAYSIA

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between family communication patterns and self-concept among youth in rural areas.The sample consisted of 315 participants (150 boys and 165 girls), selected using a simple random sampling technique. The RevisedFamily Communication Pattern (RFCP) Survey, which has two dimensions - conversational orientation and conformity orientation,was used to measure the relationship between the variables. The Tennessee Self-Concept Scale, which has six dimensions - social,moral, family, ethical, physical, and personal - was also used. Demographic factors such as gender, race, education, and religiousaffiliation were measured. The results showed significant relationships between family communication patterns for conversational orientation and physical, ethical, personal, family, and social self-concept, with the exception of moral self-concept, which showed medium levels. Additionally, there were significant relationships between conformity orientation and moral and ethical self-concept, and weak relationships with physical, family, and social self-concept. These findings reaffirm the importance of family communication patterns in shaping the selfconcept of youth in rural areas.

The Impact of Emissions Reduction Awareness on Moral Self-Concept: Sustaining Climate-Friendly Behaviour in the Aftermath of the Covid-19 Pandemic

Communication campaigns often highlight environmental progress to encourage further pro-environmental behaviour. Consequently, the drop in carbon emissions caused by the COVID-19 restrictions has been framed as a positive environmental outcome of the pandemic. We conducted an experimental study with a US-representative sample (N = 500) to show that raising awareness of emissions reduction has the contrary effect: an increase in moral self-concept facilitated a negative spillover, namely, it reduced climate-friendly behavioural intentions. Normative influence was able to prevent this negative spillover because activating environmental norms inhibited compensatory feelings. Besides, awareness of recent emissions reduction was less likely to increase the moral self-concept of participants with a strong environmental self-identity. Our findings demonstrate that environmental progress increases moral self-concept which, in turn, could cause a negative spillover (i.e., reduce climate-friendly low-carbon behaviour and increase climate-harmful high-carbon behaviour). Normative influences and environmental self-identity can inhibit this negative spillover.

An Experimental Investigation of Moral Self-Violation and Mental Contamination.

Cognitive models of mental contamination (feelings of dirtiness/washing behaviour that arise without direct contact with a contaminant) highlight the central role of perceptions of violation in the onset and maintenance of these feelings. Little research has been done to clarify violation-specific appraisals relevant to mental contamination. Perceptions of violation of one's moral self-concept may represent one such appraisal domain. This experiment aimed to examine the impact of these appraisals on feelings of mental contamination. One hundred and fifty participants received false feedback that they scored high on a morality subscale of a bogus personality test. They then completed a writing task wherein their degree of moral self-violation was manipulated. They received a writing prompt corresponding to one of three randomly assigned conditions (violated self (VS), bolstered self (BS), general negative (GN)). Finally, participants completed measures of mental contamination. The manipulation was effective at violating participants' moral self-concept. Those in the VS condition reported significantly higher levels of feelings of mental contamination than those in the BS or GN conditions. There were no significant differences between conditions regarding urges to wash. Findings highlight the relevance of moral self-violation in the understanding and treatment of mental contamination.

Longitudinal stability and cross-relations of prosocial behavior and the moral self-concept in early childhood

Children act prosocially very early in life by helping, comforting, or sharing with others. Recent research showed that preschool children differ in their representation of their other-oriented preferences (i.e., moral self-concept [MSC]). How stable are such behaviors and how stable is the MSC? And how does the MSC relate to prosocial behavior? In a longitudinal study, we investigated the stability and cross-relations between the MSC and prosocial behavior. We invited four- to six-year-old children to three measurement points (N = 127, 62 female). Children were mostly White and came from middle class families living in Germany. We assessed children’s helping, sharing, and comforting with established behavioral paradigms and the MSC with a puppet-interview. Results showed moderate stability of all behaviors and the MSC across the measurements, with strongest long-term stability for helping behavior and comforting MSC. Moreover, MSC at measurement two predicted prosocial behavior at measurement three even when taking earlier prosocial behavior into account. This effect was driven by the sharing dimension. Overall, the study points to stability of individual differences in the MSC and prosocial behaviors in early childhood. Moreover, it provides first empirical evidence for a developmental effect of the MSC on prosocial behavior.

Self-Esteem and Moral Self-Concepts among Late Adolescence Undergraduate

연구 목적: 본 연구는 청소년기 후기 대학생들을 대상으로 생명의료윤리의식, 도덕적 자아존중감 및 자아개념 정도와 그 관계를 파악하기 위함이다. 연구 방법: 본 연구의 대상자는 대한민국의 청소년기 후기 대학생 268명이 최종 참여자로 횡단적 단면연구를 하였다. 수집된 자료는 SPSS WIN 18.0을 이용하여 전산통계 처리하였으며, t-test와 분산분석을 통해 대상자의 일반적인 특성과 자료를 분석하였다. 연구 결과: 대상자의 생명의료윤리의식 정도는 2.01±0.20점(4점 척도)이었으며, 도덕적 자아존중감과 자아개념은 각각 2.04±0.45점, 2.17±0.31점으로 중간 정도를 나타내었다. 도덕적 자아존중감은 자아개념과(r=.596, p<.001), 생명의료윤리의식은 자아개념과(r=.157, p=.011) 정적 상관관계를 보였다. 또한, 생명의료윤리의식의 하부영역 중 생식 윤리(r=.124, p=.043), 생존권 윤리(r=.147, p=.016)도 자아개념과 정적 상관관계를 나타내었다. 연구 제안: 본 연구의 결과로 생명의료윤리교육은 생식, 생존권, 죽음의 윤리를 포함하여 청소년기 후기 대학생의 고민과 갈등이 연계될 수 있어야 할 것이다.Background/Objectives: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the level of awareness of biomedical ethics, moral self-concepts and self-esteem among late adolescence undergraduate. Methods/Statistical analysis: This study employed a cross-sectional survey design. The participants were 268 late adolescence undergraduate in South Korea. The statistical analyses include descriptive statistics of the respondents’ general characteristics and the data were analyzed with a t-test and ANOVA by using the SPSS WIN 18.0 program. Findings: The average score for awareness of biomedical ethics was 2.01±0.20 (using a 4-point Likert scale); the scores for self-esteem and moral self-concepts were 2.04±0.45, and 2.17±0.31 respectively. Self-esteem showed a positive correlation with moral self-concepts (r=.596, p<.001); and awareness of biomedical ethics showed a positive correlation with moral self-concepts (r=.157, p=.011). Reproductive ethics (r=.124, p=.043) and the right to life (r=.147, p=.016), which are sub-domains of awareness of biomedical ethics, also showed positive correlations with moral self-concepts. Improvements/Applications: The results of this study suggest that education on biomedical ethics should focus primarily on reproductive ethics, the right to life, and the ethics of death.

Doing well by doing good: The effect of purchasing poverty-alleviation products on consumers' subsequent product preference in live streaming shopping

Live streaming shopping as a new e-commerce model has exploded in recent years. Broadcasters sell poverty alleviation products (PAP) on their live channels as a way to engage in corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities. The objective of this research is to examine the effect of purchasing PAP on consumers' subsequent product preference in live streaming shopping. The authors conducted one field study and three lab experiments. Study 1 documents the positive correlation between PAP consumption and indulgent consumption using real live streaming transaction data. Study 2 is a lab experiment which provides support for the causal relationship between PAP consumption and subsequent indulgent consumption. Study 3 extends the ecological validity and examines the mediating effect of the moral self-concept. Study 4 demonstrates that discount levels of PAP weaken the moral licensing effect in the in live streaming shopping context.

Examining the motivations of sharing political deepfake videos: the role of political brand hate and moral consciousness

PurposeDeepfakes are fabricated content created by replacing an original image or video with someone else. Deepfakes have recently become commonplace in politics, posing serious challenges to democratic integrity. The advancement of AI-enabled technology and machine learning has made creating synthetic videos relatively easy. This study explores the role of political brand hate and individual moral consciousness in influencing electorates' intention to share political deepfake content.Design/methodology/approachThe study creates and uses a fictional deepfake video to test the proposed model. Data are collected from N = 310 respondents in India and tested using partial least square–structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) with SmartPLS v3.FindingsThe findings support that ideological incompatibility with the political party leads to political brand hate, positively affecting the electorates' intention to share political deepfake videos. This effect is partially mediated by users' reduced intention to verify political deepfake videos. In addition, it is observed that individual moral consciousness positively moderates the effect of political brand hate on the intention to share political deepfake videos. Intention to share political deepfake videos thus becomes a motive to seek revenge on the hated party, an expression of an individual's ideological hate and a means to preserve one's moral self-concept and strengthen their ideologies and moral beliefs.Originality/valueThe study expands the growing discussion about disseminating political deepfake videos using the theoretical lens of the negative consumer-brand relationship. It validates the effect of political brand hate on irrational behavior that is intended to cause harm to the hated party. Further, it provides a novel perspective that individual moral consciousness may fuel the haters' desire to engage in anti-branding behavior. Political ideological incompatibility reflects ethical reasons for brand hate. Therefore, hate among individuals with high moral consciousness serves to preserve their moral self.

Varieties of normative understanding and their relation to sharing behavior in preschool children

Children increasingly appreciate normative obligations and share resources across the preschool years. But the internal structure and behavioral relevance of normative expressions in the context of sharing—that is, the relation with children’s own sharing behavior—remains disputed. Here, 4- to 6-year-old children (N = 90; 37 female) observed protagonists sharing or not sharing resources. As measures of normative expressions, children’s evaluation, punishment acceptability, non-costly punishment, and costly punishment of the protagonists as well as their moral self-concept were assessed. To measure actual prosocial behavior, children had the possibility to share resources. A factor analysis revealed that the variety of normative expressions constitutes two distinct factors: normative representation (evaluation and hypothetical punishment) and norm enforcement (actual non-costly and costly punishment). Children’s moral self-concept was the only normative expression that related to sharing behavior. Person-centered analyses suggest some consistency in individual differences across normative and prosocial development, with normative expressions and sharing behavior being aligned for some children on a low level and for some children on a high level. This study advances our understanding of early normative development and highlights the internal structure of normative stances during the preschool years.

A longitudinal assessment of the stability of the three-dimensional moral self-concept during early childhood

ABSTRACT Moral self-concept (MSC) is an important aspect of human morality and emerges in early childhood. It indicates how early children view themselves as moral agents. Yet, its structure and developmental patterns are unclear and require more research. This study addresses if the multidimensional structure of MSC is stable during early childhood and if the dimensions are differentiating over early to middle childhood. We explored the structure of MSC by testing a three-dimensional CFA model, its longitudinal invariance, reliability and correlational structure. Using a three-wave longitudinal sample (N = 133) of children aged between four to six years at T1, we found evidence for a stable three-dimensional MSC model, including the dimensions helping, sharing and comforting.

How does the moral self-concept relate to prosocial behaviour? Investigating the role of emotions and consistency preference

ABSTRACT The moral self-concept has been proposed as a central predictor of prosocial behaviour. In two experiments (one preregistered), we explored the nature of the relation between the moral self-concept (explicit and implicit) and prosocial behaviour. Specifically, we investigated the role of emotions associated with prosocial behaviour (consequential or anticipated) and preference for consistency. The results revealed a relation between the explicit moral self-concept and sharing behaviour. The explicit moral self-concept was linked to anticipated and consequential emotions regarding not-sharing. Importantly, anticipated and consequential emotions about not-sharing mediated the relation between self-concept and behaviour. Yet, the relation was independent of preference for consistency. The implicit moral self-concept was neither related to prosocial behaviour nor to emotions associated with behaviour. Overall, our study demonstrates the interplay between cognitive and emotional processes in explaining prosocial behaviour. More specific, it underlines the link between the moral self-concept and prosocial behaviour and highlights the role of emotions about the omission of prosocial behaviour.

Neural processing of moral content reflects moral identity in 10‐year‐old children

Middle childhood seems to be crucial for the emergence of a moral identity, that is, an evaluative stance of how important it is for someone's sense of self to be moral. This study investigates the effects of moral identity on the neural processing of moral content in 10-year-old children. Participants were presented with scenes portraying prosocial and antisocial behavior, while electroencephalographic responses were collected. Analyses of event-related potentials (ERPs) showed that, for children with a strong moral identity, antisocial scenes elicited a greater early posterior negativity (EPN) as compared to prosocial scenes. Thus, for children with a strong moral identity, antisocial scenes capture more attentional resources than prosocial ones in early processing stages. In contrast to previous findings with adults, the implicit moral self-concept was not related to any ERP differences. Overall, the results show that, even in its developmental emergence, moral identity relates to the neurocognitive processing of third-party moral content. Together, the study supports the social-cognitive model of the development of moral identity, according to which moral identity is based on a chronical activation of moral schemas that guide a person's perception of the social world.

Does the type of educational setting (mainstream or specialist schools) and degree of impairment (low vision or blindness) have any influence on self-concept?

ABSTRACT This study investigated the self-concept of students with vision impairments who were placed in mainstream and specialist schools in South Australia. Self-Concept was studied across six dimensions, namely Physical, Moral, Personal, Family, Social and Academic Self-Concepts and the Total Self-Concept. The ‘Tennessee Self-Concept Scale: Second Edition’ was administered to 25 students with vision impairments (including low vision and blind students) who attended mainstream or specialist schools. Although most of the students with vision impairments obtained low scores on all dimensions of self-concept, namely physical, moral, personal, family, social and academic, there were some students who attended specialist schools and are blind that obtained normal scores in family, social and academic self-concepts. There were no significant differences between students with vision impairments that attended mainstream or specialist schools and between students with low vision and those who are blind across the six dimensions of self-concept and thus total self-concept. These findings have implications for mainstream teachers, special educators, support staff and a range of professionals in the education and special education sector in enabling a greater understanding of the self-concept achievement of the students with vision impairments that attended mainstream or specialist schools.