Moral Self Research Articles

The child’s history of early stance toward parental socialization as a context for emerging moral self: A cascade from infancy to toddlerhood to preschool age.

The child’s history of early stance toward parental socialization as a context for emerging moral self: A cascade from infancy to toddlerhood to preschool age.

Supplemental Material for The Child’s History of Early Stance Toward Parental Socialization as a Context for Emerging Moral Self: A Cascade From Infancy to Toddlerhood to Preschool Age

Supplemental Material for The Child’s History of Early Stance Toward Parental Socialization as a Context for Emerging Moral Self: A Cascade From Infancy to Toddlerhood to Preschool Age

SPIRITUAL, MORAL AND PATRIOTIC DEVELOPMENT OF YOUNG PEOPLE AS A FACTOR OF COUNTERING EXTERNAL THREATS OF MODERNITY

He article analyses the patriotic, spiritual and moral development of young people of military age as one of the conditions for national security of Russia. The study was conducted on the territory of the Leningrad, Kaliningrad, Arkhangelsk and Murmansk regions. The total number of respondents was 1050 young men of military age (16-20 years old). The study used: the Russian version of the Moral Identity Questionnaire (O.A. Sychev, I.N. Protasova) and the modified technique “Incomplete Sentences”. It was found that low scores on the “Moral Self” and “Moral Integrity” scales are observed in 35.7% of young men of military age. They have predominantly negative ideas about the prospects for increasing patriotism among young people; they are not inclined to consider patriotism as love for the Motherland, and military service as a form of patriotism; there is a significant predominance of negative ideas about the future of the country and a lower incidence of feelings of pride for the Motherland.

Othering and ethics of belonging in migrants' embodied healthcare experiences.

At a time when national identities are being reasserted in Western Europe alongside moral and intellectual visions of a cosmopolitan order more inclusive than nationalism, what does belonging mean for immigrants who are non-Europeans, particularly for women from South Asia, Africa and the Middle East? Based on the lived experiences of 23 women of diverse backgrounds, who are first-generation immigrants, regarding their experiences while accessing the healthcare system in Zurich, Switzerland, I illustrate through migrant experiences how Othering and belonging are experienced within the web of chaotic meanings and social space one navigates. By employing a phenomenological-sociological approach, I present how embodied migrant experiences can capture the experiences of being an 'Other', as well as how moral emotions such as shame and humiliation can influence one's moral self and its significance to everyday moral discourse. While much of the academic discourse around belonging focuses on a place and its related connectedness to one's racial, gender and ethnic identity, here, I analyse cosmopolitanism's possibilities through Othering/belonging experiences within the healthcare context, and beyond. I conclude this paper with the key contributions of the ethics of belonging to the normative discourse on migration health.

From Deficient Masculinity to Relational Plenitude: Language and Ethics among Thirunangais in Southern India

This article engages with Tamil thirunangai transgender women’s perceptions and evaluations of masculinity and femininity among themselves and in others. Thirunangai is currently the preferred identity label among transfeminine persons in the city of Chennai in southern India. Pottai is one of many pejorative Tamil words that predate such positive linguistic assertion of Tamil transfeminine identity. In this article, I show how the word pottai is transformed into a word signaling relational plenitude, belonging, and moral selfhood among thirunangais in Chennai. I also attend to three ways in which thirunangais use the word pottai interactionally: (1) to emphasize belonging and intimacy beyond the boundaries of identity, (2) to playfully highlight genres of gendered action, and (3) to show gender’s imbrication with caste and class.

The role of moral integrity in the association between moral self and moral sensitivity among nurses: A mediation model.

Aim: This study aimed to investigate the relationship between moral self, moral integrity, and moral sensitivity in decision-making among nurses. Background: nurses face moral dilemmas almost on a daily basis. Studies have demonstrated that nurses with high moral sensitivity make thoughtful decisions and exhibit professional responsibility. The current study seeks to examine personality variables that may be related to moral sensitivity among nurses. Design: A cross-sectional study. Ethical considerations: This study was approved by the IRB of the authors University's ethics committee (number: AU-HEA-LO-20220317). Written consent was obtained from all participants. Methods: A structured questionnaires were administered to a sample of 187 Israeli nurses. Results: The degree of nurses' moral self, moral integrity and moral sensitivity was relatively high. "Patient-centered care" was found to be the most significant component of moral sensitivity. The next component is "Using knowledge bases," followed by "Exercising professional judgment." While the concept of patient-centered care was found to be related to the nurses' moral self, the other components were found to be related to their moral integrity. The mediation model found that moral integrity mediates and even strengthens the moral self in its connection with moral sensitivity. Conclusions: Understanding the role of moral self and moral integrity in explaining moral sensitivity, can contribute to achieving a desirable combination of "the good and the right" in nursing practice, thereby enhancing nurses' work. From a practical perspective, these findings are also relevant to nursing education. Nursing education plays a pivotal role in fostering moral and ethical decision-making in both clinical aspects and ethical moral sensitivity. Strengthening the moral self and moral integrity among nursing students can aid in making balanced and morally sensitive decisions while also building moral and ethical support systems to assist students in distressing and emergency situations.

Fulfilling moral duty or prioritizing moral image? The moral self-regulatory consequences of ethical voice.

Previous research on the consequences of ethical voice has largely focused on the performance or social relational consequences of ethical voice on multiple organizational stakeholders. The present research provides an important extension to the ethical voice literature by investigating the distinct intrapersonal and interpersonal moral self-regulatory processes that shape ethical voicers' own psychological experiences and their subsequent purposeful efforts to maintain a positive sense of moral self. On one hand, we argue that ethical voice heightens voicers' sense of responsibility over ethical matters at work (i.e., moral ownership), which motivates them to refrain from violating moral norms (i.e., disengaging from unethical behaviors). On the contrary, we argue that ethical voice generates psychological pressure for voicers as they become anxious about preserving their moral social image (i.e., moral reputation maintenance concerns), which motivates them to signal their moral character to others through symbolic acts (i.e., engaging in moral symbolization behaviors). Further, we expect gender differences in the moral consequences of ethical voice. Across two studies that varied in temporal focus (a multisource, time-lagged field study and a within-person weekly experience sampling study), we found support for most of our predictions. The results suggest that while potentially psychologically uplifting (for both men and women), ethical voice also generates psychological pressure for the voicer to preserve their favorable moral social image and thus motivates them (more so in the case of women voicers at the between-person level) to explicitly symbolize their moral character in the workplace. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Morality - The Task of Caregivers? The Role of Parenting for the Moral Self and Moral Identity in Childhood and Adolescence

ABSTRACT The terms moral self and moral identity are sometimes used synonymously. Attempts to differentiate the concepts of moral self and moral identity across age groups have been made theoretically, but rarely empirically. In theoretical discourses, the moral self was seen more as a precursor construct in childhood for moral identity in adolescence. Empirical delineation of these two age groups (childhood and adolescence) has received less attention. The present study aims to compare these two groups (children and adolescents) and examines the role of parenting styles for moral self in childhood and moral identity in adolescence, and prosocial behavior to add to this research gap. A total of 391 first- to eleventh-grade students (196 children and 195 adolescents) from public primary and secondary schools in Germany participated in the study. A comparison of the two models (children and adolescents) shows significant differences in the postulated path models. While parental warmth evokes significant associations in childhood, the path model for adolescents only reveals significant associations with parental strictness.

Moral Identity Development Among Emerging Adults in Media: A Longitudinal Analysis

ABSTRACT This longitudinal study examines changes in the moral identity of 48 emerging-adult U.S. college graduates in media-related fields from their first year after college to three years later as they progressed into early work life. Results from four moral psychology survey instruments reflect significant shifts in moral reasoning, relativistic thinking and idealism, coupled with stability in personality traits and character strengths. A fifth instrument found largely positive assessments of workplace ethical climate. The findings suggest that emerging adulthood is an important time for the development of a robust professional moral self that is characterized by growing maturity in moral judgment that intersects with a foundation of character developed through a variety of influences before, during and after college. Findings have significant implications for young practitioners entering the workplace, media managers working with them, and media pedagogy.

Studying the Place of Transcendental Ideals and Human Instincts in Modern Psychology: An Insight into the Alternative Discourse of Mohammad Rafi-ud-Din

The integration of psychological and natural sciences is an ongoing process that aims to understand the human mind in the context of the natural world. Rafi-ud-Din has made significant contributions to this field with his concept of human nature and psychology. He argues that the urge for ideals is the real, ultimate, and sole dynamic power of human actions, and that it finds its roots not in instincts but in something transcendental and metaphysical. He describes man as a spiritual and moral self that has innate knowledge of good and evil, and builds his own discourse to describe human nature in the light of the Qur’ān. He also addresses the influential theories of Marx, Freud, Adler, and MacDougall at length and critiques the ideas that view human nature as primarily driven by instincts, arguing that this view reduces man to the status of a social animal and ignores the spiritual and moral dimension of human existence. His alternative discourse on the role of instincts in human psychology and the place of transcendent ideals in understanding man offers a unique perspective on this topic, and his work is an important contribution to the ongoing debate on the integration of psychological and natural sciences. This paper aims to study the ideas and approaches of Rafi-ud-Din about Human Nature and his efforts to refute the thoughts of modern thinkers.

Rethinking Subjectification: On the Limits of Biesta's Educational Theory

AbstractIn this article, Andrew Thompson explores the tension between Gert Biesta's concept of educational purpose and education's historical function. For Biesta, the purpose of education consists of three overlapping spheres: qualification, socialization, and subjectification. While scholars have devoted a great deal of attention to Biesta's notion of subjectification, there is not enough consideration of his treatment of socialization and its limits on human freedom. Here, Thompson examines the historical role of socialization as it relates to the cultivation of self‐reflecting and self‐governing citizens through a process Ian Hunter describes as pastoral pedagogy. Both Biesta and Hunter critique essentialist notions of subjectivity, noting that critical pedagogy in both liberal and Marxian iterations has relied upon a metaphysics informed by Kantian moral definition in which the subject must freely exercise rational autonomy toward self‐realization. While Biesta suggests redefining the subject, Hunter dismisses any attempt at redefinition as irrelevant since the school's historical process of moral development is inevitably linked to the antiquated liberal ideal. In Hunter's view, all attempts to escape the school's moral teleology inexorably employ a pedagogy that is based on the moral ideal its critics wish to eliminate. This article illustrates the agonism inherent in Biesta's concept of educational purpose and explores the role of the theorist as the expression of a particular moral self that informs the ideal persona of the teacher.

Ethics and Moral Education

This paper discusses the idea of ethics is in relation to the possibility and attainment of moral education. It is informed by the belief that adequate attention to ethical thinking is essential in attaining moral satisfaction and developing the society. The study emphasises the importance of critical moral self- examination and good moral education. It identifies and examines three essential types of ethics in relation to moral self-examination and moral education. It equally examines who a moral agent is and how well the pursuit of self-interest should be understood. Through conceptual clarification, analysis and reflection on certain theoretical views in philosophy, such as the views of Buddha, Socrates, Aristotle and the Yoruba concept of ìwòntúnwònsì, it argues for the expediency of moderation in achieving moral education. It also shows that deficiencies in human conduct limit any human that is not morally educated from leading a morally satisfying life.

Factor structure of callous unemotional traits and its associations with morality in middle childhood in a German community sample

The present study focuses on assessing the psychometric properties of the Inventory of Callous-Unemotional Traits (ICU) in a German community sample of middle childhood participants. Previous research on the ICU has primarily been conducted in different samples and countries, with inconsistent results, i.e., different models in different samples and little attention given to German middle childhood populations. A critical need to deepen the understanding of callous-unemotional traits in middle childhood is urgently needed. Hence, this study aims to evaluate the factor structure of the ICU within a sample of children in middle childhood from Germany. A total of 824 children aged 7 to 12 years (M = 10.34, SD = 1.65) participated (52.18% boys). The ICU, a self-report measure, was employed to assess callous-unemotional traits in middle childhood. Additionally, this study also examines the relationship between callous-unemotional traits and morality. Confirmatory factor analyses were conducted to evaluate various model structures based on previous research. The best-fitting model was found to be a two-factor model consisting of callousness and uncaring factors. The moral self shows a stronger overarching association with the uncaring factor than with callousness. The study’s findings provide valuable insights into the applicability of the ICU across various age ranges, particularly in childhood, and the results are discussed in the context of other identified models and age groups and suggest that assessing CU traits requires a detailed perspective, taking into account other developmental factors.

Realność wolnej woli

Is free will real? Is there really free will? That of course depends on what “free will” is. And, on what “real” is. I begin from the free will problem as it appears in the contemporary free will debate, and set out to explore how my view on it affects various senses of reality. The picture that emerges is complex, pluralistic, multi-faceted, and paradoxical. In some sense free will is real, in another sense it is not, and both greatly matter. The sense that is unreal creates a reality of shallowness and tragedy. Finally, both ethically and pragmatically, we require illusion in order to create reality, in creating our moral and personal selves.

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).

Morality in Moderation: Profiles of Moral Self and Behavioral Problems Among Children

ABSTRACT Middle childhood marks an important phase for moral and social-emotional development, yet little research has focused on a combined focus within this age range. A person-centered research approach could capture the complex co-development of the moral self and behavior problems. We thus sought to determine exploratively what emergent subgroups/profiles exist when examining combinations of moral self, emotional, conduct and peer problems in middle childhood. For the study, we recruited 369 children aged five to eleven (M age = 8.19, SD age = 1.30) in Germany. Children completed a questionnaire to assess their moral self (i.e. ascribed importance of moral characteristics), and their parents/caregivers completed the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. Using cluster analytic strategies, three profiles were identified. Profile 1 (high moral/high problems) comprised children exhibiting high moral self, emotional problems, peer problems, and average conduct problems (24.12%). Profile 2 (low moral/high problems) included children with low moral self and high emotional, peer, and conduct problems (14.91%). Profile 3 (moderate moral/low problems) encompassed children with average moral self and lower emotional, peer, and conduct problems (60.98%). We discuss the findings and note that future research should strive for a comprehensive understanding of children’s social-emotional and moral development, considering the intricate interplay between moral self and behavior problems.

Morality, Affect, and Reputation in the Making of a Motivated Social Self

Despite the prevalence of symbolic interaction’s theory of the self, alongside alternative implicit models in dual-process and practice theory, sociology continues to struggle with incorporating affect into models of the self. To address this gap, we distinguish between the conventional sociological understanding of Goffman’s self as cynical and masked and an alternative construct we excavate by paying close attention to negative cases like Goffman’s Asylums and Stigma. This alternative theory of self treats self and situation not as one-sided but as mutually constitutive. Unlike most models of self, our alternative is continuously motivated by humans’ desire to maintain reputation within a given situation; reputation making is dependent on the situation, and its ceremonial rules provide the context for the self’s realization of affective rewards. After considering how reputational claims around ceremonial rules reveal an affectively driven, moral self, we consider the theoretical and methodological implications of the theory for major strands within symbolic interactionism.

The Aristotelian Robot

In this essay an engineer and a philosopher, after many conversations, develop an argument for why the Aristotelian version of virtue ethics is the most promising way to develop what we call artificial moral, social agents, i.e. robots. This, evidently, applies to humans as well. There are several claims: first, that humans are not born moral, they are socialized into morality; second, that morality involves affect, emotion, feeling, before it engages reason; third, that how a moral being feels is related to some narrative, whether moral or not; and finally, that narrativity is what builds a sense of a “moral” I, namely an authorial moral self.

Cleansing Investor’s Conscience: The Effects of Incidental Guilt on Socially Responsible Investment Decisions

This paper explores the effects of incidental guilt on Socially Responsible Investment (SRI) decisions of retail investors. Do investors who feel guilty invest more in SRIs to clear their conscience? Are guilty investors willing to sacrifice returns to restore their moral selves? Using survey data from an online quasi-experiment among a sample of US retail investors, we find that individuals who experience incidental guilt are willing to invest more in SRI funds than those in a neutral state. We show that this effect, albeit moderate in magnitude, cannot be explained solely by differences in retail investors’ moral reasoning, attitudes towards social responsibility, risk tolerance and demographic factors. When presented with a trade-off between sustainability, risk and return characteristics of the funds, guilty investors are more willing to sacrifice returns for greater sustainability than non-guilty participants. Our research provides new evidence of the effect that incidental guilt has on the sustainable investing decisions of retail investors.

Русскоязычная версия опросника моральной идентичности

<p>Moral identity, according to theoretical concepts, plays an important role in motivating moral behaviour. At the same time, empirical studies of moral identity are hampered by the lack of appropriate instruments. The purpose of this work is to develop a Russian-language inventory based on the Moral Identity Questionnaire (MIQ) by J. Black and W. Reynolds, which includes two scales: Moral Self and Moral Integrity. The Moral Integrity Scale measures the desire for consistency between one's moral impulses and actions, while the Moral Self Scale measures how strong one's identification with moral values is. In the study on a sample of 322 students (79% female, mean age M = 21,05; SD = 6,55) good internal consistency of the scales was shown (Cronbach's α coefficients were 0.77 and 0.80). The results of the confirmatory factor analysis confirm the structure of the questionnaire, composed of two factors relevant to the scales. The results of the validity analysis showed that indicators of moral identity are directly related to moral foundations, agreeability, indicators of empathy, as well as identified, internal and introjected motivation for moral actions. Also, the expected negative correlations of indicators of moral identity with moral disengagement, traits of the dark triad, egoism, propensity to academic dishonesty and amotivation of moral actions were revealed. No gender differences were found on the scales of moral identity, while a weak direct relationship of all scales with age was revealed. Thus, as a result of the study, a Russian-language moral identity questionnaire was developed, which can be useful in further research on the role of identity in motivating moral behaviour.</p>