Deontological and utilitarian responses to sacrificial dilemmas predict disapproval of sin stocks
Deontological and utilitarian responses to sacrificial dilemmas predict disapproval of sin stocks
Investors sometimes invest in the so-called "sin"stocks that cause social harm as a by-product of doing business (e.g., tobacco companies). Three studies examined whether people who reject harm and maximize outcomes in sacrificial dilemmas approve less of investing in sin (but not conventional) stocks. We employed process dissociation to assess harm-rejection (deontological) and outcome-maximization (utilitarian) response tendencies independently. Study 1 (N = 337) assessed moral approval of stocks: People scoring higher on either deontological or utilitarian response tendencies disapproved of investing in sin, but not conventional, stocks. Study 2 (N = 402) replicated this effect for willingness to invest in companies abandoning (vs. retaining) socially responsible policies. Study 3 (N = 558) confirmed earlier findings using more conservative measures. These findings clarify the psychology of morally questionable investment decisions.
moral dilemmas, moral psychology, process dissociation, sin stocks, socially responsible investment
51-62
Niszczota, Paweł
245606ca-f904-42f1-b6df-404d86f0f52a
Białek, Michał
b31a61d7-04e8-4e45-9c71-767e83c839cd
Conway, Paul
765aaaf9-173f-44cf-be9a-c8ffbb51e286
31 March 2022
Niszczota, Paweł
245606ca-f904-42f1-b6df-404d86f0f52a
Białek, Michał
b31a61d7-04e8-4e45-9c71-767e83c839cd
Conway, Paul
765aaaf9-173f-44cf-be9a-c8ffbb51e286
Niszczota, Paweł, Białek, Michał and Conway, Paul
(2022)
Deontological and utilitarian responses to sacrificial dilemmas predict disapproval of sin stocks.
Social Psychology, 53 (2), .
(doi:10.1027/1864-9335/a000474).
Abstract
Investors sometimes invest in the so-called "sin"stocks that cause social harm as a by-product of doing business (e.g., tobacco companies). Three studies examined whether people who reject harm and maximize outcomes in sacrificial dilemmas approve less of investing in sin (but not conventional) stocks. We employed process dissociation to assess harm-rejection (deontological) and outcome-maximization (utilitarian) response tendencies independently. Study 1 (N = 337) assessed moral approval of stocks: People scoring higher on either deontological or utilitarian response tendencies disapproved of investing in sin, but not conventional, stocks. Study 2 (N = 402) replicated this effect for willingness to invest in companies abandoning (vs. retaining) socially responsible policies. Study 3 (N = 558) confirmed earlier findings using more conservative measures. These findings clarify the psychology of morally questionable investment decisions.
Text
Niszczota et al, 2022, Deontological and Utilitarian Responses to Sacrificial Dilemmas Predict Disapproval of Sin Stocks, Social Psych Preprint
- Accepted Manuscript
More information
Accepted/In Press date: 16 February 2022
Published date: 31 March 2022
Additional Information:
Funding Information:
This research was supported by Grant 2018/31/D/HS4/01814 from the National Science Centre, Poland.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 Hogrefe Publishing.
Keywords:
moral dilemmas, moral psychology, process dissociation, sin stocks, socially responsible investment
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 472614
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/472614
ISSN: 1864-9335
PURE UUID: 9b473670-553f-4287-afae-af247e883813
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Date deposited: 12 Dec 2022 17:39
Last modified: 17 Mar 2024 04:17
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Contributors
Author:
Paweł Niszczota
Author:
Michał Białek
Author:
Paul Conway
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