Lead Us (Not) into Temptation: Testing the Motivational Mechanisms Linking Honesty–Humility to Cooperation

Over the past decades, there has been considerable interest in individual differences in cooperative behaviour and how these can be explained. Whereas the Honesty–Humility dimension from the HEXACO model of personality has been identified as a consistent predictor of cooperation, the underlying motivational mechanisms of this association have remained unclear—especially given the confound between the temptation to exploit others and the fear of being exploited as motivational drivers of defection in social dilemmas. In a reanalysis and a new experiment, we tease apart these mechanisms by manipulating the rank order of pay‐offs in a symmetric two‐person game paradigm, essentially implementing the classic prisoner's dilemma, stag hunt, and chicken games. Results revealed that Honesty–Humility predicted cooperation specifically in the games in which temptation was a potential motivator of defection, whereas it did not account for cooperation in those games in which only fear implied defection. Our findings thereby shed light on the underlying motivational mechanisms of the Honesty–Humility–cooperation link and, more generally, demonstrate how economic games can be used to disentangle such mechanisms. Copyright © 2018 European Association of Personality Psychology     

企业中的道德决策

企业道德决策研究主要关注个体如何进行道德决策,以及哪些因素影响企业中的道德决策这两个基本问题。首先介绍企业道德决策的主要理论模型;然后简要总结实证研究的研究方法和基本结论;最后分析以往研究中存在的问题,并展望我国的企业道德决策研究     

When the cat’s away,some mice will play: A basic trait account of dishonest behavior

In line with every-day observation, research has established substantial individual differences in ethical behavior, especially dishonesty and cheating. However, these individual differences have remained mostly unexplained, especially in terms of traits as specified in models of basic personality structure. Theoretically, a prime candidate to account for these differences is the Honesty–Humility factor proposed as the sixth basic personality dimension within the HEXACO Model of Personality. Despite clear theoretical links, corresponding behavioral evidence is scarce and limited due to methodological caveats. In a series of six behavioral experiments we thus bridge the gap between behavioral ethics and personality research – critically testing whether individual differences in dishonest behavior can be accounted for by basic traits in general, and Honesty–Humility in particular. We implement different cheating paradigms, tasks, incentive structures, samples, and sets of covariates to evaluate the robustness and generality of results. Overall, variance in dishonest behavior was indeed accounted for by Honesty–Humility which was the only consistent predictor of cheating across the various experimental setups and beyond relevant covariates including other personality factors. The results thus corroborate that individual differences in ethical behavior can be accommodated by comprehensive models of personality structure in general and the Honesty–Humility factor in particular.     

Unpacking “evil”: Claiming the core of the Dark Triad

Understanding the nature of “evil” has been challenging for a number of reasons. A productive psychological approach to this problem has been to study antisocial traits associated with negative outcomes. One such approach has grouped together three antisocial personalities known as the “Dark Triad”: Machiavellianism, Narcissism, and Psychopathy. Researchers have proposed various models to account for the common core of these antisocial personalities – a core that might well be considered the psychological equivalent of the core of “evil” – and these models have not been directly compared, to date. We conducted two studies (total N > 700) to compare the utility of the various models using Canonical Correlation Analyses (CCAs). Results confirm that the HEXACO personality model (and, in particular, the Honesty–Humility factor) is not only the most theoretically parsimonious model, it also best accounts for the empirical overlap between these constructs that represents the core of the Dark Triad. Results also support the idea that the core of the Dark Triad represents an alternative life history strategy.     

Are University Professors Qualified to Teach Ethics?

In the light of recent talk in Canadian business schools about the importance of teaching courses in business ethics, the authors ask whether business professors have the qualifications required to teach business ethics. They point to various ethical dilemmas that arise in a collegial setting and argue that academics who teach business ethics have to first understand the complex ethical situations in which they find themselves if business ethics is to be taught in a meaningful way.     

移情在道德强度对企业道德决策影响中的作用

摘 要 本研究将一种重要的道德情绪--移情引入问题权变模型中,以探讨移情因素在道德强度对企业道德决策影响中的作用。本研究基于情景研究法,随机选取256名MBA学生为被试,要求被试基于所提供情景中假想参与者的行为,回答随后测量道德决策(道德识别、道德判断和道德意图)、移情反应、主观道德强度及移情特质的问题。结果发现,1）移情反应在道德强度对企业道德决策的影响中具有中介作用;2）移情关怀特质会通过影响主观道德强度和移情反应而作用于企业道德决策;3)结果大小、社会舆论和效应可能性对道德判断和道德意图的影响机制各有特点。     

道德推脱对员工道德决策的影响：德行领导的调节作用

运用问卷调查的方法,以819名员工为研究被试,探讨了德行领导在道德推脱影响道德决策过程中的调节作用。采用层次回归分析的方法研究发现：德行领导对道德推脱与道德识别、道德判断之间的关系具有调节作用;但德行领导不会对道德推脱与道德意图之间的关系产生调节作用,而会对道德意图产生显著的直接影响。