Moral Dilemmas in Military Situations: Proportionality Principle,Religiosity, Political Attitudes,and Authoritarian Personality

The current study focuses on a moral dilemma in military situations: the amount of force to be used in order to neutralize a “most wanted” terrorist. This study examines the association between this moral dilemma with 4 independent variables: agreement with the proportionality principle (mediating variable), level of religiosity, authoritarian personality, and political attitudes. Three equal groups of participants (together, N = 357) were included: Israeli regular army combat soldiers, Israeli reserve combat soldiers, and Israeli students. In accordance with the study hypotheses, the 4 independent variables significantly correlated with each other and with moral decisions. Structural equation modeling indicated that agreement with the proportionality principle is the best predictor of moral decision, and mediated the association between level of religiosity and political attitudes and moral decisions.     

A re-investigating of the religious orientation-moral reasoning relationship: a relational developmental systems perspective

This study re-investigates the relationship between religious orientation and Kohlberg’s moral reasoning among students at a midwestern (USA) university. Multiple regression analyses revealed that quest-oriented religiosity was significantly positively related to principled moral reasoning, as consistently found in previous studies, while intrinsic religious orientation showed no relation to principled moral reasoning. We discuss our findings through a lens of relational developmental systems theory, suggesting that a more integrative measure is needed to better understand the complex relationship between religious orientation and moral reasoning.     

Military Ethical Decision Making: The Effects of Option Choice and Perspective Taking on Moral Decision-Making Processes and Intentions

We investigated the ethical decision-making processes and intentions of 151 military personnel responding to 1 of 2 ethical scenarios drawn from the deployment experiences of military commanders. For each scenario, option choice and perspective affected decision-making processes. Differences were also found between the 2 scenarios. Results add to the emerging literature concerning operational ethical conflicts and highlight the complexity and challenge that often accompanies operational ethics.     

Possible competences to be aimed at in ethics education – Ethical competences highlighted in educational research journals

Abstract

The aim of this article is to present varieties of ethical competence that are highlighted in ethics and moral education research articles, and to discuss them in the light of competences stressed in the Swedish curriculum, understood as an example of ethics education in compulsory school. The material consists of 1,940 educational research articles published between 2000 and 2015, and the method of analysis is inductive, focusing on ethical competence. One finding is the similarity between the study’s tentative formulation of identified ethical competences in four categories, and Rest’s understanding of acting morally, captured in the four components: sensitivity, judgement, motivation and implementation. Based on the analysis of the articles, broader understandings of these focuses are developed, and later discussed in relation to Swedish ethics education, characterised as both a conservative and liberal values education. The analyses and comparison show the importance of the components of moral sensitivity and moral implementation and their relative absence in the Swedish curriculum, but also how moral judgement must include a competence to evaluate moral motivations, where empirically testable reasons are also central. Moreover, the risk of neglecting contextual, situational and knowledge-related aspects of ethical competence is highlighted.     

Learning for oneself: A Confucian‐inspired case for moral formation in ethics pedagogy

This article explores the disconnection between ethical theory and ethical practice in ethics courses at secular U.S. colleges and universities. In such contexts academic ethics focuses almost exclusively on “ethical reasoning” and leaves the business of practical moral formation of students in the realm of “student life.” I argue this disconnection is inevitable given the dominant understanding that moral formation must be guided by a consistent ethical theory, and must eventuate in certain prosocial behaviors, while norms of pluralism and free inquiry mandate that academic courses not attempt to dictate certain views or behaviors as normative. Drawing on the Confucian model of moral cultivation expressed by the early Chinese figure Mengzi, I argue for a different understanding of moral formation that focuses on open‐endedness, self‐direction, and the acquisition of skills in directing attention and will. This approach avoids the most serious challenges to practical moral formation in secular contexts, and I suggest some broadly applicable principles for implementing these ideas in ethics courses.     

Genetic Moral Enhancement? Yes. Holiness? No

As moral human beings, we deplore our violence and try to rein it in through moral suasion and post-hoc restraint. Could genetic engineering help? Moral enhancement through genetic engineering might predispose us to performing good acts, good deeds. However, good acts alone, theologically speaking, do not count as either morality or holiness. Becoming a good and holy person-in-community is a process of freely chosen character development. While re-creating ourselves genetically to eliminate aggressive acts is not insignificant, such interventions constitute a starting point, not the endpoint, of living a meaningful life in relation to God. Bernard Lonergan’s notion of moral agency requires moral conversion and religious conversion, neither of which could be achieved through gene expression alone. Conversion requires free and intentional participation in moral character development. Finally, we note that salvation according to Christianity is not earned, regardless of a person’s good acts or good moral character.     

线下受害者到线上欺负者的转化:道德推脱的中介作用及高自尊对此效应的加强

随着网络使用的普及,网络欺负日益成为普遍的社会公共问题,尤其在青少年群体中易引发广泛的危害。研究聚焦于被欺负者和欺负者潜在转换的视角,考察有过线下被欺负经历的个体是否实施网络欺负的可能性更高,且是否是道德推脱在其中起中介作用,而此作用还会受到高自尊的增强。以中学生为对象,间隔六个月时间,在时间1测量了线下受欺负情况、道德推脱和自尊,在时间2测量了在网络上欺负他人的情况。结果发现,在控制了性别、年级、社会赞许性之后,线下受欺负程度可以显著正向预测网络欺负的程度,且道德推脱在其中起到正向的中介作用。此外,这一中介作用还受到自尊的调节,随着自尊的增强,在线下越受欺负的青少年就越会通过道德推脱合理化其攻击行为,从而在网上做出更多对于他人的欺负行为。     

共情对大学生亲社会行为的影响:道德推脱和内疚的多重中介作用

为了探讨道德推脱和内疚在共情与大学生亲社会行为间的多重中介作用。研究采用人际反应指针量表、道德推脱问卷、内疚感问卷和亲社会行为倾向量表对1280名大学生进行测量。结果表明:(1)道德推脱在共情与大学生亲社会行为间起中介作用;(2)内疚在共情与大学生亲社会行为间起中介作用。结论表明:共情可以直接影响亲社会行为,也可以通过道德推脱和内疚间接影响亲社会行为。     

道德判断的整合和分离效应:ERP的证据

该研究采用双选择oddball范式,探索不同类型的道德违反事件的时程加工特点。结果发现,不同类型道德违反事件在P2成分上未出现明显差异。在N2成分上,所有道德违反事件和中性事件差异显著,且涉及性的道德违反的波幅大于涉及身体伤害和诚信的道德违反事件。在P300和晚期正成分上,只有涉及性的道德违反事件和中性事件出现差异。结果表明,不同领域的道德违反事件在早期阶段可能存有共同的加工机制,而在后期的加工阶段中开始出现分离趋势。     

金钱刺激和决策者角色对个体道德决策的影响——基于过程分离范式

以大学生为被试,采用3（金钱刺激：无金钱刺激、金钱奖励、金钱惩罚）×2（决策者角色：决策者、旁观者）的被试间实验设计,利用过程分离范式分别计算被试道德决策中的功利主义倾向和道义论倾向,从而探讨金钱刺激和决策者角色对个体道德决策的影响。结果发现：（1）无论是决策者还是旁观者,金钱刺激都不会影响其道义论倾向;（2）决策者的道义论倾向大于旁观者;（3）只在有金钱奖励时决策者的功利主义倾向才大于旁观者。