Why “doing what’s right” depends on who you are with

Issue 188: Our new paper identifies under what circumstances people act on their moral attitudes and why we are often moral hypocrites.

People strive to be “good,” praising values like honesty, generosity, and fairness. But when the moment comes to act, they often fall short. They loudly broadcast their views online but refrain from taking action in the real world. If morality is so central to our identities, why does it often fail to translate into behavior?

This framework challenges the assumption that someone’s moral behavior is a reflection of their values—this is not always the case.

Our latest paper explains why people tune their moral behavior to fit the social context. Building on the Theory of Planned Behavior, we illustrate how moral action depends on three factors: attitudes (what we believe is right and what we expect moral action will lead to), perceived control (whether we feel we can act effectively), and situational norms (what feels acceptable in that moment). The situational norms are especially influential because they signal which behaviors will be rewarded or punished, which helps explain why the s…