moral disengagement

moral disengagement

the process that enables people to engage in negative behavior without believing that they are causing harm or doing wrong.

3 processes to moral disengagement

1. reforming behavior to appear less harmful. 2. minimizing victim’s harm. 3. obscuring moral agency

reforming behavior to appear less harmful

moral justification, euphemistic labeling, advantageous comparisons

moral justification

“for the greater good”

euphemistic labeling

“its borrowing, not stealing”

advantageous comparisons

“it’s not as bad as…”

minimizing victim’s distress

distortion of consequences, dehumanization

distortion of consequences

“no one really got hurt,” “not a big deal”

dehumanization

“its not personal,” “human capital”

obscuring moral agency

displacement of responsibility, diffusion of responsibility, attribution of blame

displacement of responsibility

“ i was following orders”

diffusion of responsibility

“everyone else is doing it “

attribution of blame

“the victim’s fault”