Cooperation and Morality Flashcards
(23 cards)
What is Intragroup conflict?
conflict within a group
Occurs when people have incompatible goals
What is a social dilemma?
situation in which an individual profits from being selfish, but if everyone chooses the selfish option the whole group loses
What are 3 key global social problems ?
- overpopulation
- Environmental destruction
3.resources depletion
Explain The Prisoner’s dilemma
(and name a real life example)
You and a partner in crime get caught
Option A: Cooperate with you partner and remain silent
Yields the best outcome for both ONLY if your partner also cooperates
Option B: Defect (betray) your partner and confess
Yields the best outcome for the self
real life example: vampire bats (rely on cooperation to survive)
Axelrod’s Competition (2002)
(the prisoner’s delimma)
Had people submit strategies (defect or cooperate) for an Iterated (repeated) Prisoner’s Dilemma game
The winner was “Tit for Tats”
(to cooperate, then repeat the opponent’s last move)
“Tit for 2 tats”
would have to defect TWICE before defect is reciprocated
What is Morality?
A psychological state that deems acts as immoral or wrong
NOT the same as how we feel about things
Are directed by local customs
Motivate punishments
What are the 5 theories of morality?
- Moral instinct
2.Moral rationalization
3.Deontology & Utilitarianism
4.Moral licensing - Moral Foundations Theory
What is Moral Instinct (theory of morality)
Are we programmed for morality?
Present in very early childhood (babies, preschoolers)
Morals can be found in nonhuman primates and other species
yale baby lab (are we programmed for morality? Moral instinct / theory of morality)
Babies (5 months) watch a puppet show (one puppet nice (helps open the box) one mean (closes box)) they someone that didn’t watch the puppet show asks the baby to pick a puppet and kids pick the nice one.
Repeated it with 3 month old babies and they looked (as they cant reach) the nice puppet for a lot longer
What is Moral Rationalization (theory of morality)
People don’t generally engage in moral reasoning
Start with the conclusion and then work backwards
(situation - moral or inmoral - post justifications)
What does neuroimmaging show about Moral Rationalization (theory of morality)
shows a struggle between rational analysis and moral emotion
+ Parts of the frontal lobe
+ Anterior cingulate cortex
What emotions does out moral institutions come from? (5)
- Guilt
SPECIFIC instance in which someone has acted badly or wrongly
Motivates people to make it up - Sympathy
Feeling bad when others are suffering
Makes people want to help,comfort - Anger
Concerns about being betrayed, insulted and treated unfairly
Generally involves a motivation to attack, humiliated or retaliates
4.Disgust
Motivation to avoid, expel, or break off contact
Often coupled with motivation to wash, purify, or remove
- Gratitude
Triggered by person who has done a good deed for the self (intentionally or voluntarily)
Motivates wanting to repay the favour
Deontology & Utilitarianism (theory of morality)
Trolly problem (we have 2 underlying principles)
- Deontology
DEF: The morality of an action depends on its instinct nature
(Killing an innocent is immoral regardless of how many lives may be saved)
Driven by emotional processes:
Direct contact
Emotional distance
Damage to emotional brain regions - Utilitarianism
DEF: morality of an action is determined by its consequences
(Killing an innocent is acceptable if that action minimizes possible harm)
Driven by cognitive processes:
Attention
Working memory
Cognitive load
Moral Licensing (theory of morality) and three things associated to it (the three moral C)
DEF: can act inmoral as they did something moral before
+ Applies to many domains
moral cleansing
DEF: “wash away” or cleanse themselves of immoral actions
Moral Credentialing
DEF: Reframes immoral behavior as acceptable
ex: I’ve already shown I’m not racist by picking a black candidate in the first task. Therefore, my preference for a white candidate in the second task can’t be viewed as racism
Moral Credits
DEF: Good deeds establish moral credits that can be “withdrawn” and give you the right to do bad deeds
Moral Foundations Theory (theory of morality) (5 spheres)
DEF: all people have these spheres (some add liberty)
1.Harm / care
2. Purity/sanctity
3.Fairness/cheating
4.Authority
5.Loyalty
people differ in how strongly they hold them in importance
Sphere of harm/ care (moral foundation theory)
Focus is on that it is wong to harm another person or animal
Underlies virtues of Kindness, Gentleness, Nurturance
Moral appeals to this Sphere try to:
Demonstrate that a person has been harmed
Motivate people to care about that harm
Sphere of Purity/Sancity (moral foundation theory)
Focus is on feeling physically & mentally clean or pure from corruption
Underlies virtues of some religious notions & idea that body is a temple that can be desecrated/ contaminated
Desire to keep something pure, unharmed, free from corruption
Sphere of Fariness/cheating (moral foundation theory)
Focus is on karma & people get what they put in
Underlies virtues of Justice, Rights, Equality
Social loafers or free riders should be punished
Sphere of Authority (moral foundation theory)
Focus is on group hierarchy and respect for those above you; people lower should be submissive
Underlies virtues of Leadership, Deference
This is not simply about power/controlling others – expectation is that order & justice will be maintained
Sphere of Loyalty (moral foundation theory)
Focus is on building strong group bonds and dealing with anything that interferes with the group and its goals
Underlies virtues of Patriotism, Self-Sacrifice
People who have this sphere activated hate traitors more than enemies from other groups
implications of moral foundation theory
How the spheres are ranked in importance influences how people moralize different areas of social life:
Sex
Government
Commerce
Religion
Diet
Cultural differences of moral foundation theory
Western nations: Harm & Fairness
Japan: Fear of nonconformity (Loyalty)
Hinduism/Judaism: Dietary restrictions (Purity)
Muslims: Insulting the Prophet (Authority
Political parties and the moral foundation theory
Liberals more importance on harm,fairness and liberty
Conservatives, more equal, moderate endorsement of all spheres
