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Dimensions of Moral Intensity and Ethical Decision Making: An Empirical Study
Author(s) -
Barnett Tim
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
journal of applied social psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.822
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1559-1816
pISSN - 0021-9029
DOI - 10.1111/j.1559-1816.2001.tb02661.x
Subject(s) - seriousness , psychology , ethical decision , construct (python library) , social psychology , affect (linguistics) , moral disengagement , moral development , perception , moral reasoning , social cognitive theory of morality , epistemology , philosophy , communication , neuroscience , computer science , programming language
Moral intensity is a construct that relates to issues in terms of their perceived moral significance. Individuals' perceptions of moral intensity should impact their recognition of issues as posing moral dilemmas and should also affect ethical judgments and behavioral intentions regarding issues. This study examined the relationship between 4 dimensions of moral intensity and the ethical decision‐making process. Two work‐related actions were presented to respondents, who then completed measures of the 4 dimensions of moral intensity, whether the actions posed an ethical issue, ethical judgments regarding the actions, and the likelihood that they would engage in the actions. Results indicate that moral intensity dimensions were associated with individuals' ethical decisions. Social consensus and seriousness of consequences were particularly important influences on the ethical decision‐making process.