Look at yourself! : Visual perspective influences moral judgment by level of mental construal

• Previous research (Libby, Shaeffer, & Eibach, 2009) has established that a third-person (external) visual perspective elicitsmore abstract processing than a first-person (inner) perspective. Because many moral principles constitute abstract psychological constructs,we predicted that they should weigh more heavily when people adopt a third-person visual perspective. In two experiments weshow that a third- (vs. first-) person visual perspective leads to harsher judgments of one’s own morally questionable actions. Moreover,we demonstrate that this effect can be partially explained by level of mental construal. The present research suggests that simple visualperspective techniques may be used to promote moral behavior.

Subject headings

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Psykologi (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Psychology (hsv//eng)

Keyword

Psykologi

Psychology

Publication and Content Type

ref (subject category)

art (subject category)