'Most People Consider Themselves To Be Morally Superior'

Words: 591
Pages: 3
Open Document
The article “Most People Consider Themselves to Be Morally Superior” by Cindi May discusses Ben Tappin and Ryan McKay’s study in which they researched the influence of irrationality on the “self-enhancement” effect, the concept that most people consider themselves morally and virtuously superior to others. They surveyed participants, asking them to: rate their relation to 30 character traits related to morality, sociability, and agency, how they would relate these traits to the average person, and their desire to acquire these traits. While analyzing the results, the researchers used techniques to reason how rational or irrational the participants were in their answers. To differentiate between the natural rationality involved in self-enhancement …show more content…
The article discusses consequences of the result that people believe themselves to be more moral than they actually are and than those around them. A positive consequence mentioned is that people tend to be more critical of those who they trust; protecting themselves from people who they believe to be morally inferior, who could harm their emotional or physical safety. Negative consequences relate to ethical corruptions. People who feel better than, often forget that their actions have the same effect as those who they deem morally inferior. This can be seen daily in personal and wide-scale relationships. Personally, it is important to understand the psychology of moral superiority in order to figure out who is actually superior and who just averagely believes themselves to be. In a broader relation, the current political state in America is driven by people who likely feel irrationally superior to others, and their actions are having a powerful effect over the nation. For the personal and large-scale reasons, it is important for the psychology of morality to be understood so people can be aware of their personal actions and try to understand what might influence the actions of others and how to reason with those
Show More

Related Documents: 'Most People Consider Themselves To Be Morally Superior'

Essay on An Analysis of Orientalism by Edward Said

term “Orientalism,” including its origins, the primary ideas and arguments behind Orientalism, and the impact that Orientalism has had on the relationship between the West and the East. He quotes Joseph Conrad for the proposition that conquering people who are different from us is “not a pretty thing.” It needs an “idea” to “redeem” it. Said’s concept of Orientalism helps define the “idea” that provides a political, economic, moral, and socio-cultural justifications for imperialist actions by…

Words 2130 - Pages 9

Utilitarianism and Happiness Essay

period. Cesare Beccaria (1738-1794), for example, in his extremely influential work On Crimes and Punishments, argues that punishments should be inflicted only insofar as they are useful for human purposes; and that governments should not think themselves free to punish inhumanely in the name of God. Beccaria is joined by thinkers such as Hobbes, Hume, Diderot, Helvetius, and Montesquieu. These notes focus mainly on the version of utilitarianism defended by John Stuart Mill as expressed in his…

Words 3600 - Pages 15

Piaget's Developmental Model

ages of about seven to twelve gain the ability to empathize with others, consider more than one perspective, and evaluate situations to determine some potential outcomes. The child is learning better and better, how to process information quickly and funnel it into a single succinct response or reaction. This information processing gets better as they enter formal operations and gain more practice. During the fourth and final stage, titled the Formal Operational stage, children gain the ability…

Words 780 - Pages 4

Simone De Beauvoir: The Eternal Battle Of The Sexes

As she concludes her book, The Second Sex, Simone de Beauvoir claims, “The fact is that today neither men nor women are satisfied with each other.” As one of the most famous and provocative feminist writers, de Beauvoir sought to analyze the history of woman-kind as well as the reasons behind and the solutions to the inequality of the sexes. One of main controversial conclusions she offers is that women and men both share the blame for gender inequality. De Beauvoir argues that the “eternal battle…

Words 1271 - Pages 6

Animal Rights Research Paper

will to live has a right to live free from pain and suffering. They believe all animals are unique just like humans. Non-supporters believe animals aren’t as important as humans and use animals for things such as entertainment, to eat, and to wear. Most non-supporters are the ones who abuse their animals in their own homes. Animal right supporters also believe animals should not be used for testing. While using animals for testing may save a human’s life, the supporters think animals could get sick…

Words 1525 - Pages 7

The Holocaust In Schindler's List By Thomas Keneally

various crimes. As a morally questionable,…

Words 1099 - Pages 5

Assisted Sucide Essay

2012 Stephen Carter, Ph.D. Physician assisted suicide is the practice of providing a patient with information, medication, and or equipment to use to end their own life. Physician assisted suicide remains a controversial issue both legally and morally (Wolfsast, 2008).The debate on whether to legalize physician assisted suicide has been alive for centuries. Some parts of the world like Australia have legalized the act while others like England are resisting the legalization (Wolfslat, 2008). Physician…

Words 1695 - Pages 7

Child Mining Essay

other resources. Some of these children range in ages from 5 up to 16. These children work in countries where the legal age to work starts at 18. These children work under dangerous conditions where they are asked to perform actions that many consider to be unethical. These jobs involve the risk of children being killed from explosions, rock falls, exposure to toxic chemicals, and self-induced injuries due to lack of training experience. This has become a significant issue in our society since…

Words 3369 - Pages 14

module 1 Essay

theoretical meaning of propositions that are considered morally correct and the determination of the extent of truth in the values that they advocate for. On the other hand, normative ethics are concerned with the practical ways of determining the morally upright course of action (Donaldson & Gini, 2012). Applied ethics, which will be the major area of focus of this paper’s discussion, draws a lot from ethical theory in establishing the most appropriate kind of behavior by individuals under varied…

Words 2251 - Pages 10

Essay on Aristotle Ethics

When Aristotle uses the bent stick example, he is just showing a comparison between someone dragging themselves away from the bad extreme and trying to straighten a bent stick. They are both hard to do but they must be done for the overall good. When you straighten the bent stick, you are drawing it away from one side and bringing it back to the middle, just as one must do with themselves. Rosalind Hursthouse does a very good job in discussing Aristotle's concept of phronimos. Hursthouse believes…

Words 1906 - Pages 8