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Self-regulation after temptation?

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  • Légeret, Matthieu
  • Zehnder, Christian

Abstract

Although moral cleansing—a form of self-regulation—has​ frequently been studied, existing evidence is mixed and its prerequisites remain unclear. We hypothesize that large, salient deviations from self-defined morality require regulation through moral cleansing, whereas small, inconspicuous deviations are tolerated and lead to continued misbehavior. Using an incentivized online experiment, we measure participants’ baseline morality before using temptations to induce deviations. We find that weak temptations lead to small reductions in moral behavior that remain uncorrected. However, we observe that larger deviations induced by strong temptation do not lead to compensation.

Suggested Citation

  • Légeret, Matthieu & Zehnder, Christian, 2022. "Self-regulation after temptation?," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 214(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecolet:v:214:y:2022:i:c:s016517652200091x
    DOI: 10.1016/j.econlet.2022.110436
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    References listed on IDEAS

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