Looking for mediators and moderators of attitude-driven affects as factors shaping moral character attributions.
OPUS 15
Grant Number 2018/29/B/HS6/00658
Founded by the National Science Center in Poland (NCN)
This project explores how attitudes shape moral judgments, focusing on their role in moral character attributions. While traditional models emphasize either rational reasoning or emotional intuition, recent research suggests that attitudes—our pre-existing positive or negative evaluations—significantly bias moral evaluations.
Key Research Questions
How do attitudes influence moral judgments?
Do positive attitudes toward a person lead to more lenient moral evaluations, while negative attitudes result in harsher judgments?
What factors strengthen or weaken this effect?
The project examines moderators such as cognitive load, time pressure, and motivation, testing when attitudes exert the strongest influence.
What psychological mechanisms mediate the impact of attitudes on moral judgment?
Potential mediators include biased interpretation of information, selective attention, and avoidance of contradictory evidence.
Methods & Approach
The project uses experimental studies to manipulate attitudes and cognitive conditions, measuring their effects on moral evaluations. By testing the relative impact of emotions, moods, and attitudes, we aim to clarify which affective processes drive moral judgments.
Key Publications
Bocian, K., Baryla, W., Kulesza, W., Schnall, S., & Wojciszke, B. (2018). The mere liking effect: Attitudinal influences on attributions of moral character. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 79, 9-20. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2018.06.007 [PDF].
Bocian, K., Baryla, & Wojciszke, B. (2020). Egocentrism shapes moral judgments. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, e12572, 1-14. https://doi.org/10.1111/spc3.12572 [PDF].
Bocian, K., & Myslinska-Szarek, K. (2020).Children’s sociomoral judgment of antisocial others depends on social context. Social Development, 00, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1111/sode.12480 [PDF].
Bocian, K., Baryla, & Wojciszke, B. (2021). Moderators of the Liking Bias in Judgments of Moral Character. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 48(4), 596–605. https://doi.org/ 10.1177/01461672211013272 [PDF].
Bocian, K., Myslinska Szarek, K., Stryczynska, K., Baryla, W., Wojciszke, B. (2022). Boundary conditions of the liking bias in moral character judgments. Scientific Reports 12, 17217. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-22147-7 [PDF].