Behind every action that happens, there is an interaction effect of affect intensity and valence on moral hypocrisy

• Main Authors: Canteras, Hans Jason D., Lao, Alfonso Lorenzo, Palacios, Andre Louis J., Sy, Russed Judd L.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2017
• Subjects: Hypocrisy; Affect (Psychology)
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etd_bachelors/7429
• Institution: De La Salle University

In this paper, the researchers focused on how affect intensity and valence affect moral hypocrisy. Moral hypocrisy occurs when a person's action does not match how they claim to be in a moral situation (Valdesolo, 2008). Previous studies show that different emotions have varying effects on moral hypocrisy and that certian emotions have specific effects on moral hypocrisy (Lerner et al., 2015 Valdesolo & DeSteno, 2006 Strohminger et al., 2011). The emotional experience has varying intensity and valence and the totality of all emotions in the situation can be measured through affect (Watson et al., 1988). As a way of further understanding how emotions influence moral hypocrisy, the focus on this study now looks into the valence and intensity of affect and how these two variables influence moral hypocrisy. In this experiment, moral hypocrisy was observed through fairness how the subjects saw themselves in terms of fairness and their behavior when a situation calls for the person to be fair. Affect intensity and valence was manipulated. Results from the experiment revealed that more intense positive affect heightens moral hypocrisy and that more intense negative affect reduces moral hypocrisy. These findings, however, maybe subject to change since the behavior may have been caused by the specific situation recalled, instead of the affect.