Social Framing and the Context-Specific Use(age) of Moral Principles in Different Types of Situations

• In Event: 46.086 - Roundtable Session 16
  In Roundtable Session: 46.086-24 - Moral Development and Education SIG Roundtable on Moral Reasoning

Abstract

Social framing effects are well-known from research in social psychology and behavioral economics, based on different framings of the prisoners’ dilemma. However, it is unclear how such framing effects are to be explained and ought to be evaluated from an educational point of view. Current research challenges the hypothesis of frame-dependent moralities or “social preferences” and suggests that frame-dependent differences in people’s decision-making follows rather fine-tuned responses to situation-specific constraints. The paper supplies additional evidence from a questionnaire based on business-related vignettes, administered to undergraduates in business and economics. It allows us to understand the participants cognitive and emotional evaluations based on quantitative and qualitative data. The data also reveals the salience of the Happy-Victimizer-Phenomenon in this sample.

Author

• Gerhard Minnameier, University Frankfurt am Main