• Deception is sometimes perceived to be ethical. • Prosocial liars are perceived to be more moral than honest individuals. • Benevolence may be more important than honesty for judgments of moral character. • The moral principle of care is sometimes more important than justice. a b s t r a c t a r t i c l e i n f o We demonstrate that some lies are perceived to be more ethical than honest state...

In order to help understand adherence to moral standards and the force of intrinsic motivation, we present an in…nite-horizon optimization model where an individual receives random temptations (such as bribe o¤ers) and must decide which to resist. Temptations yield consumption value, but keeping a good self-image (a high belief of being the type of person that resists) yields self-esteem. Becau...

Neuroimaging research examining correlates of adolescent behavioral maturation has focused largely on issues related to higher cognitive development. Currently few studies have explored neural correlates of emotional reactivity in adolescent groups. In this study, we sought to examine the nature of posterior cingulate activation during situations of moral dilemma in normal adolescents. We focus...

This study addresses how moral judgment development, authenticity, and nonprejudice account for variance in scores pertaining to various motivational functions underlying volunteerism in order to clarify certain problems associated with previous research that has considered such relationships. In the study, 127 participants completed measurements that pertain to these constructs. Correlations r...

The present study examined the relationship between procrastination, delay, blameworthiness, and moral responsibility. Undergraduate students (N = 240) were provided two scenarios in which the reason for inaction (procrastination, delay), the target (self, other), and the outcome (positive, negative) were manipulated, and students were asked to rate the moral responsibility and blameworthiness ...

This article introduces a special section on moral development. We claim that the field is now undergoing a resurgence of theoretical and methodological innovation after the eclipse of paradigmatic moral stage theory. Although research on prosocial development, moral emotions, and social domain theory has sustained interest in moral development, recent additional trends have contributed to its ...

The threat of free-riding makes the marshalling of cooperation from group members a fundamental challenge of social life. Where classical social science theory saw the enforcement of moral boundaries as a critical way by which group members regulate one another's self-interest and build cooperation, moral judgments have most often been studied as processes internal to individuals. Here we inves...

In secularized modern Western societies, moral opposition to the liberalization of abortion, gay adoption, euthanasia, and suicide often relies on justifications based on other-oriented motives (mainly, protection of the weak, e.g., children). Moreover, some argue that the truly open-minded people may be those who, against the stream, oppose the established dominant liberal values in modern soc...

Families and schools must assume a leadership role in preparing youth for success in the emerging information age by teaching ethical online behavior in addition to academic skills. This paper presents a preliminary overview of moral development issues that are raised when young people interact in cyberspace. A preliminary classification system of Internet ethics issues that parents and educato...