The set-up was simple. The subjects (recruited from the Campus Universitaire de Jussieu in Paris) had to read a tale of a minor misdeed - finding a wallet in the street and keeping the cash, or falsifying a resume - and then judge how morally wrong it was.
The twist was that half the subjects had a picture of flowers on their paper, while the other half had a small picture of a pair of eyes peering at them (the same ones as are peering at you right now).
But from the perspective of this blog, it's interesting that religious people are also more likely to condemn others. For example, the religious in the USA are more likely to support the death penalty. And religious Swiss students were more likely to punish wrongdoers after subliminal religious prompting.
So could it be that the tendency for the religious to be more condemnatory is a by-product of their sense that they are being watched? And if that's so, what are the implications?
Bourra P, Baumard N, & McKay R (2011). Surveillance Cues Enhance Moral Condemnation Evolutionary Psychology, 9 (2), 192-199
This article by Tom Rees was first published on Epiphenom. It is licensed under Creative Commons.
This is especially interesting in light of the not-so-good-samaritan effect.
ReplyDeleteI would like to see if "judgmental" eyes would cause an increased willingness in believers to help strangers, especially those considered members of outgroups.
John TK
Either that or flowers make us more forgiving... :p
ReplyDeleteSigh. You have just ruined a beautiful hypothesis :)
ReplyDeleteI loved this.
ReplyDelete(1) I actually thought back to several times in my life when I was having conflicts with the powers that be in my life, and I could actually almost palpably recall my judgmental mind which was made clear by how relaxed the mind is when one does not feel watched.
(2) Some "religions" don't have gods but instead they have ancestors watching. "Watchers" seem to be crucial way of discouraging cheaters in a society that uses cooperation. So perhaps this judgementalism has the benefit of better surveillance of cheaters.
(3) I am taking down the various decorative masks on my walls!
This study reminds me that I once read about a study concerning the phenomenon of punishing others for their failure to punish wrongdoers. However I can't for the life of me recall the study or context, except for some vague recollection that such behavior was conducive to group cohesiveness.
ReplyDeleteSo I'm thinking that there's an evolutionary aspect to a reflex of punishing wrongdoers if you are being watched.
Anyone else recall where I might of seen an account of this phenomenon?