Morally upstanding people are the do-gooders of society, right? Actually, a new study finds that a sense of moral superiority can lead to unethical acts, such as cheating. In fact, some of the best do-gooders can become the worst cheats.
Stop us if this sounds familiar.
When asked to describe themselves, most people typically will rattle off a list of physical features and activities (for example, "I do yoga" or "I'm a paralegal"). But some people have what scientists call a moral identity, in which the answer to the question would include phrases like "I am honest" and "I am a caring person."
Past research has suggested that people who describe themselves with words such as honest and generous are also more likely to engage in volunteer work and other socially responsible acts.
But often in life, the line between right and wrong becomes blurry, particularly when it comes to cheating on a test or in the workplace. For example, somebody could rationalize cheating on a test as a way of achieving their dream of becoming a doctor and helping people.
In the new study, detailed in the November issue of the Journal of Applied Psychology, researchers find that when this line between right and wrong is ambiguous among people who think of themselves as having high moral standards, the do-gooders can become the worst of cheaters.
Suffolk, UK: Wildfowl on four more farms are to be culled amid fears that birds are infected with deadly bird flu, Defra announced today.
More than 5,500 turkeys at Grove Farm in Botisdale, Suffolk will be slaughtered - along with thousands more on other sites - as a precautionary measure after Defra assessed that the birds had come into "dangerous contact" with poultry carrying the deadly HN51 strain.
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| A map showing the exclusion zone
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For most people on the planet, the term "psychopath" evokes thoughts of violence and bloodshed - and evil of the darkest kind.
But during 25 years, a psychologist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison has built a body of work that may help temper such deeply ingrained perceptions.
Sure, people do commit horrific, unimaginable crimes. But does that automatically mean they are psychopathic? And what is "psychopathy" anyway? With unique research access to prison inmate populations in Wisconsin, Joseph Newman has devoted his career to answering such questions.
Comment: Further material on psychopathy:
* '
Political Ponerology' - Andrew Lobaczewski
* '
The Mask of Sanity' - Hervey Cleckley, M.D.
* '
The Sociopath Next Door' - Martha Stout, Ph.D.
* '
Snakes in Suits' - Paul Babiak, Ph.D., Robert D. Hare, Ph.D.
* '
Without Conscience' - Robert D. Hare, Ph.D.
* '
Predators' - Anna C. Salter, Ph.D.
* Cassiopedia.org :-
Psychopathy
Michael Weisskopf
TimeThu, 15 Nov 2007 12:43 UTC
Is the toll of fighting an urban guerrilla war harder on reservists than on active duty soldiers? An authoritative new study thinks so, saying army reservists - who constitute nearly a third of the 1.5 million Americans who have served in Iraq - require psychological treatment at twice the rate of active duty soldiers. The study, released on Veterans' Day week, was issued just as Congress looks for ways to lighten the mental health burden on the country's uniformed ranks.
The study by the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) focused on 88,235 soldiers who were screened twice: first when they returned from Iraq; and second, after three to six months at home. Although reservists had similar battlefield experiences as active-duty troops, they suffered substantially higher rates of depression, interpersonal conflict, suicidal thoughts and post-traumatic stress disorder - a disparity that grew dramatically over time.
Bruce E. Levine
AlternetWed, 14 Nov 2007 10:53 UTC
The author of a new book on depression shows how Big Pharma is cashing in on drugs that aren't likely to help mood disorders.
An associate professor of sociology at Iowa State University, where he is also director of the criminal justice program, DeLisi worked the third shift in a county jail in Colorado while he was a graduate student. That experience led to his first book, Career Criminals in Society (Sage Publications, 2005).
He's now co-author of a new edition of the popular juvenile delinquency textbook Delinquency in Society -- joining Robert Regoli, a professor of sociology at the University of Colorado; and John Hewitt, professor of criminal justice at Grand Valley State University, on the book. DeLisi and ISU sociology lecturer Pete Conis also co-edited another book that was published in October titled Violent Offenders. That book features contributions from an international array of experts on violent criminals -- homicide offenders, sex offenders and psychopaths.
Mothers who breast feed and have high levels of a protein secreted by lipids in their milk may be increasing the risk that their child will be overweight, German researchers report.
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| Mothers nurse their babies in Malaga, southern Spain June 30, 2007. June 30, 2007
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Megan Rauscher
ReutersThu, 15 Nov 2007 00:33 UTC
Gender may explain the considerable variation in the effectiveness of aspirin therapy in reducing the risk of heart attacks, researchers from Canada report. Their findings, published online in BMC Medicine, indicate that women may be much less responsive to aspirin than men.
Women with a low or average risk of having a heart attack "should probably not take aspirin as preventive therapy," Dr. Don D. Sin from the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, told Reuters Health.
Maggie Fox
ReutersTue, 27 Feb 2007 10:35 UTC
Popular painkillers such as aspirin, ibuprofen and acetaminophen can raise blood pressure and thus the risk of heart disease among men, U.S. researchers reported on Monday.
Men who took such drugs for most days in a week were about one-third more likely to be diagnosed with high blood pressure than men not taking them, the researchers found.
More than 35.5 million people in this country went hungry in 2006 as they struggled to find jobs that can support them, a figure that was virtually unchanged from the previous year, the Agriculture Department said Wednesday.
Single mothers and their children were among the most likely to suffer, according to the study.
Comment: Further material on psychopathy:
* 'Political Ponerology' - Andrew Lobaczewski
* 'The Mask of Sanity' - Hervey Cleckley, M.D.
* 'The Sociopath Next Door' - Martha Stout, Ph.D.
* 'Snakes in Suits' - Paul Babiak, Ph.D., Robert D. Hare, Ph.D.
* 'Without Conscience' - Robert D. Hare, Ph.D.
* 'Predators' - Anna C. Salter, Ph.D.
* Cassiopedia.org :- Psychopathy