Who Am I?

Memories

Narratives

Agency

Capacities

Personality

Morals

Who Am I?

Memories

Narratives

Agency

Capacities

Personality

Morals

The Moral Self

Synchronic IdentityNot limited to morally-oriented peopleNot restricted to virtuesNot universal in content

The Moral Self

Diachronic IdentityMore important thanother traitsNot individualistic

2.2Morals

4.4Memory

What Our Team Has Learned So Far

In this scenario, to what extent are you the

same person as before the accident?

What Our Team Has Learned So Far

Strohminger & Nichols (2014)

Morals Work Home Taste Pastimes

Relig

ion

Polit

ics

Occup

atio

n

Chore

s

Neigh

borh

ood

Count

ry

Mus

icFo

od

Vide

o Gam

es

Cross

wor

ds0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

SelfOther

Mechanisms and

Behavior

Understanding of Moral

SelfSo many questions…

Relation to group identity?

Bearing onresponsibility?

Individualdifferences?

How is itimplemented?

Explicit vs. Implicit

Identification?

Influence onbehavior?

Year 1

How Do People

Understandthe Moral

Self?

1Responsibility and the Moral Self

Work in progress…

Prisoner Definitely Deserves to Stay in Jail0

5

10

15

20

25

30

MemoryMoral

% who say a prisoner definitely deserves to remain in jail after

transformation

Deserve to stain in prison?

Should be be paroled?

0

1

2

3

4

MemoryMorals

Yes

No

Project DirectionsCorruption vs. Reform asymmetriesReward vs. punishment asymmetries

2Signaling and the Moral Self

Work in progress…

Guess My Values?

Liste

ns to

cou

ntry

Reads

milit

ary histor

y

Enjoys

hun

ting

Wea

rs cow

boy bo

ots

Wan

ts a

big fa

mily

Drives

a p

ick-u

p tru

ck

Reads

ver

y little

Reads

to B

ible

Liste

ns to

Hip H

op

Read

poet

ry

Drinks

Sta

rbuc

ks

Is op

enly

gay

Rides

a sk

ateb

aord

Enjoys

mus

eum

s

Is inte

rested

in E

aste

rn re

ligion

Rides

a b

icycle

0102030405060708090

100

Conservative

Liberal

Conservative and Liberal Taste

Project DirectionsMoral identity and social identity

In-group/Out-group biasSelf-sacrifice for moral group

(cf. Swann et al. on suicide terrorism)

3Variation in the Moral Self

Ongoing work…

Psychopathy

moral

personality

apraxia

aphasia

amnesia

depression

duration

identity

.15*

.77***

-.015

.033

-.005

-.098

-.028

Strohminger & Nichols (under review)Strohminger & Nichols (under review)

Project Directions

Clinical populationsPsychopathy subcomponentsMemory deficits (Klein)Depression Autism

Comparative populationsMoral experts: clergy/philosophersCultural differences

Real-world transformationsMoral injuryReligious conversion

Year 2

What Are theMechanisms

and Behavioral Effects?

4Avowal and the Moral Self

Work in progress…

Avowal/Disavowal Pilot

Same person after trait is lost?1

2

3

4

Avowed TraitDisavowed Trait

Loss of homophobic attitudes and behavior

Project DirectionsMoral self effect reduces for changes in disavowed values

SelfishnessHypocrisyIntolerance

Priming moral self can reduce:Bias (IAT measures)Self-serving behaviors (above)

5Mechanisms of the Moral Self

HypothesesCognition: Moral self as

automaticEmotion: Affect as mediator

Psychometrics Load

Arousal Manipulation

6Motivation and the Moral Self

Prior Work

Project Directions

Looking Forward

Moral Self is…Central to identity

Crucial for responsibilityAutomatic and emotional Constrained by avowalFundamentally socialCrucial for real-world

behavior

Deep IntegrationInterdisciplinary Team

PhilosophyPsychology

Track Record of SuccessPioneers of ex-phiPioneering work on moral selfHistory of collaboration

Methodological PluralismAll have gone beyond questionnaires

Perfect Fit with SMV Objectives

Thanks!

Project DirectionsOneness and moral self

Moral ingroups and altruismMoral outgroups and empathy

Priming and GivingBiography vs. ValuesFuture selves

Prior WorkCognitive control (self neglected)Morality and emotion (self neglected)Hypotheses

Morality-Self connection as automaticEmotions as mediators

Prior WorkFrankfurt et al. on identificationIAT and implicit bias vs. explicitQuestion: Are disavowed implicit values really me?

Prior workIndividual differences in moral identification (e.g., Erikson, Blasi)Clinical populations…

Morals Work Home Taste Pastimes

Relig

ion

Polit

ics

Occup

atio

n

Chore

s

Neigh

borh

ood

Count

ry

Mus

icFo

od

Vide

o Gam

es

Cross

wor

ds0

1

2

3

4

5

6

SelfOther

High Low1

2

3

4

5

6

WeekYear

No punishment

at all

Maximum punishment allowed by school

Prior WorkOneness and altruism (Chialdini)Moral identity and prosociality (Hardy)Safeguard against situations (Aquino)Change and charity (Bartels et al.)…

1.21*** identity

antisocial

empathy

inhibitions

moralapathy

attention

eating

obsessionscompulsions

paranoia

sex

motivationFTD

.135

Strohminger & Nichols (under review)

Cognitive Impairment

Age-Related Change

The Moral Self