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This study examines how social media influencers (SMIs) perceive their role in the complex relationships between brands, followers, and society, the moral dilemmas they face, and how they deal with them. The results show that SMIs find themselves in different roles depending on which stakeholders' expectations they fulfil. Using role theory as a theoretical framework, we find that the conflicts between extended expectations (commitment, authenticity, and responsibility) lead to various moral dilemmas: non-disclosure, withholding negative experiences, lack of empathy, promotion of products without genuine experience, sharing opinions on socially relevant issues, and promotion of harmful products. Strategies for resolving these dilemmas which help SMIs manage their complex moral obligations include: spotlighting a role, downplaying a role, customizing a role, and resorting to a role. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Psychiatric nurses face moral dilemmas that affect their mental health. We investigated whether sense of coherence (SOC) buffers psychiatric nurses' perceived effects of moral dilemmas on their psychological distress. A total of 418 nursing professionals in 6 psychiatric hospitals in Japan completed self-administered questionnaires. A negative correlation was observed between "patient rights" (r = −0.24, p < 0.001), "relationships other than patient" (r = −0.28, p < 0.001), "nursing care" (r = −0.25, p < 0.001) of moral dilemmas and "manageability" of SOC. Additionally, a negative correlation was observed between "patient rights" (r = −0.22, p < 0.001), "relationships other than patient" (r = −0.21, p < 0.001) of moral dilemmas and "comprehensibility" of SOC. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis used the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale-10 (K10), which assessed the degree of mental distress, as the dependent variable, and moral dilemmas and SOC as the independent variables, along with their interaction terms. The K10 scores significantly changed depending on the degree of moral dilemmas in the low SOC group, but not in the high SOC group. SOC buffers the effects of psychiatric nurses' perceived moral dilemmas on their psychological distress. • Sense of coherence (SOC) buffers psychiatric nurses' distress from moral dilemmas effectively. • Interaction effects between SOC and moral dilemmas on distress are significant. • Low SOC nurses face higher distress from moral dilemmas; high SOC buffers this. • SOC's buffering effect is pronounced in patient rights and interpersonal dilemmas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article is dedicated to the book Reframing Ethics through Dialectics: A New Understanding of the Moral Good by Michael Steinmann, who argues that the dialec tical inconsistency of moral theories, to which he refers to as “failure,” founds the ontological status of moral principles. Individual moral failure, on the other hand, is reduced to an epistemic error. Against the background of Lisa Tessman’s moral skepticism, Søren Kierkegaard’s moral existentialism, and Georg Simmel’s moral psy chologism, the author of this article shows that by overlooking the significance of in dividual moral failure, Steinmann’s “metaethical failure” loses its dialectical meaning.

What society experiences today as morally questionable design—from gendered toys for children to public benches that prevent sleeping—can be considered the aftermath of an underdeveloped foundation for systematic ethical reflection in design methodologies. Although designing is an inherently moral activity, research on how to recognize and handle ethical questions and moral dilemmas in early (conceptual) design activities is scarce. In this article, we use an interdisciplinary lens to analyze and respond to the challenges of bridging moral psychology, ethics of technology, and design methodologies. For this, we introduce the concept of moral engagement in design, which is inspired by Moral Disengagement Theory. Finally, we propose five preliminary considerations for enacting moral engagement in design practices. These considerations form an interdisciplinary bridge to help us reflect on the moral dimensions of methodological choices in conceptual design practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to present the way in which doctoral theses are evaluated by the academic guidance and integrity commission, the public support committee of the doctoral thesis and CNATDCU, as well as aspects regarding the originality and scientific value of doctoral theses. Beyond this technical analysis, which is extremely useful, the paper addresses issues of a common ethical nature, but little analysed, which appear in the scientific research activity when starting from the idea of the doctoral leader, the doctoral student develops and acquires as sole author the doctoral thesis. Also, in scientific research there may be contradictory points of view between the doctoral student and the doctoral leader, each point of view being supported from a scientific point of view, but only one point of view must be taken into account in the elaboration of the paper. The ethical aspects presented above may generate moral dilemmas of the doctoral student regarding the paternity of the doctoral thesis, respectively, whether or not the doctoral leader’s point of view is appropriated in the doctoral thesis. The topic presented makes a brief incursion into this complex issue and identifies possible ways to resolve the above-mentioned moral dilemmas.

Existing research has examined people’s judgments concerning moral dilemmas involving non-human driving agents (i.e. an autonomous vehicle, abbr. AV). However, more evidence is needed to clarify the underlying cognitive mechanism accounting for the differential attribution of blame between non-human (e.g., robot) drivers and human drivers when facing a dilemma where obeying the traffic rule conflicts with humanitarian goals. Drawing on literature from moral psychology and human-robot interaction, we argued that the perception of mental state might account for this difference. In three studies, we investigated the mediating role of intentionality perceived in the drivers using a constructed scenario that mirrored real-life moral dilemmas. Studies 1 and 2 revealed that participants assigned greater blame and perceived higher levels of intentionality to human drivers than to robot drivers. Mediation analyses demonstrated that robot drivers received less of blame to the extent that they were perceived as less intentionally violating the traffic rule. In Study 3, we excluded a mitigating factor of blaming the robot, i.e. holding a third party (e.g., the manufacturers) accountable. We found that the mediation effect of perceived intentionality remained regardless. This research provides insights into the attribution of blame directed toward non-human drivers such as AVs and their assumed intentionality.

Bumped from a flight? Relax with this defense of the big business practice of deliberately promising more services than one will provide. On a small scale, over‐promising yields a toxic moral dilemma and a lie. At a large scale, the dilemma becomes dilute, and the lie completely disappears. Overbooking is honest because there is a sufficiently high probability of fulfilling each promise. Overbooking is socially beneficial because the promised resources are used more efficiently. There are fewer wasted seats on jumbo jets and hence cheaper tickets with less pollution. Widespread disapproval of overbooking is a fallacious scaling error. Instead of there being too much overbooking, there is too little. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Philosophy is often discounted as impractical and inequitably labelled as unpragmatic, but we cannot deny that it is the underpinning sustenance of all aspects of life. Everyone bases all their actions on their belief system which in turn formulates their identity, sense of morals and duties. Today, when we witness that the world is in a state of utter unrest, it will be helpful to seek remedy from Indian Philosophy along with its cultural traditions which aim at the holistic development of an individual and promotes universal brotherhood. India's spiritual wisdom is a source of guidance for anyone who wants to reach a mentally calm and spiritually satisfied state, which will not waver by the perplexities of life. The issues / objectives which shall be addressed in this paper are as follows: 1. How Philosophical Counselling is important and should be given in nascent stage of one's life, when the young minds are cultivated and taught the meaning of life. 2. What is the purpose of life and how can one achieve it? 3. Reflection on duties towards oneself and the others. 4. What is the influence of ego (ahamkāra) in self-reflection? 5. Analysis on the formation of one's belief-system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is on the verge of impacting every domain of our lives. It is increasingly being used as an advisor to assist in making decisions. The present study aimed at investigating the influence of moral arguments provided by AI-advisors (i.e., decision aid tool) on human moral decision-making and the associated neural correlates. Participants were presented with sacrificial moral dilemmas and had to make moral decisions either by themselves (i.e., baseline run) or with AI-advisors that provided utilitarian or deontological arguments (i.e., AI-advised run), while their brain activity was measured using an fNIRS device. Overall, AI-advisors significantly influenced participants. Longer response times and a decrease in right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex activity were observed in response to deontological arguments than to utilitarian arguments. Being provided with deontological arguments by machines appears to have led to a decreased appraisal of the affective response to the dilemmas. This resulted in a reduced level of utilitarianism, supposedly in an attempt to avoid behaving in a less cold-blooded way than machines and preserve their (self-)image. Taken together, these results suggest that motivational power can led to a voluntary up- and down-regulation of affective processes along moral decision-making.

A potential underlying mechanism associated with the difficulties in social interactions in Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD) concerns the abnormal development of moral reasoning. The present study examined utilitarian and deontological judgments in impersonal and personal moral dilemmas, comparing 66 individuals with ASD and 61 typically developing (TD) individuals between 6 and 18 years. Utilitarian judgments decreased with age. This decline was much more gradual for personal dilemmas in the ASD than in the TD group. ASD individuals rated utilitarian judgments as more appropriate but felt less calm, consistent with the Empathy Imbalance hypothesis. Utilitarian judgments were associated with social interaction difficulties in ASD. These findings identify possible social therapeutic targets for more efficient coping strategies in individuals with ASD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Perspective‐taking (PT) accessibility has been recognized as an important factor in affecting moral reasoning, also playing a non‐trivial role in moral investigation towards autonomous vehicles (AVs). A new proposal to deepen this effect leverages the principles of the veil of ignorance (VOI), as a moral reasoning device aimed to control self‐interested decisions by limiting the access to specific perspectives and to potentially biased information. Throughout two studies, we deepen the role of VOI reasoning in the moral perception of AVs, disclosing personal and contingent information progressively throughout the experiment. With the use of the moral trilemma paradigm, two different VOI conditions were operationalized, inspired by the Original Position theory by John Rawls and the Equiprobability Model by John Harsanyi. Evidence suggests a significant role of VOI reasoning in affecting moral reasoning, which seems not independent from the order in which information is revealed. Coherently, a detrimental effect of self‐involvement on utilitarian behaviours was detected. These results highlight the importance of considering PT accessibility and self‐involvement when investigating moral attitudes towards AVs, since it can help the intelligibility of general concerns and hesitations towards this new technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Moral thinking and communication are critical competencies for confronting social dilemmas in a challenging world. We examined these moral competencies in 70 college students and graduates from Taiwan, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Participants were assessed through semi-structured written interviews, Facebook group discussions, and a questionnaire. In this paper, we describe the similarities and differences across cultural groupings in (1) the social issues of greatest importance to the participants; (2) the factors influencing their approaches to thinking about social issues and communicating with others; and (3) the characteristics of their moral functioning in terms of moral awareness, moral judgment, moral discourse, and moral decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Moral dilemmas are a feature of moral life that make us vulnerable to tragic failures. But while all moral dilemmas involve unavoidable moral failure and leave a moral remainder, they do not all involve dirty hands. Recognizing that Thomas Nagel's ideas about the availability of both agent-relative and agent-neutral perspectives from which to ask moral questions formed the backdrop to Michael Walzer's work on dirty hands fifty years ago, this paper tries to explain why, when we must take both perspectives—thus being an agent who meanwhile considers overriding the responsibilities of our particular agency—we risk dirtying our hands. The answer to a question about what ought to happen (as judged from an agent-neutral perspective) and the answer to a question about what one ought to do (as judged from an agent-relative perspective) are utterly incomparable because they are answers to two different questions, making any all-things-considered decision, when these answers conflict, unintelligible. If we decide to act on an agent-neutral reason to violate a conflicting agent-relative requirement, then despite our not having clearly made a wrong decision, our chosen action may be unthinkable. It is with the dirt of acting as an administrator of what ought to happen—as a kind of non-agent, when agency is urgently called for—that we do the unthinkable. The paper concludes that this combination of unintelligibility and unthinkability, when brought on by being an agent who steps outside of our own agency, is the mark of a dirty hands dilemma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

More research is needed on how the COVID-19 pandemic has shaped professional cultures and its implications for equity and justice. We conducted focus groups with STEM faculty at an exemplar case university, chosen because of its high expectations for research and teaching and its federal designation as a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI). We use cultural schemas – which outline core content of professional culture – as analytical lenses. In addition to the schemas of scientific research excellence and devotion identified in previous literature, we find evidence of a cultural schema of radical connection and service to undergraduate students, many of whom are Latinx and in families who faced disproportionately high risks from the pandemic. We argue that work-work conflict and work-family conflict are rooted in cultural schemas of the academic profession that clashed more intensively during the pandemic. These clashes intensify moral dilemmas for faculty and reinforce inequalities and injustices. We urge the federal government to expand the expectations for HSI designation beyond achieving a certain demographic profile to require and equip campuses to fully serve their diverse student bodies and fully sustain the faculty and staff who support them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study examined public perception in Israel of the severity of medical cannabis diversion, its morality, and normativeness. The sample included 380 participants who completed a quantitative questionnaire to respond to four scenarios about diverting medical cannabis to a person with/without a license and with/without a small payment (a 2×2 design). The findings show that although the participants received advance information about the severity of medical cannabis diversion as a drug trafficking offense, they perceived the severity of the offense as moderate, and as an act that is at least moderately moral and normative. The findings are explained based on moral theories. We discuss the implications of the findings in relation to the gap between public attitudes and legal policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the investigation of moral judgments of autonomous vehicles (AVs), the paradigm of the sacrificial dilemma is a widespread and flexible experimental tool. In this context, the sacrifice of the AV's passenger typically occurs upon enactment of the utilitarian option, which differs from traditional sacrificial dilemmas, in which the moral agent's life is often jeopardized in the non-utilitarian counterpart. The present within-subject study (n = 183) is aimed at deepening the role of self-sacrifice framing, comparing autonomous- and human-driving text-based moral dilemmas in terms of moral judgment and intensity of four moral emotions (shame, guilt, anger, and disgust). A higher endorsement of utilitarian behavior was observed in human-driving dilemmas and for self-protective utilitarian behaviors. Interestingly, the utilitarian option was considered less moral, shameful, and blameworthy in the case of concurrent self-sacrifice. The present study collects novel information on how different levels of driving automation shape moral judgment and emotions, also providing new evidence on the role of self-sacrifice framing in moral dilemmas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Moral dilemmas are frequently used to examine psychological processes that drive decisions between adhering to deontological norms and optimizing the outcome. However, commonly used dilemmas are generally unrealistic and confound moral principle and (in)action so that results obtained with these dilemmas might not generalize to other situations. In the present research, we introduce new dilemmas that are based on real-life events. In two studies (a European student sample and a North American MTurk sample, total N = 789), we show that the new factual dilemmas were perceived to be more realistic and less absurd than commonly used dilemmas. In addition, factual dilemmas induced higher participant engagement. From this, we draw the preliminary conclusion that factual dilemmas are more suitable for investigating moral cognition. Moreover, factual dilemmas can be used to examine the generalizability of previous results concerning action (vs. inaction) and concerning a wider range of deontological norms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous research has found that those who are more psychopathic are more supportive of the actions that harm others to maximize the outcomes. This might be because the more psychopathic: 1) care more about the consequences; 2) care less about the "no harm" norms; 3) prefer action more often than inaction irrespective of consequences and norms. These possibilities are claimed to be dissociated by the so-called CNI model. We aimed to address the limitations of the CNI model by using an alternative algorithm that algebraically generates the probabilities of consequence sensitivity, norm sensitivity, and overall action bias; the CAN algorithm for short. We applied the CAN algorithm and reanalyzed the raw data from four previous studies. The results demonstrated some new findings. People who are more psychopathic have more overall action bias, have stronger inaction and action preferences opposite to the requirements of norms and consequences, and have weaker inclinations to follow moral principles. Perceived societal standards, rather than personal standards, can alleviate the positive effects of psychopathy on overall action bias and action preference opposite to norms and consequences. The present study clarified and deepened our insights into the relationship between psychopathy and moral decisions. Theoretical and methodological implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Being a teacher means to constantly cultivate one's own morality and pursue the fulfillment of one's own morality. However, in real professional life, one often faces a deep moral dilemma. Adhering to teaching as the “self-cultivation", extricating oneself from external evaluation guidance, rethinking on the positioning and practical significance of the sacredness in the teacher's professional life and finding the teacher's self and reconstructing the teaching publicity are the several fundamental aspects of solving the moral dilemma in the teacher's professional life today, covering the professional spirit of teachers, the relationship between community and self, and touching the core of teachers' professional life. By properly handling the relationship between self and reality, reflecting on the relationship between theory and practice, teachers can face the deep truth in their hearts and have the potential to overcome the moral dilemma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Nurses experienced intense ethical and moral challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic. Our 2020 qualitative parent study of frontline nurses' experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic identified ethics as a cross-cutting theme with six subthemes: moral dilemmas, moral uncertainty, moral distress, moral injury, moral outrage, and moral courage. We re-analyzed ethics-related findings in light of refined definitions of ethics concepts. Research aim: To analyze frontline U.S. nurses' experiences of ethics during the COVID-19 pandemic. Research design: Qualitative analysis using a directed content methodology. Participants and research context: The study included 43 nurses from three major metropolitan academic medical centers and one community hospital in the northeastern, mid-Atlantic, midwestern, and western United States. Ethical considerations: Participant privacy and data confidentiality were addressed. Findings: Moral dilemmas arose from many situations, most frequently related to balancing safety and patient care. Moral uncertainty commonly arose from lacking health information or evidence about options. Moral distress occurred when nurses knew the right thing to do, but were prevented from doing so, including with end-of-life issues. Moral injury (accompanied by suffering, shame, or guilt) occurred after doing, seeing, or experiencing wrongdoing, often involving authority figures. Nurses expressed moral outrage at events and people within and outside healthcare. Despite difficult ethical situations, some nurses exemplified moral courage, sometimes by resisting policies they perceived as preventing compassionate care, guided by thinking about what was best for patients. Discussion: This content analysis of ethics-related subthemes revealed conceptual characteristics and clarified distinctions with corresponding exemplars. Conceptual clarity may inform responses and interventions to address ethical quandaries in nursing practice. Conclusions: Ethics education in nursing must address the moral dilemmas of pandemics, disasters, and other crises. Nurses need time and resources to heal from trying to provide the best care when no ideal option was available. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Mediterranean Journal of Sport Science (MJSS) is the property of Mediterranean Journal of Sport Science (MJSS) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Kirti Singhal, Surekha Chukkali Department of Psychology, CHRIST (Deemed to be University), Ghaziabad, Delhi NCR, IndiaCorrespondence: Surekha Chukkali, Department of Psychology, CHRIST (Deemed to be University), Mariam Nagar, Meerut Road, Ghaziabad, Delhi NCR, 201003, India, Tel +91 9901775477, Email surekha.chukkali@christuniversity.inAbstract: The spread of the novel coronavirus has led to a rise in morally conflicting situations for healthcare professionals. Doctors and nurses who were serving as frontline workers, require special attention to alleviate the long-lasting impact of the potentially morally injurious events. The current study aims to validate the Moral Injury Symptom Scale-Healthcare Professionals (MISS- HP) among Indian healthcare workers. The 10-item MISS was administered to 150 doctors and 150 nurses using the purposive sampling method. Firstly, reliability was assessed using internal consistency measure. Secondly, item discrimination index was assessed by calculating the point biserial correlation for each item. Cronbach alpha indicated high internal consistency (0.77). The point biserial correlation value for each item indicated good discrimination. Finally, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was performed to replicate the factor structure. CFA results suggested a good fit to the data. In conclusion, MISS-HP is a reliable and valid tool to assess moral injury among Indian healthcare professionals in India.Keywords: pandemic, moral conflict, moral dilemma, frontline workers

The moral dilemma task developed by Greene et al., which comprises personal and impersonal moral dilemmas, is useful for clarifying people’s moral judgments. This study develops and validates a Japanese version of this questionnaire. Ten new questions were added to the Japanese version using back-translation, and its internal validity was tested. A second survey was conducted among the same participants one month after the first survey (n = 231). The intraclass correlation coefficient through retesting was found to be 0.781. Test-retest, internal consistency, and criterion-related validity were confirmed by retesting the Japanese version of the moral dilemma task. Moral judgments differed in gender, with women and men tending to be more utilitarian in situations where emotions were less and more likely to be involved, respectively. The association between age and deontological moral judgments was also observed.

To date, scholars have side-stepped examining the applicability of the Anti-Blowout thesis in parallel sports. This essay is an attempt to test this construct in the context of endurance footraces. After a review of the central tenets of Dixon's definition of the Anti-Blowout thesis, I will provide a sketch of what blowouts look like in footraces including a description of a secured victory and the subsequent creation of a wide margin of victory. Conclusions suggest that opportunities do exist for runners to malevolently run others into the ground, although efforts to remedy such actions are challenging due to the structure of the footrace practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study examined the potential bias of foreign language effect (FLE) on moral judgment by considering the confounding influence of perverse responses. A perverse response is a reaction that contradicts both norms and consequences, that is, participants choose to take action (or inaction) when both norms and consequences require inaction (or action). We predicted that using a foreign language, compared to a native language, would elicit more perverse responses, thereby confounding the participants’ moral judgments. To test our prediction, we distinguished between active and inhibitory perverse responses and re-analyzed the raw data from a previous FLE study using four approaches: the traditional dilemma paradigm, the process dissociation model, the consequence-norm-generalised inaction/action (CNI) model, and the consequence-overall action/inaction-norm (CAN) algorithm. The results of the mediation analyses consistently showed that active and inhibitory perverse responses mediate the effects of foreign/native language on moral decisions in all the four approaches. The results suggest that individuals using a foreign language tend to exhibit more active and inhibitory perverse responses, which in turn influence their moral decisions. Addressing this issue could help clarify the FLE on moral decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is proposed an experimental task with the Kogi ancestral wise men, including those who are Mamas (knowledgeable men), translators and teachers. With the answers to the moral dilemmas, it is possible to demonstrate, in the first place, that the Kogi indigenous usually base their moral judgements on a cognitive process whose objective is to identify and reject harm. In the second place, it is verified that the given indication is fulfilled for Mamas as well as otherwise men that do not hold such quality (translators and teachers). In the third place, it is shown that indigenous people reject harm no matter the possible victims' quality, it means, independently if it is a non-indigenous person (or that does not belong to the group), a Kogi indigenous person (that belongs to the group), or Nature (conceived in the Kogi worldview as a living being object of cult). These indications seem to propose Kogi wise men as an exceptional case faced to prescriptions of the dual model. Finally, the study shows that the experiment results could also allow to point out ways to clarify cultural concepts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista de Administração FACES Journal is the property of Revista de Administracao FACES Journal and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Research in moral psychology has found that robots, more than humans, are expected to make utilitarian decisions. This expectation is found specifically when contrasting utilitarian action to deontological inaction. In a series of eight experiments (total N = 3752), we compared judgments about robots' and humans' decisions in a rescue dilemma with no possibility of deontological inaction. A robot's decision to rescue an innocent victim of an accident was judged more positively than the decision to rescue two people culpable for the accident (Studies 1–2b). This pattern repeated in a large‐scale web survey (Study 3, N = ∼19,000) and reversed when all victims were equally culpable/innocent (Study 5). Differences in judgments about humans' and robots' decisions were largest for norm‐violating decisions. In sum, robots are not always expected to make utilitarian decisions, and their decisions are judged differently from those of humans based on other moral standards as well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The growing interest in the subject of moral judgment in driver and autonomous vehicle behavior highlights the importance of investigating the suitability of sacrificial dilemmas as experimental tools in the context of traffic psychology. To this aim a set of validated sacrificial trolley problems and a new set of trolley-like driving dilemmas were compared through an online survey experiment, providing normative values for rates of participants' choices; decision times; evaluation of emotional valence and arousal experienced during the decision process; and ratings of the moral acceptability. Results showed that while both sets of dilemmas led to a more frequent selection of utilitarian outcomes, the driving-type dilemmas seemed to enhance faster decisions mainly based on the utilitarian moral code. No further differences were observed between the two sets, confirming the reliability of the moral dilemma tool in the investigation of moral driving behaviors. We suggest that as moral judgments and behaviors become more lifelike, the individual's moral inclination emerge more automatically and effectively. This new driving-type dilemma set may help researchers who work in traffic psychology and moral decision-making to approach the complex task of developing realistic moral scenarios more easily in the context of autonomous and nonautonomous transportation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous research has shown that bilinguals respond differently to moral dilemmas posed in each of their languages, tending to make deontologically-based decisions (based on right or wrong) in their first language and utilitarian decisions (bringing about the most good) in their second language. In the present study, we tested several predictors of bilinguals' moral reasoning: language (L1 Russian or L2 English), gender, proficiency, age, and dilemma. We included two different personal moral dilemmas: one involving saving the lives of others (by killing a fat man) and one involving saving one's own life (by killing a baby). Russian-English bilinguals responded to one of these dilemmas in Russian and the other in English. The results showed only two significant predictors of responses: dilemma and age. The bilinguals made more deontological decisions for the dilemma about saving others and more utilitarian decisions for the dilemma involving saving their own lives. The participants who gave deontological responses were slightly older than those who gave utilitarian responses. We argue that factors other than language may be more important in bilinguals' moral reasoning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Digitalization in intelligent manufacturing leads to the development of Industry 4.0/5.0 and human-cyber-physical systems. As many production technologies rely on teaming of human workers and intelligent cyber-physical systems such as industrial robots, human-robot collaboration is an intensively investigated topic in this transdisciplinary research area. To design industrial robots in a human-centered way, psychological knowledge concerning judgment and decision-making needs to be gained and integrated. Method: This paper reports results from an experimental study (N = 222, 2 × 4 within-subjects design) using eight moral dilemmas framed in the context of human-robot-collaboration to examine the influence of spatial distance of an industrial robot and humans (no direct contact, different tasks vs. no direct contact, same task vs. handing-over contact, same task vs. direct contact, same task) on moral decisions. Additionally, the type of dilemma was varied, with every four dilemmas depicting a life-or-death and an injury scenario. Participants responded on a four-point-response scale which actions they would take indicating deontological or utilitarian moral decision-making. Results: Results show a large effect of the proximity of the cooperation between robots and humans. The closer the collaboration the more a human tends to choose utilitarian moral choices. Discussion: It is argued that this effect might stem from an adaptation of human rationality to the robot or overreliance and shift of responsibility to the robot team partner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The moral dilemma task developed by Greene et al., which comprises personal and impersonal moral dilemmas, is useful for clarifying people's moral judgments. This study develops and validates a Japanese version of this questionnaire. Ten new questions were added to the Japanese version using back-translation, and its internal validity was tested. A second survey was conducted among the same participants one month after the first survey (n = 231). The intraclass correlation coefficient through retesting was found to be 0.781. Test-retest, internal consistency, and criterion-related validity were confirmed by retesting the Japanese version of the moral dilemma task. Moral judgments differed in gender, with women and men tending to be more utilitarian in situations where emotions were less and more likely to be involved, respectively. The association between age and deontological moral judgments was also observed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Like many governments in this COVID-19 pandemic, the Nigerian government imposed a lockdown on the country. As a consequence of the lockdown, many businesses shutdown and effectively had no source of revenue. Yet, without receiving any bailout or palliatives from the government, these businesses are required to meet their tax obligations to the government. Bearing in mind that this time (COVID-19 era) is different, one wonders what is required of businesses in view of the taxation problem and the social contract between the businesspersons and the government. In view of social contract obligations, in this COVID-19 pandemic should businesses pay tax to a government that seems to have delegitimised itself by its exploitative actions in terms of taxation and delinquent omission in terms of the provision of public goods and social services? The Nigerian government at all tiers (federal, state and local) seldom respect the essence of taxation. Therefore, businesses often pay tax for nothing. For many businesses, as far as taxation is concerned, to pay or not to pay? that is the question. This article is aimed at teasing out this taxation problem that may or may not be a moral dilemma. In view of certain ethical considerations, this article shows why in spite of social contract obligations, there is no consensus or canonical agreement on whether, as law-abiding citizens and juridical persons (legal entities), businesspersons and businesses ought to or ought not to pay tax to the Nigerian government in this COVID-19 pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hypothetical thought experiments allow researchers to gain insights into widespread moral intuitions and provide opportunities for individuals to explore their moral commitments. Previous thought experiment studies in virtual reality (VR) required participants to come to an on-site laboratory, which possibly restricted the study population, introduced an observer effect, and made internal reflection on the participants' part more difficult. These shortcomings are particularly crucial today, as results from such studies are increasingly impacting the development of artificial intelligence systems, self-driving cars, and other technologies. This paper explores the viability of deploying thought experiments in commercially available in-home VR headsets. We conducted a study that presented the trolley problem, a life-and-death moral dilemma, through SideQuestVR, a third-party website and community that facilitates loading applications onto Oculus headsets. Thirty-three individuals were presented with one of two dilemmas: (1) a decision to save five lives at the cost of one life by pulling a switch and (2) a decision to save five lives at the cost of one life by pushing a person onto train tracks. The results were consistent with those of previous VR studies, suggesting that a "VR-at-a-distance" approach to thought experiments has a promising future while indicating lessons for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]