Anticipatory Stress Increases Deontological Inclinations: The Mediating Role of Emotional Valence
Previous studies have explored the differences in moral judgments under normal situations and acute stress using the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST). The present study examined whether anticipatory stress (i.e., induced by an anticipated speech) could elicit similar effects and further explored the...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2022-11-01
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| Series: | Behavioral Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-328X/12/12/476 |
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| author | Zhongquan Li Liuping Gao Lisong Zhang |
| author_facet | Zhongquan Li Liuping Gao Lisong Zhang |
| author_sort | Zhongquan Li |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Previous studies have explored the differences in moral judgments under normal situations and acute stress using the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST). The present study examined whether anticipatory stress (i.e., induced by an anticipated speech) could elicit similar effects and further explored the mediation of emotional responses between acute stress and moral judgments with a process-dissociation approach. Fifty-three undergraduate students (20 males and 33 females) were randomly assigned to the stress and control groups. In the first stage, they were instructed to prepare a public speech (the stress group) or just recall events during the previous vacation (the control group). In the second stage, they reported emotional valence and arousal for each moral dilemma in a set of 12 moral dilemmas, followed by judgments on moral acceptability of the agent’s action. The manipulation check confirmed that anticipatory stress was reliably induced, as indicated in both self-reported and physiological data. The traditional dilemma analysis revealed that participants in the stress group would make fewer utilitarian judgments than those in the control group. The process dissociation (PD) analyses further revealed that the stress group exhibited higher deontological inclinations than the control group, but no significant differences in utilitarian inclinations. Emotional valence played a mediating role in the association between stress and deontological inclinations. To sum up, our study extended the investigation of the relationship between acute stress and moral judgment to anticipatory stress, clarified its distinct impact on deontological and utilitarian inclinations, and revealed the mediating effect of emotional valence. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T17:18:52Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-10568a42e82f44f8904c0ee376dff97d |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-328X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T17:18:52Z |
| publishDate | 2022-11-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Behavioral Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-10568a42e82f44f8904c0ee376dff97d2023-11-24T13:18:31ZengMDPI AGBehavioral Sciences2076-328X2022-11-01121247610.3390/bs12120476Anticipatory Stress Increases Deontological Inclinations: The Mediating Role of Emotional ValenceZhongquan Li0Liuping Gao1Lisong Zhang2Department of Psychology, School of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, ChinaJiangsu Provincial Education Examination Authority, Nanjing 210036, ChinaSchool of Sociology and Population, Nanjing University of Posts and Telecommunications, Nanjing 210049, ChinaPrevious studies have explored the differences in moral judgments under normal situations and acute stress using the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST). The present study examined whether anticipatory stress (i.e., induced by an anticipated speech) could elicit similar effects and further explored the mediation of emotional responses between acute stress and moral judgments with a process-dissociation approach. Fifty-three undergraduate students (20 males and 33 females) were randomly assigned to the stress and control groups. In the first stage, they were instructed to prepare a public speech (the stress group) or just recall events during the previous vacation (the control group). In the second stage, they reported emotional valence and arousal for each moral dilemma in a set of 12 moral dilemmas, followed by judgments on moral acceptability of the agent’s action. The manipulation check confirmed that anticipatory stress was reliably induced, as indicated in both self-reported and physiological data. The traditional dilemma analysis revealed that participants in the stress group would make fewer utilitarian judgments than those in the control group. The process dissociation (PD) analyses further revealed that the stress group exhibited higher deontological inclinations than the control group, but no significant differences in utilitarian inclinations. Emotional valence played a mediating role in the association between stress and deontological inclinations. To sum up, our study extended the investigation of the relationship between acute stress and moral judgment to anticipatory stress, clarified its distinct impact on deontological and utilitarian inclinations, and revealed the mediating effect of emotional valence.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-328X/12/12/476acute stressmoral judgmentutilitarian inclinationsdeontological inclinationsemotional valence |
| spellingShingle | Zhongquan Li Liuping Gao Lisong Zhang Anticipatory Stress Increases Deontological Inclinations: The Mediating Role of Emotional Valence Behavioral Sciences acute stress moral judgment utilitarian inclinations deontological inclinations emotional valence |
| title | Anticipatory Stress Increases Deontological Inclinations: The Mediating Role of Emotional Valence |
| title_full | Anticipatory Stress Increases Deontological Inclinations: The Mediating Role of Emotional Valence |
| title_fullStr | Anticipatory Stress Increases Deontological Inclinations: The Mediating Role of Emotional Valence |
| title_full_unstemmed | Anticipatory Stress Increases Deontological Inclinations: The Mediating Role of Emotional Valence |
| title_short | Anticipatory Stress Increases Deontological Inclinations: The Mediating Role of Emotional Valence |
| title_sort | anticipatory stress increases deontological inclinations the mediating role of emotional valence |
| topic | acute stress moral judgment utilitarian inclinations deontological inclinations emotional valence |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-328X/12/12/476 |
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