Reflective reasoning enhances norm sensitivity in moral dilemmas

A study published in Personality & Social Psychology Bulletin revealed that thinking about reasons for one’s moral dilemma choices increases sensitivity to moral norms without affecting sensitivity to consequences or preferences for action versus inaction.

Moral psychology has extensively debated the role of cognitive reflection in moral judgment. Early theories have emphasized reflective reasoning (see Lawrence Kohlberg), while more recent models focus on automatic emotional processes (see Jonathan Haidt). Integrating these perspectives, the dual-process model posits that utilitarian judgments—those maximizing the greater good—are driven by reflective reasoning, whereas deontological judgments—those adhering to moral norms—stem from automatic emotions (see Joshua Greene). However, evidence linking cognitive reflection and moral judgments remains mixed.

Nyx L. Ng and colleagues sought to explore how reflecting on reasons influences moral dilemma judgments, focusing on sensitivity to consequences, moral norms, and preferences for action versus inaction.

The researchers conducted three experiments to explore the effects of reflecting on reasons in moral dilemma judgments. Across all studies, participants completed a 48-item moral dilemma battery, which included scenarios varying in costs, benefits, and types of moral norms (prescriptive; encouraging action, e.g., “help those in need” or proscriptive; discouraging action, e.g., “do not lie”). Participants judged the acceptability of actions described in each dilemma.

The studies employed the CNI model to separately quantify participants’ sensitivity to consequences (C), moral norms (N), and general action preferences (I). Demographic data such as age, gender, and ethnicity were also collected.

Participants were randomly assigned to different conditions. In the “think-about-reasons” condition, participants were instructed to reflect on reasons justifying their responses, while in the “rely-on-intuitions” condition, participants were prompted to rely on their spontaneous, intuitive reactions. Experiment 3 introduced a third condition, “think-about-intuitions,” where participants reflected specifically on their intuitive reactions before making judgments.

Experiment 1 was conducted online with participants recruited from MTurk (final sample: 165 participants), Experiment 2 was lab-based with undergraduate students (final sample: 249 participants), and Experiment 3 was online with Prolific participants (final sample: 503 participants).

Across the three experiments, participants in the “think-about-reasons” condition consistently demonstrated greater sensitivity to moral norms compared to those in the “rely-on-intuitions” condition. This finding, replicated in all three studies, indicated that reflecting on reasons increased participants’ likelihood of opposing actions that caused harm and supporting actions that prevented harm. Experiment 3 further revealed that this effect was specific to reflecting on reasons, as participants in the “think-about-intuitions” condition did not show a similar increase in norm sensitivity.

Sensitivity to consequences produced variable results. In Experiment 2, participants in the “think-about-reasons” condition displayed higher sensitivity to cost-benefit analyses compared to the “rely-on-intuitions” condition. However, this effect was absent in Experiments 1 and 3, indicating some inconsistency in how reflection influenced consequentialist reasoning.

Similarly, preferences for action versus inaction varied. In Experiment 1, participants in the “think-about-reasons” condition showed a greater preference for action, whereas in Experiment 2, they showed a stronger preference for inaction. No significant differences emerged in Experiment 3.

Importantly, the increase in sensitivity to moral norms among the “think-about-reasons” condition was independent of the time spent deliberating. Although response times were slightly longer in some cases, these differences did not consistently account for the observed effects, confirming that the content of reflection, rather than the cognitive effort involved, drove the results.

Overall, this research highlights that reflecting on reasons enhances sensitivity to moral norms in moral dilemmas, challenging assumptions that deontological judgments solely stem from automatic processes.

The authors noted that while participants were instructed to reflect on reasons, the specific content of these reasons was not controlled, making it unclear whether the results were driven by particular kinds of reasoning (e.g., norm-based or consequence-based).

The research, “Thinking About Reasons for One’s Choices Increases Sensitivity to Moral Norms in Moral-Dilemma Judgments,” was authored by Nyx L. Ng, Dillon M. Luke, and Bertram Gawronski.