Repository logo
 

The clean conscience at work: Emotions, intuitions and morality


Type

Article

Change log

Authors

Cannon, PR 

Abstract

jats:pHow do people decide what is right and wrong, and to what extent are their actions guided by such moral considerations? Inspired by philosophical traditions, early approaches to morality focused on rationality, and assumed that people arrive at moral standards by logical thought. More recently, however, psychologists have explored the influence of emotions and intuitions on morality, and evidence has been accumulating that moral decisions and behaviors are far from rational, but instead, are guided by intuitions and situational considerations. For example, seemingly irrelevant concerns such as keeping one’s mind and spirit clean and pure can change people’s moral judgment. Emotions can also influence behavior, and positive, uplifting emotions such as elevation and gratitude can be harnessed to produce beneficial outcomes for individuals and organizations alike. Furthermore, people appear to aspire to an equilibrium of moral self-worth, and engage in more or less ethical behavior depending on their currently perceived moral integrity. Thus, morality and ethical behavior is less likely to reside in the person than in the context, and thus, for the study of spirituality, it might be beneficial to focus on people’s situational constraints in the workplace rather than their stable dispositions. Further, because of their potential to inspire positive action, organizations might aim to make positive moral emotions, such as gratitude, elevation, and awe part of everyday work contexts. Overall, in organizations and the workplace, the goal shifts from trying to identify the moral individual to providing the contextual conditions that appeal to spiritual concerns in order to foster moral behavior.</jats:p>

Description

Keywords

35 Commerce, Management, Tourism and Services, 50 Philosophy and Religious Studies, 5001 Applied Ethics, 3507 Strategy, Management and Organisational Behaviour, Behavioral and Social Science, Basic Behavioral and Social Science

Journal Title

Journal of Management, Spirituality and Religion

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

1476-6086
1942-258X

Volume Title

Publisher

International Association of Management Spirituality & Religion