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A little good is good enough: Ethical consumption, cheap excuses, and moral self-licensing

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  • Engel, Jannis
  • Szech, Nora
Abstract
This paper explores the role of cheap excuses in product choice. If a product improves upon one ethically relevant dimension, agents may care less about other independent ethical facets of the product. Opting for a product that fulfills one ethical aspect may thus suffice for keeping a high moral self-image in agents, and render it easier to ignore other ethically relevant aspects they would otherwise care about. The use of such cheap excuses could thus lead to a 'static moral self-licensing' effect. This would extend the logic of the well-known moral self-licensing over time. Our experimental study provides empirical evidence that the static counterpart of moral self-licensing exists. Furthermore, effects spill over to unrelated, ethically relevant contexts later in time. Thus, static moral self-licensing and moral self-licensing over time can amplify each other. Outsiders, though monetarily incentivized for correct estimates, are completely oblivious to the effects of moral selflicensing, both, static and over time.

Suggested Citation

  • Engel, Jannis & Szech, Nora, 2017. "A little good is good enough: Ethical consumption, cheap excuses, and moral self-licensing," Working Paper Series in Economics 102, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Department of Economics and Management.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:kitwps:102
    DOI: 10.5445/IR/1000068513
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    3. Alger, Ingela & Rivero-Wildemauwe, José Ignacio, 2024. "Doing the right thing (or not) in a lemons-like situation: on the role of social preferences and Kantian moral concerns," IAST Working Papers 24-161, Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse (IAST).
    4. Fabian Bopp, 2023. "An Experiment on Dilemma Aversion and Information Avoidance," Working Papers Dissertations 111, Paderborn University, Faculty of Business Administration and Economics.
    5. Smeele, Nicholas V.R. & Chorus, Caspar G. & Schermer, Maartje H.N. & de Bekker-Grob, Esther W., 2023. "Towards machine learning for moral choice analysis in health economics: A literature review and research agenda," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 326(C).
    6. Anita Gantner & Regine Oexl, 2023. "Respecting entitlements in legislative bargaining: A matter of preference or necessity?," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 56(2), pages 490-519, May.
    7. Atul Parvatiyar & Jagdish N. Sheth, 2023. "Confronting the deep problem of consumption: Why individual responsibility for mindful consumption matters," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 57(2), pages 785-820, April.
    8. Vecchi, Martina, 2022. "Groups and socially responsible production: An experiment with farmers," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 196(C), pages 372-392.
    9. Darya Korlyakova, 2022. "Do Pessimistic Expectations About Discrimination Make Minorities Withdraw Their Effort? Causal Evidence," CERGE-EI Working Papers wp731, The Center for Economic Research and Graduate Education - Economics Institute, Prague.
    10. Regine Oexl & Anita Gantner, 2021. "Respecting Entitlements in Legislative Bargaining - A Matter of Preference or Necessity?," Working Papers 2021-25, Faculty of Economics and Statistics, Universität Innsbruck.
    11. Shaohua He & Lei Liu & Qi Liu & Shaoling Fu, 2024. "Creating social value through operational supply chain transparency," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(3), pages 2333-2351, May.
    12. Geraldes, Diogo & Heinicke, Franziska & Rosenkranz, Stephanie, 2019. "Lying in Two Dimensions and Moral Spillovers," MPRA Paper 96640, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    13. Diogo Geraldes & Franziska Heinicke & Stephanie Rosenkranz, 2023. "Lying in two dimensions," Journal of the Economic Science Association, Springer;Economic Science Association, vol. 9(1), pages 34-50, June.
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    16. Barron, Kai, 2019. "Lying to appear honest," Discussion Papers, Research Unit: Economics of Change SP II 2019-307, WZB Berlin Social Science Center.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    moral self-licensing; moral spillovers; cheap excuses; outsider beliefs; moral personality;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D03 - Microeconomics - - General - - - Behavioral Microeconomics: Underlying Principles
    • D84 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Expectations; Speculations

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