I can see it in your eyes”

Biased Processing and Increased Arousal in Dishonest Responses

Bibliographic Data

ID12166253
AuthorsGuy Hochman (0000-0001-7486-8265, Social Science Research Institute Duke University Durham NC USA, corresponding author), Andreas Glöckner (0000-0002-7766-4791, Institut für Psychologie University of Hagen Hagen Germany), Susann Fiedler (0000-0001-9337-2142, Max Planck Institute for Research on Collective Goods Bonn Germany), Shahar Ayal (0000-0002-7357-1969, Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology Interdisciplinary Center (IDC) Herzliya Israel)
Year2015
Volume29
Issue2-3
Pages322-335
Publication date2015-12-29
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Behavioral Decision Making (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0894-3257 • E-ISSN: 1099-0771
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1002/bdm.1932
OpenAlexW3123293788
LanguageEN
Citations received21
References cited84

According to self‐maintenance theory, people notice their dishonest acts and thus experience ethical dissonance between their misconduct and their positive moral self. In this view, dishonesty is facilitated by justifications that redefine moral boundaries. By contrast, the bounded ethicality approach suggests that biased perception prevents people from becoming aware of their dishonesty. We tested the key process assumptions behind these accounts using pupillary responses and fixation data and found physiological evidence for both kinds of mechanisms. In particular, physiological arousal increased at the initial stage of cheating responses. This suggests that people are on some level aware of their wrongdoings. At the same time, however, we found attentional biases that can reduce the likelihood for detecting potentially disadvantageous information. We suggest that dishonest acts come at the internal cost of increased tension, which people aim to avoid by pre‐emptive biased processing as well as post hoc justifications. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd

Arousal · Cheating · Cognitive dissonance · Cognitive psychology · Dishonesty · Misconduct · Morality · Notice · Perception · Law · Psychology · Psychology of Moral and Emotional Judgment · Social Psychology

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