No foreign language effect in self-sacrificial moral dilemmas

Bibliographic Data

ID7156203
AuthorsRafał Muda (0000-0003-4953-6642, University of Wroclaw, Poland; #Make Smart People Famous Foundation, Poland, corresponding author), Wojciech Milczarski (0000-0002-8215-5190), Anna Borkowska (0000-0002-8971-9868), Michal Bialek (0000-0002-5062-5733, University of Wrocław)
Year2026
Volume30
Issue1
Pages94-109
Publication date2026-02-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueInternational Journal of Bilingualism (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1367-0069 • E-ISSN: 1756-6878
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/13670069241307890
OpenAlexW4405883048
LanguageEN
Citations received3
References cited49

Research questions: The Moral Foreign Language Effect is a phenomenon in which individuals exhibit lower moral engagement (i.e., are simultaneously less deontological and less utilitarian) when using a foreign language compared to their native language. This paper reports on three experiments involving bilingual participants to investigate the impact of foreign language on moral judgment in self-sacrifice dilemmas. Design: In three experiments, we asked N = 425 participants whether they would self-sacrifice to save other people. In Experiment 1, the people to be saved were strangers. In Experiment 2, they were relatives. Experiment 3 replicated the first two with the addition of the control condition with the option to sacrifice a stranger instead. Data and analysis: Experiments 1 and 3 showed no effect of language on willingness to self-sacrifice. In Experiment 2, the participants using a foreign language were less willing to sacrifice themselves. Conclusions: Language has no consistent effect on participants’ willingness to sacrifice themselves or others. Originality: Contrary to previous studies on the issue, we controlled both for the beneficiaries (strangers vs. relatives) and the method of saving them (self-sacrifice vs. sacrifice of a stranger). Significance: Our results cast doubt on the robustness of the moral Foreign Language Effect. Limitations: We limited our research design to two language pairs. Failure to replicate Experiment 2 results in Experiment 3 could be an effect of the different language pairs used in both experiments

Foreign language · Mathematics education · Originality · Sacrifice · Theology · Willingness to communicate · Cultural Differences and Values · Emotions and Moral Behavior · Philosophy · Psychology · Psychology of Moral and Emotional Judgment · Social Psychology

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