The Dishonesty of Honest People: A Theory of Self-Concept Maintenance

Journal of Marketing Research - Tập 45 Số 6 - Trang 633-644 - 2008
Nina Mažar1, On Amir2, Dan Ariely3
1Joseph L. Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto
2Rady School of Management, University of California, San Diego
3Dan Ariely is Visiting Professor of Marketing, Fuqua School of Business, Duke University

Tóm tắt

People like to think of themselves as honest. However, dishonesty pays—and it often pays well. How do people resolve this tension? This research shows that people behave dishonestly enough to profit but honestly enough to delude themselves of their own integrity. A little bit of dishonesty gives a taste of profit without spoiling a positive self-view. Two mechanisms allow for such self-concept maintenance: inattention to moral standards and categorization malleability. Six experiments support the authors’ theory of self-concept maintenance and offer practical applications for curbing dishonesty in everyday life.

Từ khóa


Tài liệu tham khảo

10.1016/0047-2727(72)90010-2

Aronson Elliot, 1969, Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 4, 1

10.1037/h0042291

10.1098/rsbl.2006.0509

Baumeister Roy F., 1998, Handbook of Social Psychology, 680

10.1086/259394

10.1016/S0065-2601(08)60024-6

10.1086/421167

Bénabou Roland, 2006, “Identity, Dignity and Taboos,”

10.1007/s12110-005-1015-2

Bodner Ronit, 2001, “Self-Signaling and Diagnostic Utility in Everyday Decision Making,”

10.2307/2785655

Dana Jason, 2005, “Exploiting Moral Wiggle Room: Experiments Demonstrating an Illusory Preference for Fairness,”

10.1126/science.1100735

10.1111/j.1559-1816.1992.tb00928.x

10.1016/0092-6566(76)90088-X

Duval Thomas S., 1972, A Theory of Objective Self Awareness.

10.1016/0030-5073(75)90002-1

10.1257/0002828053828662

10.1207/s15324834basp1401_2

10.1037/0003-066X.35.7.603

10.1016/S0065-2601(08)60333-0

10.1037/0022-3514.37.2.147

10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2005.01.002

10.1080/00221325.1976.10533980

10.1037/0022-3514.72.3.664

10.1177/1043463190002002004

10.1257/aer.91.2.73

Herman Tom, 2005, The Wall Street Journal, D1

10.1086/374702

10.1037/0022-3514.66.1.206

10.1177/01461672002610009

10.1523/JNEUROSCI.21-16-j0002.2001

10.1016/S0065-2601(08)60307-X

Lewicki Roy J., 1984, Negotiation in Organizations, 68

10.1080/00221546.1993.11778446

10.1023/A:1024954224675

10.1023/A:1014893102151

10.1111/j.1745-9125.2003.tb00985.x

10.1016/S0896-6273(02)00603-7

Piaget Jean, 1950, The Psychology of Intelligence.

10.1080/10967490600899440

10.1037/0022-3514.64.1.104

10.1016/S0896-6273(02)00755-9

10.1037/0022-3514.59.2.229

10.1023/A:1020647814263

10.1111/j.1467-9280.2007.01983.x

Speights David, 2005, Retailing Issues Letter, 17, 1

Sullivan Harry S., 1953, The Interpersonal Theory of Psychiatry.

10.1037/0022-3514.54.1.49

10.1111/j.1749-6632.2000.tb06619.x