August 2008 | Simone Schnall, Jonathan Haidt, Gerald L. Clore, Alexander H. Jordan
The article explores how disgust influences moral judgment, using four experiments to investigate the relationship between disgust and moral condemnation. In each experiment, participants made moral judgments while experiencing induced feelings of disgust. The results consistently showed that disgust increased the severity of moral judgments compared to controls. Experiment 4 found that the effect of disgust was different from that of sadness, suggesting that disgust has a unique impact on moral judgment. Additionally, experiments 2-4 revealed that the role of disgust in moral judgment depends on participants' sensitivity to their bodily sensations, with high-sensitivity individuals being more influenced by disgust. These findings indicate the importance and specificity of gut feelings in moral judgments, aligning with the social intuitionist model and the affect-as-information approach to evaluative judgments.The article explores how disgust influences moral judgment, using four experiments to investigate the relationship between disgust and moral condemnation. In each experiment, participants made moral judgments while experiencing induced feelings of disgust. The results consistently showed that disgust increased the severity of moral judgments compared to controls. Experiment 4 found that the effect of disgust was different from that of sadness, suggesting that disgust has a unique impact on moral judgment. Additionally, experiments 2-4 revealed that the role of disgust in moral judgment depends on participants' sensitivity to their bodily sensations, with high-sensitivity individuals being more influenced by disgust. These findings indicate the importance and specificity of gut feelings in moral judgments, aligning with the social intuitionist model and the affect-as-information approach to evaluative judgments.