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Updated: Jan 25, 2026

The Resident-intruder Paradigm: A Standardized Test for Aggression, Violence and Social Stress
Published on: July 4, 2013
The brighter the light, the deeper the shadow: Morality also fuels aggression, conflict, and violence
Robert Böhm1, Isabel Thielmann2, Benjamin E Hilbig2
1School of Business and Economics,RWTH Aachen University,52062 Aachen,Germany.robert.boehm@rwth-aachen.dehttp://www.robertboehm.info.
Abstract:
We argue that, in addition to the positive effects and functionality of morality for interactions among in-group members as outlined in the target article, morality may also fuel aggression and conflict in interactions between morality-based out-groups. We summarize empirical evidence showing that negative cognitions, emotions, and behaviors are particularly likely to appear between out-groups with opposing moral convictions.
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