Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Kohlberg's Theory of Moral Development

Kohlberg's Theory of Moral Development

Kohlberg's theory of moral development uses the Heinz dilemma — a thought experiment in which a man, Heinz, must decide whether to steal an unaffordable drug to save his dying wife — to illustrate the evolution of moral reasoning. This framework, divided into three levels with two stages, highlights how individuals' understanding of right and wrong becomes increasingly complex.
Pre-Conventional Level
At the pre-conventional level, morality is primarily driven by personal...

Milgram's Obedience to Authority

Milgram's Obedience to Authority

Obedience to authority is classically demonstrated in a more famous series of social psychology experiments performed by Stanley Milgram. He was a social psychology professor at Yale who was influenced by the trial of Adolf Eichmann, a Nazi war criminal. Eichmann’s defense for the atrocities he committed was that he was “just following orders.”

Cognitive Dissonance

Cognitive Dissonance

Social psychologists have documented that feeling good about ourselves and maintaining positive self-esteem is a powerful motivator of human behavior (Tavris & Aronson, 2008). In the United States, members of the predominant culture typically think very highly of themselves and view themselves as good people who are above average on many desirable traits (Ehrlinger, Gilovich, & Ross, 2005). Often, our behavior, attitudes, and beliefs are affected when we experience a threat to our...

Egoism and Altruism

Egoism and Altruism

Voluntary behavior with the intent to help other people is called prosocial behavior. Why do people help other people? Is personal benefit such as feeling good about oneself the only reason people help one another?

Self-Discrepancy Theory

Self-Discrepancy Theory

One influential perspective on what motivates people's behavior is detailed in Tory Higgin's self-discrepancy theory (Higgins, 1987). He proposed that people hold disagreeing internal representations of themselves that lead to different emotional states.

Deindividuation

Deindividuation

Deindividuation is a form of social influence on an individual’s behavior such that the individual engages in unusual or non-normal behavior while in a group setting. Why? Because in these group settings, the individual no longer sees themselves as an individual anymore, disinhibiting their behavior and personal restraint.

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Beyond body vision: the extrastriate body area as a multisensory and social hub.

Cerebral cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991)·2026

Same author

Topical Insulin for Corneal Persistent Epithelial Defects: A Multicenter Retrospective Study.

Ophthalmology and therapy·2026

Same author

Impact of Residual Stromal Thickness on the Outcomes of Manual Deep Anterior Lamellar Keratoplasty.

Cornea·2026

Same author

Emotional Reactions Following Silent Treatment: The Role of Guilt.

The Journal of social psychology·2026

Same author

Validation of an Automated AI Algorithm for the Quantification of Major OCT Parameters in Retinal Vein Occlusion-Related Macular Edema.

Journal of clinical medicine·2026

Same author

Positive body image is a pathway between nature contact and life satisfaction across 58 nations.

Environment international·2026

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Oct 10, 2025

Investigating Pain-Related Avoidance Behavior using a Robotic Arm-Reaching Paradigm

Investigating Pain-Related Avoidance Behavior using a Robotic Arm-Reaching Paradigm

Published on: October 3, 2020

Deontological Guilt and Disgust Sensitivity Modulate Moral Behaviour.

Irene Parisi^1,2, Alessandra Mancini³, Francesco Mancini^3,4

¹Center for Life Nano- & Neuro-Science, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Rome & Sapienza University of Rome.

Clinical Neuropsychiatry

|December 15, 2021

Summary

Deontological guilt (DG) induction increased egoistic lies, especially in those with high disgust sensitivity. The COVID-19 lockdown amplified disgust sensitivity and moral concerns, impacting behavior.

Keywords:

deontological guilt disgust sensitivity moral behaviour obsessive-compulsive disorder

More Related Videos

Assessment of Mouse Judgment Bias through an Olfactory Digging Task

Assessment of Mouse Judgment Bias through an Olfactory Digging Task

Published on: March 4, 2022

Continuous Theta Burst Stimulation of the Posterior Medial Frontal Cortex to Experimentally Reduce Ideological Threat Responses

Continuous Theta Burst Stimulation of the Posterior Medial Frontal Cortex to Experimentally Reduce Ideological Threat Responses

Published on: September 28, 2018

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Oct 10, 2025

Investigating Pain-Related Avoidance Behavior using a Robotic Arm-Reaching Paradigm

Investigating Pain-Related Avoidance Behavior using a Robotic Arm-Reaching Paradigm

Published on: October 3, 2020

Assessment of Mouse Judgment Bias through an Olfactory Digging Task

Assessment of Mouse Judgment Bias through an Olfactory Digging Task

Published on: March 4, 2022

Continuous Theta Burst Stimulation of the Posterior Medial Frontal Cortex to Experimentally Reduce Ideological Threat Responses

Continuous Theta Burst Stimulation of the Posterior Medial Frontal Cortex to Experimentally Reduce Ideological Threat Responses

Published on: September 28, 2018

Area of Science:

Psychology
Neuroscience
Moral Psychology

Background:

Deontological Guilt (DG) and Altruistic Guilt (AG) arise from violating rules or altruistic principles.
DG is linked to Disgust Sensitivity and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD).
The interaction between DG, disgust sensitivity, and moral behavior remains unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate how DG and Disgust Sensitivity interact to modulate moral behavior.
To examine the effects of DG and AG inductions on lie-telling behavior.
To assess changes in moral traits and behavior during the COVID-19 lockdown.

Main Methods:

Study 1: 46 healthy participants underwent DG, AG, or neutral emotional inductions before a moral dilemma task (egoistic vs. altruistic lies). Questionnaires assessed OCD traits, morality, guilt, and disgust sensitivity.
Study 2: 27 participants were retested during COVID-19 lockdown to evaluate pandemic-related changes in moral traits and behavior.

Main Results:

DG induction led to fewer altruistic and more egoistic lies compared to neutral conditions, particularly in individuals with high Disgust Sensitivity.
During lockdown, participants showed increased sensitivity to moral foundations (Authority) and disgust.
Pandemic-induced increases in deontological morality influenced behavior based on changes in Disgust Sensitivity.

Conclusions:

High Disgust Sensitivity amplifies the impact of deontological inductions on immoral behavior, potentially by diminishing moral self-image.
Therapeutic interventions targeting Disgust Sensitivity may reduce guilt's influence on behavior in clinical populations.
Findings highlight the interplay between disgust, guilt, and moral decision-making.