Does Control-Related Information Attenuate Biased Self-Control and Moral Perceptions Based on Weight?
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View abstract on PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.Weight bias is linked to perceptions of lower self-control and morality. Interventions targeting control beliefs did not reduce negative moral judgments of higher-weight individuals, suggesting a need for direct moral intervention.
Area Of Science
- Social Psychology
- Attitude Research
- Moral Psychology
Background
- Negative weight-based attitudes are common and resistant to change.
- Weight is often moralized, linking higher weight to lower self-control and moral character.
Purpose Of The Study
- To investigate if higher weight is perceived as lower self-control and morality.
- To test if interventions on control perceptions can reduce weight-based moralization.
Main Methods
- Two preregistered experiments were conducted.
- Interventions provided evidence of weight uncontrollability (Study 1) or high self-control (Study 2).
- Participants' perceptions of weight, self-control, and morality were assessed.
Main Results
- Participants perceived higher-weight individuals as having lower self-control, predicting lower moral character perceptions.
- Neither intervention strategy successfully improved moral evaluations of higher-weight individuals.
- Existing interventions on control beliefs were insufficient to reduce weight moralization.
Conclusions
- Intervening solely on control-related beliefs is insufficient to decrease weight moralization.
- Directly targeting moral perceptions may be necessary.
- Weight moralization might be an automatic process requiring interventions on automatic attitudes.
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