Social Motivation, Justice, and the Moral Emotions

An Attributional Approach

Bernard Weiner

• Publisher: Psychology Press
• Year: 2006
• ISBN:
  9781135601669
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Politik & Internationale Beziehungen
• Subtopic: Staatsbürgerkunde & Bürgerrechte

Social Motivation, Justice, and the Moral Emotions proposes an attribution theory of interpersonal or social motivation that distinguishes between the role of thinking and feeling in determining action. The place of this theory within the larger fields of motivation and attributional analyses is explored. It features new thoughts concerning social motivation on such topics as help giving, aggression, achievement evaluation, compliance to commit a transgression, as well as new contributions to the understanding of social justice. Included also is material on moral emotions, with discussions of admiration, contempt, envy, gratitude, and other affects not considered in Professor Weiner's prior work. The text also contains previously unexamined topics regarding social inferences of arrogance and modesty.Divided into five chapters, this book:
*considers the logical development and structure of a proposed theory of social motivation and justice;
*reviews meta-analytic tests of the theory within the contexts of help giving and aggression and examines issues related to cultural and individual differences;
*focuses on moral emotions including an analysis of admiration, envy, gratitude, jealousy, scorn, and others;
*discusses conditions where reward decreases motivation while punishment augments strivings; and
*provides applications that are beneficial in the classroom, in therapy, and in training programs.This book appeals to practicing and research psychologists and advanced students in social, educational, personality, political/legal, health, and clinical psychology. It will also serve as a supplement in courses on motivational psychology, emotion and motivation, altruism and/or pro-social behavior, aggression, social judgment, and morality. Also included is the raw material for 13 experiments relating to core predictions of the proposed attribution theory.

1

A Theory of Social Motivation and Justice: Logic and Development

There are three distinguishable approaches to the study of human motivation. These differ in many ways, particularly in their aspirations or what might be called their pretensions. One approach, previously mentioned, is to build a “grand” theory, that is, create a conceptual system embracing many aspects of human (and perhaps subhuman) behavior. This is the psychological search for the equivalent of Einstein’s statement that E = mc² (with appropriate recognition of the limits and limitations of social science).

One category of theories having very general ambitions characterizes humans as machine-like, needing energy to initiate action and having the goal of reaching homeostasis (equilibrium), thereby (and in contrast to machines) producing feelings of pleasure. Among the theories included within this description are Freud’s (1915/1948) psychodynamic view, Hull’s (1943) drive theory, and Lewin’s (1938) hydraulic vision. These conceptions made significant contributions to the understanding of human motivation. Nonetheless, the reader may note they all appeared relatively early in the history of motivational psychology, implying that this level of aspiration is too grandiose and the development of a “complete theory of motivational psychology” is not a viable goal.

A second avenue in the study of motivation is more modest but nonetheless also is lofty. This is to devise separate theories for each motivational domain. For example, one might attempt to develop a theory of achievement behavior, as did Atkinson (1957), or of aggression, as did Berkowitz (1993). One such theory would attempt to account for all aspects of, for example, achievement, while not aspiring to explain aggressive actions, or vice versa. These conceptions also added in seminal ways to understanding human behavior and, unlike the so-called grand theories, certainly are extant today.

Finally, the most modest approach represented in the science is to understand one determinant of achievement, or of aggression, and eschew any attempt to explain all behaviors within the motivational domain under study. Included here is documenting, for example, that intermediate subjective expectancy of success augments achievement striving, or that aggression is exacerbated in the summer when the weather is hot. This approach characterizes the vast majority of psychological research and may be described as hypothesis testing rather than theory building, although it contributes to conceptual growth by laying the empirical foundation necessary for theory development.

This chapter borrows from the first and third traditions just outlined of generality and specificity, while rejecting the second approach that advocates explanation of an entire motivational area such as achievement or aggression. I believe it is possible to create a general theory of motivation that cuts across motivational domains, that is, a theory able to address, for example, achievement concerns as well as aggression. However, this theory would not explain all aspects of behavior within a domain, such as all of achievement strivings and all of aggression, which was the goal of the second approach previously outlined. Rather, it would account for limited behaviors within those domains, and the same concepts could be used to account for selected aspects of behaviors in other motivational contexts as well. Hence, there is generality across motivational situations, but only a subset of behaviors within any area or field of motivation is addressed.

For example, assume I propose the concept of diffusion of responsibility as the cornerstone for a general theory of motivation. This construct may explain why the likelihood of helping another in need decreases as the number of people available to help increases. Furthermore, it might account for why personal aggression increases with crowd size. That is, aspects of helping and aggression (two motivational domains) are influenced by group size and may be explained, or at least addressed, with the same concept. But this construct does not account for why helping is augmented when one is in a good mood or why aggression is more evident on hot days. Diffusion of responsibility thus clarifies a limited number of helping- and hostility-related behaviors; other empirical observations fall beyond its theoretical reach.

This chapter offers a general theory of motivation at this midrange of generality, identifying determinants of behavior that cut across motivational areas. This theory incorporates a wide diversity of psychologically meaningful actions. But what constructs should one select to reach this theoretical goal? To find general determinants of behavior that transcend motivational contexts, metaphors proved to be essential guides.

THE ROLE OF METAPHORS

Metaphors (derived from Greek, meaning to carry from one place to another) require us to pretend something is true when it is not. For example, it might be exclaimed that people are sharks. This implies humans share attributes of sharks although, of course, not enough of these characteristics to actually be classified as sharks. This metaphor then acts as a lens or schema and the world is viewed in a new light, illuminating the previously obscure and uncovering new facts. That is, in a metaphor, a familiar concept or image helps us understand something that is not familiar. The shark metaphor, for example, may result in observations of cunningness, aggressiveness, strength, or other associated implications of a shark. In sharp contrast, the metaphor “He is a pussycat” alerts one to an entirely different set of attributes: The person is fun-loving, relaxed, easy to make happy, and so forth.

Metaphors may exist side by side in the explanation of behavior. Thus, Jane might be described as a shark and a rock. The shark metaphor provides some insights to her achievement strivings, aggression, and power seeking. Yet it may not shed light on her helping behavior. Being a rock also helps in understanding her reactions to achievement failure and to the aggression of others, as well as illuminating her attitudes about help giving, yet it is irrelevant to her concerns with power. Hence, diverse metaphors can be applied to the same motivational domain (a shark and a rock apply to Jane’s achievement strivings), and a given metaphor may be applicable to different domains but not necessarily to all fields of motivation (a shark characterizes Jane’s achievement strivings and aggression but not her helping behavior). This notion of multiple principles, each with limited (circumscribed) generality or applicability, captures the approach to motivation I am advocating.

In sum, metaphors exist side by side, often supported by incommensurable observations. Even Freud acknowledged using metaphors in his scientific discoveries. He wrote (Freud, 1926/1959): “In psychology we can only describe things by the help of analogies. There is nothing peculiar in this; it is the case elsewhere as well. But we have constantly to keep changing these analogies for none of them lasts us long enough” (p. 195). I hope in this chapter to describe a metaphor that will not need continuous changing and will last us “long enough.”

The Person Is a Judge

What metaphor provided the foundation for the attribution-based theory of social motivation and justice developed in this book? In searching for the most useful metaphor, one must consider what aspects of behavior the metaphor is likely to capture. The metaphor that the person is a machine proved useful to behaviorists to explain learned actions, and the metaphor that the person is a computer helped cognitive scientists to understand thinking processes. The metaphor I need must address social behavior and justice. “The person is a machine,” for example, does not appear useful to capture phenomena incorporated under these rubrics. A metaphor better able to satisfy my goals is “the person is a judge,” along with a variant of this theme, that life is a courtroom.

What are the characteristics of a judge? Why be guided by this metaphor? A judge must rationally interpret evidence and reach a decision regarding an alleged transgression of another. It must be decided if the person engaged in a misdeed and is responsible for the action. This requires integration of much information and the imposition of moral standards and cultural imperatives. In addition, the judge has feelings toward the supposed transgressor. These feelings also are likely to determine the imposed sentence. In sum, the judge metaphor includes cognition, affect, and action and transfers well to issues related to social justice and moral conduct.

In a similar manner, life can be considered a courtroom where dramas in regard to transgressions are played out. For example, consider the everyday situation of waiting for your date to appear but he or she does not arrive on time. You wait 10, 15, 20 minutes. During this period you are likely to experience numerous affects—perhaps fear that something dire has happened, concern you are at the wrong place, anger that the person is tardy, and so on. Finally, the awaited other arrives; he or she is 30 minutes late. Unexpected and negative events stimulate causal search, so you immediately ask: “What happened? Why are you so late?” This is the judge seeking evidence regarding innocence or guilt. The transgressor then says: “Oh, it was so nice out I took a round-about path to get here.” (This is only for illustration; most criminals do not self-condemn.) This explanation probably arouses great anger and you declare the other guilty. You then pass a sentence—I am leaving and not dating you again. The guilty party then seeks forgiveness and a lesser sentence. He or she states a terrible event occurred (“I just found out I did not get the job I wanted”) and time was needed to recover so the date would not be ruined. This mitigator of responsibility is accepted, the sentence is lessened, perhaps totally withdrawn, and the transgressor is paroled (the date continues).

Conceiving the person as a judge and life as a courtroom calls forth an array of thoughts and emotions in an interpersonal setting that shed light on social motivation. It captures the underlying theme of this chapter—social life is moral life and moral concerns pervade social conduct. Hence, judgments regarding fairness, deservedness, fault, blame, and responsibility are the essence of social behavior. Stated somewhat differently, social life is governed by religious principles, which in turn also have guided the law. My task is to document the validity and generality of this approach across motivational fields. It must be remembered, however, that metaphors are neither precisely defined nor exact. Hence, one must be wary of their use. A metaphor is neither an explanation nor a theory; rather, it generates images and broad construals that serve essential functions in the evolution of understanding.

Just as I had to make decisions regarding which metaphor most aids in the development of a useful theory to understand social motivation and justice, choices also were made regarding which aspects of social motivation and justice are best captured by the conception, or what is the focus (the main empirical strength) and range of convenience (the extensity) of the theory (Kelly, 1955). To help in this endeavor, my search was guided by observations in the classroom, which is a microcosm of the social universe. What occurs in a classroom pertaining to social motivation? Perhaps of greatest salience is that teachers are appraising students, determining if they succeeded or failed, if they are “good” or “bad,” and what kind of feedback they should be given. Above all in the classroom is achievement evaluation, with the teacher as judge. But also found in the classroom, and certainly in the broader social world, are stigmatization, help giving, compliance with authority, aggression, punishment, and many social and moral emotions. These and other topics are addressed as I advance from the judge metaphor toward a formal theoretical statement to capture the “late date” scenario used earlier.

ACHIEVEMENT EVALUATION

Years ago I was co-author of an investigation concerning judgments of others in achievement contexts (Weiner & Kukla, 1970). This experiment has been replicated on many occasions in many cultures, so the pattern of data may be regarded a “fact” (see Weiner, 1986). Empirical certainty is essential for theory building. This experiment is shown in Box 1.1 for the reader to perform prior to reading further. It is my belief that the data generated by the reader will mirror findings reported by Weiner and Kukla (1970). I regard this as a “bold” empirical claim, not frequently made by those advocating a particular motivation theory. Although this research was conducted almost 35 years ago, near the start of my career, I have spent my academic life trying to explain the findings and have offered numerous interpretations. I always return to this set of data as part of the foundation for my thinking.

In this study, students were described in...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Halftitle
• Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• Preface
• Prologue
• 1 A Theory of Social Motivation and Justice: Logic and Development
• 2 Testing the Theory and Incorporating Cultural and Individual Differences
• 3 The Moral Emotions and Creating Positive Moral Impressions
• 4 Reward and Punishment
• 5 A Visit to the Courtroom Settings: Is the Theory Useful?
• Epilogue
• References
• Author Index
• Subject Index