If we do something bad, we typically feel guilty about it.
Moral disengagement allows us to misbehave, and continue to feel good about ourselves, convinced that our own moral standards don't apply to us.
This psychological phenomenon comes in 8 forms. To learn about them, meet Sarah, a 16-year-old who was bullied in school.
When the teacher confronts those responsible, they each use one type of moral disengagement to explain themselves. Martin is the first to respond.
He says: "I was just trying to toughen her up. The world's a harsh place, and if she can't take a little teasing, how is she going to survive?" He uses moral justification to frame his behavior as a sort of public service. Eric says: "We were just joking around with her. It's not a big deal." Calling bullying "joking around," makes it sound more benign than it is, which is why that's called euphemistic labeling.
Anna says: "Other kids out there are stealing! We were just having fun." By contrasting her behavior with things she considers worse, she makes her own actions appear fine.
Anna employs advantageous comparison. Debora is next: "It's not my fault, the others made me do it!" she says.
She plays the victim, claiming that she was just following orders. This is called displacement of responsibility.
Daniel is outraged. "Why am I being singled out? I'm not the only one! Everyone was doing it!" By pointing to the others involved, he's minimizing his role and thereby diffusing responsibility. Samuel does not see a problem.
"She is exaggerating, it's not like we are monsters who eat people alive." Samuel tries to reduce his guilt, by downplaying Sarah's feelings and disregarding consequences.
