Hardy Sam A, Bean Dallas S, Olsen Joseph A
Department of Psychology, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT, 84602, USA,
J Youth Adolesc. 2015 Aug;44(8):1542-54. doi: 10.1007/s10964-014-0172-1. Epub 2014 Aug 22.
Moral identity has been positively linked to prosocial behaviors and negatively linked to antisocial behaviors; but, the processes by which it is linked to such outcomes are unclear. The purpose of the present study was to examine moral identity not only as a predictor, but also as a moderator of relationships between other predictors (moral disengagement and self-regulation) and youth outcomes (prosocial and antisocial behaviors). The sample consisted of 384 adolescents (42 % female), ages 15-18 recruited from across the US using an online survey panel. Latent variables were created for moral identity, moral disengagement, and self-regulation. Structural equation models assessed these latent variables, and interactions of moral identity with moral disengagement and self-regulation, as predictors of prosocial (charity and civic engagement) and antisocial (aggression and rule breaking) behaviors. None of the interactions were significant predicting prosocial behaviors. For antisocial behaviors, the interaction between moral identity and moral disengagement predicted aggression, while the interaction between moral identity and self-regulation was significant in predicting aggression and rule breaking. Specifically, at higher levels of moral identity, the positive link between moral disengagement and aggression was weaker, and the negative link between self-regulation and both antisocial behaviors was weaker. Thus, moral identity may buffer against the maladaptive effects of high moral disengagement and low self-regulation.
道德认同与亲社会行为呈正相关，与反社会行为呈负相关；但是，其与这些结果相关联的过程尚不清楚。本研究的目的不仅是检验道德认同作为一种预测因素，而且还要检验其作为其他预测因素（道德脱离和自我调节）与青少年结果（亲社会行为和反社会行为）之间关系的调节因素。样本包括384名青少年（42%为女性），年龄在15至18岁之间，通过在线调查小组从美国各地招募。为道德认同、道德脱离和自我调节创建了潜在变量。结构方程模型评估了这些潜在变量，以及道德认同与道德脱离和自我调节的相互作用，将其作为亲社会行为（慈善和公民参与）和反社会行为（攻击和违规）的预测因素。没有任何相互作用能显著预测亲社会行为。对于反社会行为，道德认同与道德脱离之间的相互作用预测了攻击行为，而道德认同与自我调节之间的相互作用在预测攻击行为和违规行为方面具有显著性。具体而言，在道德认同水平较高时，道德脱离与攻击行为之间的正相关较弱，自我调节与两种反社会行为之间的负相关也较弱。因此，道德认同可能会缓冲高道德脱离和低自我调节的不良影响。
