Why Our Moral Views Keep Changing

Most of us hold a handful of moral truths we consider unmovable. For example, violence, lying and slavery are wrong. Yet, people regularly act against these truths. Some people cheer for violence in war or sports, others lie multiple times a day and, for centuries, otherwise reasonable people defended slavery.

The gap between what we believe and how we behave raises an uncomfortable question: Are our moral principles easily overridden by selfishness or circumstances?

Audun Dahl’s Theory on Shifting Moral Views

Not necessarily, according to a new book by Audun Dahl, an associate professor of psychology at Cornell's College of Human Ecology and a director of the Developmental Moral Psychology Lab. His book, Between Fixed and Fickle: Why Our Moral Views Keep Changing, draws on decades of research to offer an evidence-based theory of why moral views shift.

Please select this link to read the complete article from Psychology Today.