In their experiments, Mazar and Zhong initially thought that consuming green products could create a positive spillover impact and promote positive conduct. Their experiments showed that individuals who purchased green products were less likely to give money to strangers, were most likely to engage in deception in order to get more money, and likely to steal when they felt that no one could catch them. According to the case study, buying green products can license participation in behaviors driven by self-interests and unethical conduct. This kind of behavior could be caused by a need to achieve a moral equilibrium.
Moral equilibrium can be explained as the perception that most individuals maintain a mental scoreboard on which comparison of self-perception of being good with one’s actions is made. When individuals do things that do not align with their self-image of being good, they feel that a deficit exists on the good side of the mental scorecard. As a result, they seek for opportunities to do good things in order to achieve an equilibrium state. This is referred to as moral compensation. On the other hand, when an individual does something good, he/she may feel an excess on the positive side of the mental scorecard (Zhong et al., 2009). As a result, the person may grant him/herself permission to deviate from his/her ethical principles. This is referred to as moral licensing.
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The reason why the two psychologists found the opposite in their experiments could have been moral licensing. Individuals who purchased green products may have felt that there was an excess on their positive category of their mental scorecard and in order to achieve an equilibrium, engaged in unethical conduct such as cheating in order to make extra money. Their tendency to sustain a moral equilibrium could explain why participants in the study acted in unethical ways.
Reference
Zhong, B., Liljenquist, A., & Cain, M. (2009). Moral Self-Regulation: Licensing & Compensation. In D. De Cremer (Ed.), Psychological Perspectives on Ethical Behavior and Decision Making (pp. 75-89). Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.
