How Identity and Perspective Constrain Moral Choice

Abstract

What drives moral action? A narrative analysis of rescuers of Jews during World War II suggests it is not reason or religion (the explanations most frequently offered by scholars), but rather identity and a particular view of self in relation to others. Findings suggest the tremendous power of identity to constrain choice, reveal the complexity of the moral life, underscore the importance of identity for moral motivation, and fill in critical gaps in our understanding of the moral psychology. In particular, an examination of moral exemplars focuses attention on the self concept, especially the extent to which critical values are integrated into one’s sense of self and the extent to which a particular perspective (a way of seeing one’s self in relation to others) triggers a sense of moral salience. The analysis suggests that if we can understand how people see the world and themselves in relation to others, if we can decipher their cognitive frameworks, perceptions, and categorization schema, we may begin to determine why identity exerts such a powerful influence on our treatment of others.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Anscombe, G.E.M. (1963 [1957]). Intention, 2nd edn. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press .

Bal, Mieke (1985). Narratology: Introduction to the Theory of Narrative, trans Christine von Boheemen. Toronto: University of Toronto Press .

Batson, D. (1991). The Altruism Question. New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum .

Blasi, A. (1993). “The Development of Identity: Some Implications for Moral Functioning,” in G.G. Noam and T.E. Wren (eds) The Moral Self. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press .

Blasi, A. (1995). “A Moral Understanding and the Moral Personality: The Process of Moral Integration,” in W.M. Kurtines and J.L. Gewirtz (eds) Moral Development: An Introduction. Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon .

Colby, A. and Damon, W. (1993). “The Unity of Self and Morality in the Development of Extraordinary Moral Commitment,” in G.G. Noam and T.E. Wren (eds) The Moral Self. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press .

Elster, J. (1986). The Multiple Self. New York: Cambridge University Press .

Erikson, E. (1959). Identity and the Life Cycle. New York: W.W. Norton .

Festinger, L. (1957). A Theory of Cognitive Dissonance. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press .

10.

Fogelman, Eva (1994). Conscience and Courage. New York: Anchor .

11.

Foot, P. (1978). “Virtues and Vices,” in C. Sommers and F. Sommers (eds) Vice and Virtue in Everyday Life. Fort Worth, TX: Harcourt Brace .

12.

Freud, S. (1959). Collected Papers of Sigmund Freud. New York: Basic Books .

13.

Gies, Miep (1987). Anne Frank Remembered. New York: Simon and Schuster .

14.

HarrÈ, Rom (1987). “The Social Construction of Selves,” in Krysia Yardley and Terry Honess (eds) Society and Identity: Psychosocial Perspectives. New York: Wiley .

15.

James, William (1892). Principles of Psychology: The Briefer Course. New York: Holt .

16.

Kagan, J. (1998). Three Seductive Ideas. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press .

17.

Kekes, J. (1989). Moral Tradition and Individuality. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press .

18.

Kupperman, J. (1991). Character. New York: Oxford University Press .

19.

Lakoff, George and Johnson, Marc (1999). Philosophy in the Flesh. New York: Basic Books .

20.

Levi, Primo (1958). Survival in Auschwitz. New York: Bantam .

21.

London, P. (1970). “The Rescuers: Motivational Hypotheses about Christians Who Saved Jews from the Nazis,” in J. Macaulay and L. Berkowitz (eds) Altruism and Helping Behavior, 241–250. New York: Academic .

22.

MacIntyre, Alisdair (1981). After Virtue. London: Duckworth .

23.

Mead, G.H. (1934). Mind, Self and Society. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press .

24.

Mellema, Gregory (1991). Beyond the Call of Duty: Supererogation, Obligation, and Offence. Albany: State University of New York Press .

25.

Monroe, Kristen Renwick (1996). The Heart of Altruism. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press .

26.

Monroe, Kristen Renwick (forthcoming). The Hand of Compassion: Portraits of Moral Choice During the Holocaust. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press .

27.

Monroe, Kristen Renwick, Hankin, J. and Van Vechten, R. (2000). “The Psychological Foundation of Identity Politics: A Review of the Literature,” Annual Review of Political Science 3: 419–447 .

28.

Nussbaum, Martha (1985). The Fragility of Goodness. New York: Cambridge University Press .

29.

Oliner, Samuel P. and Oliner, Pearl M. (1988). The Altruistic Personality: Rescuers of Jews in Nazi Europe. New York: Free Press .

30.

Patterson, M. and Monroe, K.R. (1998). “Narrative,” Annual Review of Political Science 1(1): 315–331 .

31.

Perry, John (1975). “The Problem of Personal Identity,” in J. Perry (ed.) Personal Identity, 3–32. Berkeley: University of California Press .

32.

Phybus, Elizabeth (1982). “Saints and Heroes,” Philosophy 57: 193–200 .

33.

Reykowski, J. (2001). “Justice Motive and Altruistic Helping—Rescuers of Jews in Nazi Occupied Europe,” in M. Ross and D.T. Miller (eds) The Justice Motive in Everyday Life. New York: Cambridge University Press .

34.

Slote, Michael (1983). Goods and Virtues. New York: Oxford University Press .

35.

Taylor, S., Peplau, L. and Sears, D. (1997). Social Psychology, 9th edn. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall .

36.

Tec, Nechama (1986). When Light Pierced the Darkness. New York: Oxford University Press .

37.

Weingartner, Herbert (2001). “Remember the Holocaust: Snapshots from a Cognitive Science Perspective,” in P. Suedfeld (ed.) Light from the Ashes. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press .

38.

Williams, Bernard (1981). Moral Luck: Philosophical Papers. New York: Cambridge University Press .