Definition
The moral foundations theory [MFT] is a social psychological theory aiming at describing and explaining the origin and differences in human morality (Graham et al. 2013). Rooted in Haidt’s (2001) social intuitionist model and Shweder and colleagues (1997) theory of the “three ethics,” MFT is characterized by four main propositions: first, human morality is partially innate; second, innate predispositions are shaped within a particular culture; third, ethical decision-making is strongly influenced by intuitive factors; and fourth, moral judgment is based on different moral foundations.
By considerably challenging established theoretical positions in the field of morality research, the MFT has gained increasing attention in both basic and applied research and offers important implications for the ethical dimension of leadership.
Description
A major focus in research on human morality is how moral...
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Egorov, M., Pircher Verdorfer, A. (2017). Leadership Moral Foundations. In: Poff, D., Michalos, A. (eds) Encyclopedia of Business and Professional Ethics. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-23514-1_59-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-23514-1_59-1
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