Duke Professor Says Dishonesty Can Be Contagious - Durham - MyNC.com

Duke Professor Says Dishonesty Can Be Contagious - Durham - MyNC.com


Dishonesty Can Be Contagious
By Duke University, Press Release, 18 hours, 8 minutes agoUpdated: Mar. 12 3:28 pm

Excerpts:

In a study published in the current issue of Psychological Science, Ariely and colleagues found that social norms exert a strong influence that can override other factors in determining how people behave after they observe dishonesty.

"We see examples of unethical behavior all the time, but that doesn't mean we all are influenced to act dishonestly," said Ariely, the James B. Duke Professor of Behavioral Economics at Duke. "But if you identify with someone, say you want to be a Wall Street-type like Madoff, in these cases our research shows that you are more likely to emulate their unethical behaviors."

"This is a frightening example of just how easily our own behaviors can be swayed by our judgments of the people around us," Ariely said. "In the Madoff case, for example, these findings would indicate people who do not relate to Madoff in some way will not be negatively influenced by his behavior. But people who do identify with him, whether that's through a desire to make more money, or a need to view themselves as successful Wall Street-types, may in fact be encouraged to act dishonestly because they see his behavior."

Read Full Article: http://durham.mync.com/site/Durham/news/story/29365/duke-professor-says-dishonesty-can-be-contagious

See a YouTube video about this research: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BoOGFpXmyTA

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This posting was made my Jim Jacobs, President & CEO of Jacobs Executive Advisors. Jim also serves as Leader of Jacobs Advisors' Insurance Practice.