Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Study: Environmentalists more likely to "cheat" and "steal"


Students who bought at a "green" store were more likely to cheat and steal than students who bought at a "conventional" store according to a careful study (PDF) performed by University of Toronto psychologists Nina Mazar and Chen-Bo Zhong and published this month in the journal Psychological Science. In their study, student volunteers were assigned to make a purchase at one of two stores. Those who purchased at the store selling primarily "green" products were more likely to cheat on a subsequent game and more likely to steal money from an envelope containing cash than those who purchased at the store selling "conventional" products.

Curiously, the opposite was found for students who were merely exposed to "green" vs. "conventional" products but were not asked to make purchases.

Mazar and Zhong conclude:
Although mere exposure to green products can have a positive societal effect by inducing prosocial and ethical acts, purchasing green products may license indulgence in self-interested and unethical behaviors.
In other words, people seem to think that buying "green" products seems to make up for other transgressions they commit. In the Catholic Church, the analogous concept is "plenary indulgence."

More discussion of this study can be found at DailyCaller and the (IK) Guardian. Hat tip: Instapundit.

PREVIOUSLY on the subject of narcissism:
Obama: it's all about me!
Confusing Compassion with Narcissism
Obama's narcissism and the Chicago Olympics bid
Environmentalism and Narcissism, II
From OpenLeft: Is liberalism narcissism?
Environmentalism and Narcissism,
The side-effects of good intentions

PREVIOUSLY on liberal hypocrisy:
The UN's global warming advocates vs. their own carbon footprint
Eco-hypocrite of the day: supermodel Giselle
The hypocrisy of ACORN and others on minimum wage
It is outrageous to make Hitler analogies, or not
Dems, taxes, and hypocrisy
Poll: Dems think it OK to cheat on taxes
The rules apply only to other people
Broadcast networks discover a new responsibility to air presidential speeches.
Saddam's connections to terror change depending on who is president.
Dems advocate 10-year effort in Iraq until they don't
The ever-increasing energy use of Al Gore's mansion
With five private jets, Travolta still lectures on global warming.
Dems supported enhanced interrogation.
UN humanitarian hypocrisy
Poster child hypocrisy
Edwards' hypocrisy toward the poor
Liberals bash gays

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