The Role of One's Own Transgressions on the Punitiveness of Others' Wrongdoing

We examine how one’s prior transgressions influence punitiveness towards others who have engaged in wrongdoing. Consistent with a motivated moral reasoning lens, results from three studies demonstrate that individuals who committed a transgression are less punitive when evaluating another person who has committed the identical transgression, compared to individuals who did not commit a transgression (blame-avoidance hypothesis). Also, they are less punitive when the person committed the identical transgression than when the transgression was different but comparable (scapegoating hypothesis). In line with moral disengagement theory, this effect was mediated by moral justification. We discuss implications for the field of behavioral ethics including theory and research on punishment, motivated moral reasoning, and moral disengagement.