Motivated moral outrage among meat eaters

First published October 4, 2021 Research Article

https://doi.org/10.1177/194855062110415

Commentary

Many meat-eaters experience cognitive dissonance when they realize that their eating behavior is inconsistent with their moral values, such as their desire to protect the environment and animals from harm.

One way to free oneself morally from one's actions and avoid dissonance is to shift the responsibility to others. In line with this notion, results of three studies (total N= 1,501) suggest that expressing moral outrage at third party offenders reduces dissonance and maintains moral identity among meat eaters.

When participants understood that they were the cause of the negative effects of factory farming in the group and read about the harm of factory farming on animals, expressing moral outrage to third party offenders reduced guilt and increased the moral character of their self-evaluations.

In addition, reflecting the morally troubling nature of eating meat, participants began to express more moral outrage at third-party organizations responsible for animal cruelty. This was due to the effects that were eliminated by self-affirmation.

This finding goes to demonstrate moral outrage as a new mechanism to justify meat consumption.