危險的道德優(yōu)越感

Many of us think we are harder working, more intelligent and better drivers than the average person. We also think we are morally superior. A 2014 study found that even convicted prisoners thought they were morally better — not just than the average prisoner but than the average person outside.

我們當中有很多人認為自己比一般人更努力、更聰明而且駕駛技術更嫻熟。我們還認為，自己在道德上更勝一籌。2014年的一項研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，就連被判有罪的囚犯都認為自己在道德上更優(yōu)秀，不僅好于一般的囚犯，還超過監(jiān)獄外的一般人。

The study, at a prison in the south of England, asked inmates to rate themselves against the average prisoner and the average member of the community for traits such as morality, kindness, honesty, self-control and being law-abiding.

這項研究是在英格蘭南部的一所監(jiān)獄展開的，它請囚犯們在道德、善良、誠實、自控和遵紀守法等特質(zhì)方面，把自己與普通囚犯和普通社區(qū)成員進行比較。

Although the convicts were serving sentences for violence, robbery, drug offences and burglary, they rated themselves as virtuous. Only on one trait did they think they were not superior to the average non-prisoner: being law-abiding. They felt they and people outside were equally law-abiding.

盡管這些罪犯正因暴力、搶劫、吸毒和盜竊服刑，但他們認為自己是品行端正的。他們只在一種特質(zhì)上不認為自己優(yōu)于那些沒有犯法的普通人：遵紀守法。他們認為，自己和監(jiān)獄外的人一樣守法。

Now a new study in the Social Psychological and Personality Science journal has shown that people, this time in the non-prison population, think they are more just and virtuous than average. But it goes on to pose an interesting question: can people’s sense of moral superiority lead them to behave dishonestly?

現(xiàn)在，《社會心理和人格科學》(Social Psychological and Personality Science)期刊發(fā)表的一項新研究顯示，人們(這次是監(jiān)獄外的人群)認為，他們比一般人更公正和品德高尚。但這篇論文接著提出了一個有趣的問題：人們的道德優(yōu)越感會不會導致他們做出不誠實的行為?

The researchers, Ben Tappin and Ryan McKay of Royal Holloway, University of London, say previous studies provide competing answers on this issue. Some research has found that the illusion of moral superiority can lead people to behave badly because, like the prisoners in the first study, they think they really are, deep down, good people. Other research shows that “to the extent that people value belief-behaviour consistency”, people who think they are honest behave honestly.

倫敦大學(University of London)皇家霍洛威學院(Royal Holloway)的研究員本•塔平(Ben Tappin)和瑞恩•麥凱(Ryan McKay)表示，之前的研究就這個問題給出了相互對立的答案。一些研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，道德優(yōu)越感的幻覺可能導致人們做出糟糕的行為，因為與第一項研究中的囚犯一樣，他們認為，自己在內(nèi)心深處真的是好人。還有一些研究表明，“從人們重視言行一致的角度來說”，那些認為自己誠實的人會做出誠實的行為。

“We defer to future research to test these hypotheses,” the Royal Holloway study says. I was, however, struck by the first hypothesis because I thought it might explain a puzzle: why do companies that believe themselves to be ethically virtuous find themselves doing unvirtuous things?

皇家霍洛威學院的研究稱：“我們交給未來的研究來測試這些假說。”然而，第一種假說讓我印象深刻，因為我認為，它或許可以解釋一個謎題：為什么認為自己注重道德的企業(yè)，會發(fā)現(xiàn)自己做著不高尚的事情?

Two examples are the banks HSBC and Wells Fargo, which have both found themselves in trouble. Last year, HSBC confessed that the tax evasion scandal at its Swiss private banking arm was a “source of shame”. The scandal was all the more striking because Stephen Green, HSBC’s previous boss, had written a book called Good Value: Reflections on Money, Morality and an Uncertain World.

兩個例子是匯豐銀行(HSBC)和富國銀行(Wells Fargo)，它們都發(fā)現(xiàn)自己陷入了麻煩。去年，匯豐坦承，其瑞士私人銀行的逃稅丑聞是“羞恥之源”。這樁丑聞更加引人關注的原因是匯豐前任首席執(zhí)行官葛霖(Stephen Green，見上圖)曾寫過一本名為《優(yōu)秀價值觀：反思金錢、道德和不確定世界》(Good Value: Reflections on Money, Morality and an Uncertain World)的著作。

Wells Fargo admitted this year that its staff had tried to meet their sales targets by setting up accounts for customers without their consent. Warren Buffett, head of Berkshire Hathaway, Wells Fargo’s biggest shareholder, described it as “a great bank that made a terrible mistake”.

富國銀行今年承認，其員工曾試圖在客戶不知情的情況下為客戶開立賬戶，以達到自己的銷售目標。富國銀行最大股東伯克希爾哈撒韋公司(Berkshire Hathaway)掌門人沃倫•巴菲特(Warren Buffett)稱其為“一家犯下嚴重錯誤的偉大銀行”。

There are possible explanations for these falls from grace. HSBC had acquired its Swiss bank and said it had not integrated it properly. Wells Fargo appeared to be a classic case of financial incentives distorting employees’ behaviour.

這些墮落故事可能有一些合乎情理的解釋。匯豐收購了其瑞士銀行，但該行表示沒有整合好。富國銀行似乎是金錢激勵扭曲員工行為的典型案例。

But I wondered about the “better than average” research cited above. Could the illusion of moral superiority apply to organisations as well as individuals? And could companies believe they were so superior morally that the occasional lapse into immorality did not matter much? The Royal Holloway researchers said they had recently conducted experiments examining just these issues and were preparing to publish the results. They had found that political groups with a sense of moral superiority felt justified in behaving aggressively towards opponents. In experiments, this meant denying them a monetary benefit.

但上面提到的“好于一般人”的研究讓我感到好奇。道德優(yōu)越感的幻覺是否既適用于個人也適用于公司?公司是否有可能認為，自己在道德上優(yōu)于其他企業(yè)，因此偶爾的故態(tài)復萌并不重要?皇家霍洛威學院的研究人員表示，他們最近做了一些實驗，考察了這些問題，并準備發(fā)表結果。他們發(fā)現(xiàn)，具有道德優(yōu)越感的政治集團認為自己有理由對對手做出咄咄逼人的行為。在實驗中，這意味著不讓對手獲得金錢利益。

“It isn’t difficult to imagine a similar scenario arising in a competitive organisational context. To the extent that employees may perceive their organisation to be morally superior to other organisations, they might feel licensed to ‘cut corners’ or behave somewhat unethically — for example, to give their organisation a competitive edge.

“在競爭性的組織背景下想象一副類似的場景并不困難。就員工可能認為自己所在公司在道德上優(yōu)于其他公司而言，他們可能認為自己有權‘走捷徑’或做出某種不道德行為，例如，為了讓自己的公司獲得一種競爭優(yōu)勢。”

“These behaviours may be perceived as justified . . . or even ethical, insofar as they promote the goals of their morally superior organisation,” they told me.

這些研究人員告訴我：“這些行為可能被視為合情合理……甚至合乎道德，因為這些行為有利于實現(xiàn)他們所在的道德優(yōu)越公司的目標。”

In explaining its behaviour, HSBC suggested that inquiring too closely into its customers’ tax affairs might have led to them taking their business elsewhere. The Wells Fargo incentives were originally put in place to drive the opening of new accounts, which would have given the bank an advantage over its competitors.

匯豐在解釋其行為時暗示，過多地詢問其客戶的稅收事宜可能會讓客戶把業(yè)務轉(zhuǎn)往其他銀行。富國銀行的激勵舉措最初是為了推動開設新賬戶，這原本會賦予該行相對于競爭對手的優(yōu)勢。

What both cases show is that the illusion of moral superiority can be dangerous. A company that believes it embodies ethical virtue can develop blindness to its lapses. It can begin to think that, as it is a force for good in the world, anything that it does to advance itself must be good, too.

這兩個案例表明，道德優(yōu)越感的幻覺可能是危險的。認為自己體現(xiàn)高尚道德的公司，可能會無視其過失。它可能會開始認為，既然自己是世界上的仁義力量，任何增進自己利益的行為都必定是善舉。

When it emerges that outsiders, or regulators, do not see it that way, the institutions and their supporters often conclude that this is a rare deviation from goodness. It may be, but the damage can be far-reaching and long-lasting. Maintaining a corporate reputation is a daily task, however virtuous you think you are.

當外部人士或監(jiān)管者不這么認為時，這些公司及其支持者往往會總結稱，那是罕見的偏離善舉的行為。或許是這樣，但其損害可能是深遠和長久的。維護公司的聲譽是一項日常任務，不管你認為它的品德有多么高尚。