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Social-cognitive mechanisms of moral disengagement, sex differences and psychological predictors in young populations
Mecanismos Socio-Cognitivos de Desconexión Moral, Diferencias de Sexo y Predictores Psicológicos en Jóvenes
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15446/rcp.v33n2.102537Keywords:
anxiety, impulsivity, moral cognition, moral disengagement, self-esteem (en)Downloads
The theory of moral disengagement has been useful in explaining disruptive social behavior in young people, showing differences between men and women. However, there are no studies regarding the association of psychological factors, such as impulsivity, self-esteem, anxiety, and moral disengagement. Therefore, we analyzed sex differences and psychological predictors of moral disengagement mechanisms in young people. This was a quantitative, cross-sectional, comparative, and correlational study. The participants were 1,419 young people aged 16 to 30 years (M=20.6, SD=3.32) who answered the moral disengagement mechanisms questionnaire (MMDS), the Barratt impulsivity scale (BIS-11), the Rosenberg self-esteem scale (RSES) and the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI). A Student's t-test showed that men had higher scores on moral disengagement mechanisms and self-esteem, and women had higher scores on anxiety. Moral disengagement mechanisms were found to correlate inversely with self-esteem, but directly with impulsivity and anxiety. Multiple linear regression analysis showed that self-contempt, impulsivity, anxiety, and sex had the highest effects on predicting moral disengagement and mechanisms. These effects were similar in men and women. This study provided important information on the influence of psychological factors not explored in previous studies on the understanding of moral agency in young people. The results offer innovative theoretical explanations in a line of research aimed at linking psychological, clinical, and cognitive-social perspectives, with major implications for psychosocial intervention with young people.
La teoría de la desconexión moral ha sido útil para explicar el comportamiento social disruptivo de los jóvenes, mostrando diferencias entre hombres y mujeres. Sin embargo, no hay estudios sobre la asociación de factores psicológicos, como la impulsividad, la autoestima, la ansiedad y la desconexión moral. Por lo tanto, analizamos las diferencias de sexo y los predictores psicológicos de los mecanismos de desconexión moral en los jóvenes. Se trata de un estudio cuantitativo, transversal, comparativo y correlacional. Los participantes fueron 1,419 jóvenes de entre 16 y 30 años (M=20.6, SD=3.32) que respondieron el Cuestionario de Mecanismos de Desconexión Moral (MMDS), la Escala de Impulsividad de Barratt (BIS-11), la Escala de Autoestima de Rosenberg (RSES) y el Inventario de Ansiedad de Beck (BAI). Una prueba t de Student mostró que los hombres tenían puntuaciones más altas en mecanismos de desconexión moral y autoestima, y las mujeres tenían puntuaciones más altas en ansiedad. Los mecanismos de desconexión moral se correlacionaron inversamente con la autoestima, pero directamente con la impulsividad y la ansiedad. El análisis de regresión lineal múltiple mostró que el autodesprecio, la impulsividad, la ansiedad y el sexo tuvieron los mayores efectos en la predicción de la desconexión moral y los mecanismos. Estos efectos fueron similares en hombres y mujeres. Este estudio proporcionó información importante sobre la influencia de factores psicológicos no explorados en estudios anteriores sobre la comprensión de la agencia moral en los jóvenes. Los resultados ofrecen explicaciones teóricas innovadoras en una línea de investigación que pretende vincular las perspectivas psicológicas, clínica y cognitivo-social, con importantes implicaciones para la intervención psicosocial con los jóvenes.
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