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The positive moral emotions: Elevation, awe, admiration (and gratitude) Sage Lecture #3 Nov. 23, 2008 Jonathan Haidt University of Virginia

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Jonathan Haidt University of Virginia. The positive moral emotions: Elevation, awe, admiration (and gratitude) Sage Lecture #3 Nov. 23, 2008. 11/10: What is morality and how does it work? 11/17: The righteous mind: Why good people are divided by politics and religion - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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Page 1: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

The positive moral emotions: Elevation, awe, admiration (and gratitude)

Sage Lecture #3Nov. 23, 2008

Jonathan HaidtUniversity of Virginia

Page 2: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

6 Lectures on Morality11/10: What is morality and how does it work?11/17: The righteous mind: Why good people are divided by

politics and religion 11/24: The positive moral emotions: Elevation, awe,

admiration, and gratitude 12/1: Hive psychology, group selection, and leadership 12/8: The dark side: Why moral psychology is the greatest

source of evil 12/15: The light side: How to pursue happiness using ancient

wisdom and modern psychology

ppt files available at www.JonathanHaidt.com, at bottom

Page 3: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

NativismNature provides a first draft, which experience then revises… ‘Built-in' does not mean unmalleable; it means organized in advance of experience.“ (Marcus, 2004)

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The Social Intuitionist Model (Haidt, 2001)

A’s Intuition A’s Judgment A’s Reasoning

B’s IntuitionB’s JudgmentB’s Reasoning

2

34

1

Four main processes: 1) the intuitive judgment link 2) the post-hoc reasoning link 3) the reasoned persuasion link 4) the social persuasion link

Two rare processes: 5) the reasoned judgment link 6) the private reflection link

5

6

Page 5: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

Intuition tilts the table

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The New Synthesis in Moral Psych

1) Intuitive primacy (but not dictatorship)2) Moral thinking is for social doing3) Morality binds and builds4) Morality is about more than harm and fairness

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Traditional Morality: Uses every tool in the toolbox to increase MCC

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Liberals 2 channels, Conservatives 5En

dors

emen

t

Harm

Fairness

IngroupAuthority

Purity

Page 9: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

The positive moral emotions: Elevation, awe, admiration (and gratitude)

Sage Lecture #3Nov. 23, 2008

Jonathan HaidtUniversity of Virginia

Page 10: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

An Investment Opportunity….

Page 11: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

I) Unbalanced EmotionsAppraisal of Agent’s Action

Praiseworthy Blameworthy

Self Pride Self-satisfaction

Guilt Shame

Other Gratitude Awe Admiration

Anger Disgust Contempt

From Ortony, Clore & Collins, 1988

Page 12: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

I) Unbalanced EmotionsAppraisal of Agent’s Action

Praiseworthy Blameworthy

Self Pride Self-satisfaction

Guilt 1,639 Shame 1,601

Other Gratitude Awe Admiration

Anger 3,230Disgust 306Contempt 54

(From PsycInfo search of words in title or key concepts, journal articles only, counted on 9/08)

Page 13: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

I) Unbalanced EmotionsAppraisal of Agent’s Action

Praiseworthy Blameworthy

Self Pride 247Self-satisfaction 27

Guilt 1,639 Shame 1,601

Other Gratitude 124Awe 36Admiration 19

Anger 3,230Disgust 306Contempt 54

(From PsycInfo search of words in title or key concepts, journal articles only, counted on 9/08)

--Ratio of neg to pos is 15 to 1--There is almost NO empirical work on the “other-praising” emotions (beyond recent work on gratitude).

Page 14: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

Why So Little on the O. P. Emotions?1) No animal models2) No distinct facial expression3) Not as discrete as the negative emotions

4) General neglect of positive phenomena (Seligman)5) Lack of good theoretical approaches to positive

emotions, until now: Broaden and Build (Fredrickson)6) Lack of good theoretical approaches to moral emotions,

until now: Divinity & Purity (Shweder, Rozin);

Page 15: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

II) The Third Dimension of Social Space?

X=Solidarity(like-dislike)

Z=Divinity(elevation-disgust)

Y=Hierarchy(respect upwards;Paternalist caring downwards)

Page 16: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

Purity and Pollution: keep our animal/corporeal nature separated from god/divinity

In Biblical Judaism: When a woman gives birth to a boy, “she shall continue in the blood of purification three and thirty days; she shall touch no hallowed thing, nor come into the sanctuary, until the days of her purification be fulfilled.”

--Leviticus, 12:4

Page 17: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

Purity and Pollution: keep our animal/corporeal nature separated from god/divinity

In Islam: “O believers, when you stand up to pray wash your faces, and your hands up to the elbows, and wipe your heads, and your feet up to the ankles. If you are defiled, purify yourselves…” --Koran, V:9.

Page 18: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

Purity/God/Goodness is UpTransmigration of souls: Up or down,

based on Karma (right-action in this life)

Hindu categorical imperative: “Any action that makes us go Godward is a good action and is our duty; any action that makes us go downward is evil and is not our duty."

--Vivekananda, 1890s

Page 19: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

The Scala Natura: Greek and then Christian ordering of beings based on perfection, later virtue. God at top, devil/demons at bottom

Purity/God/Goodness is Up

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In Victorian America Too"God has made no mistake in giving man a strong sexual nature, but any young man makes a fatal mistake if he allows the sexual to dominate, to degrade, and to destroy that which is highest and noblest in his nature.“--Sylvanus Stall, 1904, What a young man ought to know.

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II) The Third Dimension of Social Space?

X=Solidarity(like-dislike)

Z=Divinity(elevation-disgust)

Y=Hierarchy(respect upwards;Paternalist caring downwards)

Page 22: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

The Third Dimension: Divinity God

Angels

Saints

Human Beings

Monsters

Animals

Demons

The Devil

Social Disgust is felt when we see people move down, especially when they blur the human/animal boundary.

What do we feel when we see people move up, blurring the human/divine boundary?

Page 23: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

Example, From a Spiritual Autobiography: There’s another kind of tear. This one’s less about giving love and more

about the joy of receiving love, or maybe just detecting love. It’s the kind of tear that flows in response to expressions of courage, or compassion, or kindness by others.

A few weeks after Mother’s Day, we met here in the sanctuary and considered whether to become a Welcoming Congregation. When John stood in support of the resolution, and spoke of how, as far as he knew, he was the first gay man to come out at First Parish, in the early 1970s, I cried for his courage.

Later, when all hands went up and the resolution passed unanimously, I cried for the love expressed by our congregation in that act. That was a tear of celebration, a tear of receptiveness to what is good in the world, a tear that says it’s okay, relax, let down your guard, there are good people in the world, there is good in people, love is real, it’s in our nature. That kind of tear is also like being pricked, only now the love pours in.

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Tears of Elevation

The stone wall inside of him has fallen, the hardness in his heart has broken down. The rest of us can, I think, imagine this by recalling our state of feeling in those temporary 'melting moods' into which either the trials of real life, or the theatre, or a novel sometimes throw us. Especially if we weep! For it is then as if our tears broke through an inveterate inner dam, and let all sorts of ancient peccancies and moral stagnancies drain away, leaving us now washed and soft of heart and open to every nobler leading. (James, p. 216-217)

Free hugsNew York Subway HeroTeam Hoyt

Page 25: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

III) Elevation: Three main features

1) Elicitors: acts of courage, kindness, loyalty.... or any other act of moral beauty

2) Phenomenology/physiology: calm/relaxed, a warm/open/pleasant feeling in the chest; sometimes getting “choked up”.

3) Motivation: emulation, moral self-improvement, (altruism?)

Page 26: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

A) Video and Diary Studies (Algoe & Haidt, in press, JPP)

3 groups (N=136), watch one of 3 videos, then fill out “event record”

Elevation(Trevor)

Admiration(Jordan)

Amusement(comedians)

Then given packet of event records and further instructions: For 3 weeks, fill out a record each time you see/hear someone:

--Do something good or kind for someone else [elevation]--Exceed normal standards of skill or performance [admiration]--Tell a joke [amusement, positive affect control]

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Results: Physical FeelingsVideo Induction Diary Study

% reporting: Elev Admir Amus Elev Admir Amus Warm Chest 51* 43* 20 Chills 10 37* 2 High energy 10 52* 20 Increased Heart rt 13 20* 4

*=differs from amusement at p<.05

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Results: Physical FeelingsVideo Induction Diary Study

% reporting: Elev Admir Amus Elev Admir Amus Warm Chest 51* 43* 20 35 31 30 Chills 10 37* 2 6 28* 2 High energy 10 52* 20 16 56* 36 Increased Heart rt 13 20* 4 14 37 19

*=differs from amusement at p<.05

--Elevation causes feelings in the chest (but all pos em’s do)--Admiration linked to chills and energy

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Results: Changes in Motivations

*=differs from amusement at p<.05

-4=much less, +4=much more

Video Induction Diary StudyElev Admir Amus Elev Admir Amus

Do good deeds 2.62* 1.39* .44 Become better prsn 2.28* 1.57* .16 Emulate the other 2.03* 1.85* .33 Be successful 1.82* 2.70* .62

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Results: Changes in Motivations

*=differs from amusement at p<.05

--Elevation is linked to moral motivations-Admiration is linked to motivations to copy and work hard

-4=much less, +4=much more

Video Induction Diary StudyElev Admir Amus Elev Admir Amus

Do good deeds 2.62* 1.39* .44 2.02* .81 .35 Become better prsn 2.28* 1.57* .16 1.51* 1.13* .49 Emulate the other 2.03* 1.85* .33 1.61* 2.15* .49 Be successful 1.82* 2.70* .62 .34 1.97* .49

Page 31: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

B) Cross-Cultural InterviewsMethod: Structured interviews with small samples in --India --Japan (Yuki Amano) --among Born-again Christians (Carter Chandler) --among Palestinian Americans (Mona Hasan)

Results: In all groups, we find linkage among --virtuous acts --feelings in body (chills or chest) --motivation to help others or work for a higher cause

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Elevation and Suicide Bombing (Mona Hasan)

Question: Does suicide bombing cause elevation?

Participants: 36 Palestinians and Palestinian Americans recruited from a mosque in Northern Virginia, interviewed 11/01-2/02, during period of heavy suicide bombing in Israel

Reem Riyashi, 22 & daughter

Page 33: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

Elevation and Suicide Bombing (Mona Hasan)

Method: Structured interviews about 4 situations: 1) Good deed (“when you saw or heard about someone doing something good, kind, or compassionate for someone else”) 2) Self-sacrifice (“when you saw or heard about someone who risked or lost his life to further his cause”) 3) Rescue (“when you saw or heard about someone who risked or lost his life to help others, or save someone else’s life”)--------------------------------------------------------------- 4) Achievement (“when you accomplished a goal”)

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Results: % who mentioned Good Deed

Self-Sacrifice

Rescue Achieve-ment

Affect words: self-praising (pride, bold) other-praising (adm., awe, grat)

0*32*

3*31*

0*62*

80 3

Physical symptoms: goosebumps, chills, chest, tears 35* 26* 17 7Motivations: Self-focused (celebrate, continue) Other-focused (help, emulate)

3*74*

0*83*

0*72*

477

* = differs from achievement p<.05

Page 35: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

Discussion of Suicide Bombings--Half were supportive, half ambivalent. None opposed.--Some mentions of revenge, hate, “negative” moral motives--No mentions of rewards in heaven--What feelings do you have when you hear about a successful

suicide attack in Israel? Satisfaction (67%) happiness (61%), admiration (61%), gratitude (56%).

Conclusions: --Self-sacrifice in suicide bombers often causes other-praising emotions in other members of the group. --These emotions include motivations to do the same thing--Terrorism is better understood as motivated by moral emotions than by free-floating “evil”

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C) Physiology of Other-Praising Emotions (Gary Sherman)

1) Warm chest plus calm:--Parasympathetic activity +--Oxytocin? Endorphins?

2) Chills plus energy:--Parasympathetic activity +--Adrenaline? (no cortisol)

Page 37: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

Lactation Study (Silvers & Haidt, 2008, Emotion)

Method:--44 Lactating women come to

lab with infant--insert nursing pad, watch neutral baseline video--watch elevation or amusement video (IV)--left alone for 5 minutes, behavior videotaped (DV)--nursing pads weighed (DV)

Page 38: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

% of Mothers Who….

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Leaked Nursed Hugged

AmusElev

*

*

p=.06

Page 39: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

Thomas Jeffersonwas here

Page 40: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

When any …act of charity or of gratitude, for instance, is presented either to our sight or imagination, we are deeply impressed with its beauty and feel a strong desire in ourselves of doing charitable and grateful acts also. On the contrary when we see or read of any atrocious deed, we are disgusted with its deformity and conceive an abhorrence of vice.....

And whether the fidelity of Nelson, and generosity of Blandford in Marmontel do not dilate his breast, and elevate his sentiments as much as any similar incident which real history can furnish?.....

--Thomas Jefferson, Letter to Robert Skipwith, 1771

Elevation: Discovered in Charlottesville!

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When any …act of charity or of gratitude, for instance, is presented either to our sight or imagination, we are deeply impressed with its beauty and feel a strong desire in ourselves of doing charitable and grateful acts also. On the contrary when we see or read of any atrocious deed, we are disgusted with its deformity and conceive an abhorrence of vice.....

And whether the fidelity of Nelson, and generosity of Blandford in Marmontel do not dilate his breast, and elevate his sentiments as much as any similar incident which real history can furnish?.....

--Thomas Jefferson, Letter to Robert Skipwith, 1771

Appraisal

Action tendency

Physical changes

Affective phenom-enology

Elevation: Discovered in Charlottesville!

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Elevation and Disgust are OppositesDisgust Elevation

Elicitor People moving down, blurring human/animal divide

People moving up, blurring human/god divide

Physical feelings Gut (unpleasant) Chest (warm glow)

Motiv. Tendency Separate, close off, reject

Merge, open up, copy virtuous example

Contamination Negative Positive

Page 43: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

Rembrandt: The Good Samaritan

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Serrano: Piss Christ

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Elevation opens people to new moral commitments

“I can’t believe I just shook the Dalai Lama’s hand!” Jocelyn Diaz, a 21-year old senior, shouted… “I feel changed by this. You get so caught up with your life and then you see these people who are making so much of a difference.”

“Attending even a single event can have a consciousness-raising effect,” said Christina Bull, a 19-year-old junior… “It just reminds you that there are people who care so much about causes,” she added. “It makes you want to get involved.”

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Elevation and Politics

Ask not...

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Problem: No clear property lines

AweElevation

Admiration

Inspiration

Page 48: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

IV) Awe

People report feeling awe towards so many things….

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The Evolution of “Awe”: Starts with fearOED 1: From old Norse root “agi,” related to old

English and German words meaning immediate and active fear; terror, dread. [Obs].

OED 2: “From its use in reference to the Divine Being this passes gradually into: Dread mingled with veneration, reverential or respectful fear; the attitude of a mind subdued to profound reverence in the presence of supreme authority, moral greatness or sublimity, or mysterious sacredness.”

Page 52: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

Saul on the road to Damascus

...suddenly a light from heaven flashed about him. And he fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And he said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting; but rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do.” The men who were traveling with him stood speechless, hearing the voice but seeing no one (Acts 9.3-7).

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Krishna instructs Arjuna…..

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Gives him a celestial eye...Arjuna: Things never seen before have I seen, and ecstatic is my joy; yet fear-and-trembling perturb by mind…. Krishna: Do works for Me, make Me your highest goal, be loyal-in-love to Me, cut off all other attachments.... (Gita, 11.45-55)

Awe disorientation, loss of old self, commitment to new leader/goal. Awe is a reset button.

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Awe joins up with BeautyOED 3. “The feeling of solemn and reverential wonder, tinged

with latent fear, inspired by what is terribly sublime and majestic in nature, e.g. thunder, a storm at sea.”

--Edmund Burke (1757) on the sublime: a feeling of expanded thought and greatness of mind that is produced by literature, poetry, painting, and viewing landscapes.

--Two key features: power and obscurity

–After 18th Cent. Awe becomes a kinder, gentler emotion. Link to fear and submission is weakened. Anything good becomes “totally awesome”

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Modern American English: Anything surprising and impressive. Almost always good.

Awe.jpg

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A Theory of Awe (Keltner & Haidt, 2003)

Many kinds of awe: at power, nature, skill, divinity, magic….2 Central appraisals: Vastness (Burke’s power) and

Need for accommodation (Burke’s obscurity)5 Peripheral or “flavoring” appraisals: Threat, Beauty, Ability,

Virtue, Supernatural

Evolutionary origins ? Adaptive submission to new power, then selecting best role models (Henrich & Gil-White)

Function? Awe prepares the mind to switch identities, allegiances, ideas. (Rumsfeld used the word correctly. Obama uses the emotion effectively)

Page 58: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

The Inspire and Rewire Hypothesis

PTSD: Extraordinarily powerful experiences of fear flood the brain with cortisol/CRF/NE? leading to long-lasting changes in the amgydala and hippocampus. These changes are associated with personality changes that are experienced as greater negativity: fearfulness, irritability, and guilt.

Extraordinarily powerful experiences of awe/elevation flood the brain with _____ leading to long-lasting changes in the ______. These changes are associated with personality changes that are experienced as greater positivity: love, moral growth, commitment to prosocial causes.

Page 59: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

Applications (of awe, elevation, and admiration)1) Moral development (with Jesse Graham)--Basic research on the emergence of elevation and admiration

in elementary schools--Goal: design a moral development curriculum that uses other-praising emotions to foster change, malleability

2) Self-improvement (With Patrick Seder)--Can other-praising emotions catalyze psychotherapy?--Can admiration enhance exercise and weight loss?

3) Politics, rhetoric, charisma--What is the role of awe/charisma in voting?--What is the role of “moving” speech in moral persuasion?

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The New Synthesis in Moral Psych

1) Intuitive primacy (but not dictatorship) --so look at the moral emotions2) Moral thinking is for social doing --moral emotions change relationships3) Morality binds and builds --pos moral emotions are about self-

transcendence; I becomes WE4) Morality is about more than harm and fairness --look to the ancients, and traditional morality,

to broaden the narrow modern imagination

Page 61: Jonathan  Haidt University of Virginia

Thanks to....Sara Algoe, Patrick Seder, Gary Sherman, Jennifer Silvers

Templeton Foundation Papers & powerpoints available at:www.JonathanHaidt.com