Month: December 2023

by Heather Allen

The urge to deceive others is a natural human trait, albeit not a desirable one. It is widely believed that a person’s trustworthiness, or lack of it, is down to their individual character rather than the situation they are in. Indeed, research on unethical behaviour has tended to focus on the person exhibiting the behaviour, rather than the target of that behaviour. However, new research from the University of British Columbia (UBC) Sauder School of Business has turned that view on its head. According to the research, people are more likely to act deceptively towards a group rather than an individual – the situation itself directly affects behaviour.

Researchers cite the example of a job interview, where, it was discovered, a candidate is more likely to exaggerate their qualifications and experience when facing a panel than they would in a one-to-one interview.

“We found that individuals act more unethically toward groups than individual targets – and how closely connected they are to the group comes into play,” Dr Daniel Skarlicki, a professor at the UBC Sauder School of Business, said. “It’s almost as though my responsibility to the other side is diluted, because there are four of them. You don’t get the same sense of a personal connection that you get with one person. And when that connection goes away, deception is more likely.”

Groups tend to be perceived as competitive, aggressive and negative, and less like a ‘real’ entity, Dr Skarlicki said. This means that people tend to see groups as less personal, and therefore not as deserving of moral treatment.

Researchers coined the term ‘The Plurality Effect’ to describe the phenomenon, which was observed across several experiments in the study.  In one scenario, participants acting as advisors behaved dishonestly when interacting with a group compared to an individual. Another experiment, which focused on mock job interviews, revealed an increased likelihood of deceptive behaviour when facing a panel rather than an individual interviewer.  

A person’s connection to the group can also make a difference. People show greater moral concern toward individuals in their close circles (the in-group), which can include friends, family members, colleagues, and people whose stories they relate to.

“There is strong evidence that you will be more deceptive to the out-group versus the in-group, because you feel relatively more responsibility toward the in-group and you like them more,” Dr Skarlicki said. “If we go back in time, the out-group is whoever you’re competing with for food. It’s evolutionary.”

The findings could have a wide application, from job interviews and customer interactions to international negotiations, Dr Skarlicki said. Instead of group interviews, employers might choose to have a series of one-on-one meetings, which could also be a winning strategy in political negotiations. In addition, people can reduce the risk of deception by trying to boost their moral concern about the other party.

The study, entitled ‘The Plurality Effect: People behave more unethically toward group than individual targets’, builds on research about moral decision-making and social identity theory, and was co-authored with Hsuan-Che Huang from UBC Sauder, Dr Ruodan Shao from York University, Dr Kristina Diekmann from University of Utah, and Dr Ann Tenbrunsel from the University of Notre Dame.

Source: University of British Columbia. https://news.ubc.ca/2023/12/07/people-more-likely-to-behave-unethically-toward-groups-than-individuals/

Research abstract available at: https://journals.aom.org/doi/abs/10.5465/AMPROC.2023.349bp