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Mapping Perfect and Imperfect Duties onto Hierarchically and Partially Restrictive Trait Dimensions

New Mexico State University

Sabine Trafimow

New Mexico State University

Four experiments tested a proposal that hierarchically and partially restrictive trait dimensions pertaining to morality can be explained by Kant’s distinction between perfect and imperfect duties. Consistent with the proposal, Experiment 1 demonstrated that people change their positive expectancies about others at a faster rate in response to violations of perfect than imperfect duties. In addition, however, Experiment 2 showed that situational factors mitigate the negative trait attributions resulting from violations of imperfect duties more than those resulting from violations of perfect duties. Experiment 3 demonstrated that differences in trait attributions as a result of violations of perfect or imperfect duties are not due to implications of these violations for future behavior. Finally, Experiment 4 further supported the prediction that situational factors mitigate the negative trait attributions caused by violations of imperfect duties more than those caused by violations of perfect duties.

Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, Vol. 25, No. 6, 687-697 (1999)
DOI: 10.1177/0146167299025006004


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