Date of Graduation
5-2025
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts in Psychology
Degree Level
Undergraduate
Department
Psychological Science
Advisor/Mentor
Eidelman, Scott
Committee Member
Purdy, Ashley
Second Committee Member
Makhanova, Anastasia
Third Committee Member
Lessner, Faith
Abstract
Does perpetrator nationality impact prescribed punitiveness, and is this relationship explained by moral disgust? White American participants (N = 243) read a fake news article about a physical assault. Perpetrator nationality was manipulated by indicating that the offender was an American citizen or in the U.S. illegally. Then, participants completed measures on prescribed punitiveness (e.g., minimum sentence for the offender), their emotional reactions toward the offender (e.g., disgusted), as well as exploratory items on patriotism, nationalism, identification with the U.S., and belief in a dangerous world. I predicted that participants in the illegal immigrant perpetrator condition would exhibit more moral disgust toward the offender than those in the American condition, and that prescribed punitiveness would be higher for those in the illegal immigrant condition, which would be explained by moral disgust. These hypotheses were not supported.
Keywords
immigration; dehumanization; moral disgust; in-group bias; criminality
Citation
Fanning, P., Eidelman, S., & Vance, E. (2025). Perpetrator nationality and prescribed punitiveness: The effect of moral disgust. Psychological Science Undergraduate Honors Theses Retrieved from https://scholarworks.uark.edu/psycuht/79
