The Moral Foundations of Knowledge: Seeking and Avoiding COVID-19 Information

Abstract

An abundance of work in social and political psychology suggests a positive relationship between political conservatism, disgust sensitivity, and disease avoidance. Yet, despite this link, recent research suggests that political conservatism is negatively associated with attention to, and knowledge about, COVID-19. The current work draws on the intersection of moral foundations theory and modernization theory to investigate this paradoxical relationship between political conservatism and knowledge about COVID-19. Study 1 provided correlational evidence that individualizing foundations (i.e., moral concerns regarding individual rights and freedom) and binding foundations (i.e., moral concerns about ingroup values, norms, and respect for established ties between the group members/institutions) mediate the relationship between political conservatism and knowledge about COVID-19 (N = 205). Binding foundations were negatively, and individualizing foundations were positively related to COVID-19 knowledge. Study 2 experimentally manipulated the emphasis on different sets of moral foundations (i.e., individualizing and binding; N = 205). The results suggested that emphasizing binding foundations led to target-specific (i.e., COVID-19) information avoidance, and emphasizing individualizing foundations led to general knowledge-seeking behavior. Self-reported endorsement of the two sets of moral foundations, knowledge-seeking, and information avoidance measures also mostly replicated the patterns in Study 1; the effect of individualizing foundations was stronger than binding foundations. To my knowledge, this work is the first to apply the morality perspective to knowledge engagement. By providing a cultural psychological analysis on moral foundations, this work could serve as an intellectual spark for future research on political ideology and moral foundations from a cultural stance.