Van Prooijen, J.-W., & Van Lange, P. A. M. (Eds.) (2016). Cheating, corruption, and concealment: The roots of dishonesty. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. 

Abstract:

Dishonesty is ubiquitous in our world. The news is frequently filled with high-profile cases of corporate fraud, large-scale corruption, lying politicians, and hypocrisy of public figures. On a smaller scale, ordinary people often cheat, lie, misreport their taxes, and mislead others in their daily life. Despite such prevalence of cheating, corruption, and concealment, people typically consider themselves to be honest, and often believe themselves to be more moral than most others. This book aims to resolve this paradox by addressing the question of why people are dishonest all too often. What motivates dishonesty, and how are people able to perceive themselves as moral despite their dishonest behaviour? What personality and interpersonal factors make dishonesty more likely? And what can be done to recognize and reduce dishonesty? This is a fascinating overview of state-of-the-art research on dishonesty with prominent scholars offering their views to clarify the roots of dishonesty.

Overview of contents:

Preface

Chapter 1 – Cheating, Corruption, and Concealment: An Introduction to Dishonesty

Jan-Willem van Prooijen and Paul A. M. van Lange

 Part 1 – Motivations for Dishonesty

Chapter 2 – Moral Motivation: A Closer Look

C. Daniel Batson

Chapter 3 – Beyond “Being Good Frees Us to Be Bad:” Moral Self-Licensing and the Fabrication of Moral Credentials

Daniel A. Effron

Chapter 4 – Deception as a means to an end: An instrumental approach

Wolfgang Steinel, Lukas Koning, Eric van Dijk, and Ilja van Beest

Part 2 – Justifying Dishonesty

Chapter 5 – How Moral Flexibility Constrains Our Moral Compass

Francesca Gino

Chapter 6 – Always the Hero to Ourselves: The Role of Self-Deception in Unethical Behavior

Celia Moore

Chapter 7 – Not for My Sake: Preventing Others from Using Potential Beneficiaries’ Benefits as Justifications for Dishonesty

Scott S. Wiltermuth and Medha Raj

Chapter 8 – Corrupt Collaboration: A Behavioral Ethics Approach

Shaul Shalvi, Ori Weisel, Sys Kochavi-Gamliel, and Margarita Leib

Part 3 – Influences on Dishonesty

Chapter 9 – Narcissism and Dishonesty: The SAC Model

W. Keith Campbell and Lane Siedor

Chapter 10 – When Being Creative Frees Us to be Bad: Linking Creativity with Moral Licensing

Lynne C. Vincent and Evan Polman

Chapter 11 – Wealth and Wrongdoing: Social Class Differences in Ethical Reasoning and Behavior

Paul K. Piff, Daniel M. Stancato, and E. J. Horberg

Chapter 12 – Power, dishonesty, and justice

Steven L. Blader and Andy J. Yap

Part 4 – Reducing Dishonesty

Chapter 13 – Religion, Deception and Self-Deception

Stephanie R. Kramer and Azim F. Shariff

Chapter 14 – The Ergonomics of Ethics

Andy J. Yap

Chapter 15 – When Opposition if Beneficial: The Case of Productive Disobedience

Piero Bocchiaro

Chapter 16 – A Cognitive Approach to Elicit Verbal and Nonverbal Cues to Deceit

Aldert Vrij, Ronald P. Fisher, Hartmut Blank, Sharon Leal, and Samantha Mann