Abstract

This chapter provides an introduction to moral psychology as a field of research that explores questions of moral perspectives, dispositions, and judgments by harnessing social scientific and empirical methodologies. The chapter focuses on several of the more prominent lines of inquiry into moral reasoning and moral judgments, which have produced important, widely used instruments and guiding theories. Three such theories discussed here are moral development, ethical ideology, and moral foundations. The chapter surveys other topics in the field, such as autonomous agency, perceptions of workplace climate, and moral ecology, and refers to instruments used in each area. A discussion of recent applications of moral psychology to media research illuminates important questions in journalism, public relations, and advertising. The chapter concludes by noting the burgeoning affinity between moral psychology theorizing and virtues ethics frameworks.