PREDICTING AND SHAPING IMMORALITY: A MULTI-METHOD APPROACH TO THE STUDY OF DECEPTION AND OMERTÀ

Human behavior is known to be guided by socially shared moral principles, however, on some occasions, individuals decide to violate those principles, committing moral transgressions. The present thesis focuses on two types of immoral behavior: deception and omertà. In Chapter 2 the results of an experimental study are reported, examining whether the modality through which a target individual acquires social status affects the chance that deception is directed at them. Specifically, the use of virtue was found to reduce the probability of being deceived for egoistic reasons by other individuals. Differently, Chapter 3 presents an explorative investigation of variables predicting both the intention to engage in collective action against mafias and knowledge about the mafia and anti- mafia domains. The role of several demographics, personality traits, social and contextual factors was demonstrated. At last, two studies are described assessing the effectiveness of virtual embodiment protocols in shaping anti-mafia attitudes and intentions (Chapters 4 and 5). Specifically, participants embodied virtual avatars representing an anti-mafia hero (i.e., Giovanni Falcone, Study 3) or real and fictional mafia-related figures (i.e., Totò Riina and Don Vito Corleone, Study 4). The results show how attitudinal and behavioral modifications following virtual embodiment (i.e., Proteus Effect) are not straightforward but depend both on avatars' characteristics and on participants’ perception of them, often leading to paradoxical effects. Overall, the present thesis is informative for authors from various disciplines (e.g., psychology, sociology, cognitive neuroscience) interested in unveiling the sources of immorality, as well as for civic associations and institutional bodies aiming to predict and prevent immoral conduct.