On the Stability of Moral Judgment Over Time

Stability over time is often seen as a signature feature of moral judgment. Yet to date, little focused empirical examination of this assumption exists. In this study, we compare the stability over time of moral judgments about acts in sacrificial dilemmas, moral judgments about the items on the Moral Foundations Questionnaire, and moral judgments about the items on the Morality-as-Cooperation Questionnaire. We find that on three metrics of stability over time, the different types of moral judgment all performed similarly. We also found that changes in moral judgment, when they occurred, could not be easily explained by people changing their mind in light of reasons. We discuss potential implications of our findings for moral psychology and moral philosophy.