Most works on moral psychology direct our attention to the positive role morality plays for us as individuals, as a society, even as a species. In What's Wrong with Morality?, C. Daniel Batson takes a different approach: he looks at morality as a problem. The problem is not that it is wrong to be moral, but that our morality often fails to produce these intended results. Why? Some experts believe the answer lies in lack of character. Others say we are victims of poor judgment. If we could but discern what is morally right, whether through logical analysis and discourse, through tuned intuition and a keen moral sense, or through feeling and sentiment, we would act accordingly. Implicit in these different views is the assumption that if we grow up properly, if we can think and feel as we should, and if we can keep a firm hand on the tiller through the storms of circumstance, all will be well. We can realize our moral potential. Many of our best writers of fiction are less optimistic. Astute observers of the human condition like Austen, Balzac, Dickens, Dostoyevsky, Eliot, Tolstoy, and Twain suggest our moral psychology is more complex. These writers encourage us to look more closely at our motives, emotions, and values, at what we really care about in the moral domain. In this volume, Batson examines this issue from a social-psychological perspective. Drawing on research suggesting our moral life is fertile ground for rationalization and deception, including self-deception, Batson offers a hard-nosed analysis of morality and its limitations in this expertly written book.

About the Author
C. Daniel Batson is an experimental social psychologist. He received a Ph.D. in psychology from Princeton University in 1972, and taught at the University of Kansas until his retirement in 2008. For over 30 years, his research has focused on prosocial motivation, with particular emphasis on altruistic and moral motivation, and related emotions. He has published well over a hundred research articles and chapters on these topics, as well as two books on altruism. This is his first book on morality.

Reviews
Batson's starting point is the observation that moral life suffers from maladies: very often, we fail to live up to our own moral standards. ... According to Batosn, the real role of interpersonal morality is not to control our own behaviour, but that of others: "[...] we want to be treated morally, not to be moral oursevles" (177). ... When Batson looks for ways to strengthen moral behaviour at the end of his book, he does not really believe that true moral motivation can be substanially strengthed. * Cor van der Weele, Ethical Perspectives *
Written in clear and often witty prose. . . this book will serve as a great introduction to the current state of moral psychology. * Kyle Furlane, University of Cincinnati; Metapsychology Online Reviews *
The book is highly useful for graduate students and moral scholars who want to understand whether individual differences in human behavior are a consequence of diverse person characteristics, situational constraints, or a combination of the two. * Dr. Theresa Thorkildsen, Professor of Education and Psychology at the University of Illinois; PsycCRITIQUES, Vol. 61, No. 16, April 2016 *



Book Information
ISBN 9780199355549
Author C. Daniel Batson
Format Hardback
Page Count 272
Imprint Oxford University Press Inc
Publisher Oxford University Press Inc
Weight(grams) 490g
Dimensions(mm) 163mm * 236mm * 25mm