The Effect of Fantasy Context on Moral Action and Judgment

Research suggests individuals import real-world facts into fictional worlds based on the type of fact and fictional context. We examined the importation of real-world morality across fictional contexts. Undergraduate (Study 1) and MTurk (Study 2) participants were randomly assigned to read either a realistic or matching fantastical interactive narrative. At seven junctions, participants were presented with a choice between behaving morally and behaving immorally to advance their goals. In Study 3, an MTurk sample judged the actions of a character who behaved immorally. For Study 1, a gender by condition interaction was found, with males electing more immoral actions in the fantasy condition. For Study 2, no such effect was found. Nonetheless, in Study 3, participants judged immoral actions in the realistic condition as more immoral compared to the fantasy context. Across all studies, transportation predicted choosing fewer immoral actions and judging immoral actions more harshly.