When do gossip receivers assess negative gossip as justifiable? A goal framing approach.

Negative gossip is a double-edged sword, which can harm group members but also protect them from harmful others. Current theory proposes that gossip receivers assess gossipers' selfish and prosocial intentions based on different social cues, to determine whether the negative gossip behavior is morally justifiable. However, assessing gossipers' moral intentions does not fully clarify when and how justifiability of negative gossip is assessed by receivers. Using goal framing theory, I propose a parsimonious way of understanding when gossip receivers will be interested in determining whether sharing the negative gossip was justifiable, and how they assess justifiability. In line with predictions, results of two scenario experiments showed that in a hedonic and gain goal frame gossip justifiability was similar to a baseline level, suggesting that receivers had no particular concerns regarding gossip justifiability. However, in a normative frame receivers assessed negative gossip to be less justifiable when social cues indicated that the gossiper was motivated to harm others for self-interest compared to when such cues were absent (Study 1). In Study 2, gossip was more justified when social cues indicated that that the target broke the salient social norm and signaled that the gossiper has low motivation to harm. Moreover, in a normative frame, participants were more interested in further establishing gossip truthfulness compared to participants in a gain, hedonic, or control condition in Study 1, and in a hedonic condition in Study 2. These results show that individuals' goal frame determine their interest in gossip justifiability and how they assess it. This may help solve the paradox of negative gossip by drawing from goal framing theory to understand individuals can be avid gossip consumers, while holding widely disapproving attitudes towards this behavior.

AI and the need for justification (to the patient).

This paper argues that one problem that besets black-box AI is that it lacks algorithmic justifiability. We argue that the norm of shared decision making in medical care presupposes that treatment decisions ought to be justifiable to the patient. Medical decisions are justifiable to the patient only if they are compatible with the patient's values and preferences and the patient is able to see that this is so. Patient-directed justifiability is threatened by black-box AIs because the lack of rationale provided for the decision makes it difficult for patients to ascertain whether there is adequate fit between the decision and the patient's values. This paper argues that achieving algorithmic transparency does not help patients bridge the gap between their medical decisions and values. We introduce a hypothetical model we call Justifiable AI to illustrate this argument. Justifiable AI aims at modelling normative and evaluative considerations in an explicit way so as to provide a stepping stone for patient and physician to jointly decide on a course of treatment. If our argument succeeds, we should prefer these justifiable models over alternatives if the former are available and aim to develop said models if not.

Violence Against Women with Mental Illness and Social Norms and Beliefs: Nursing Professional Perspective.

Violence against women is a priority public health issue globally and women with mental illness are at double disadvantage. While social norms and beliefs play a critical role in influencing violence among women, limited or no research is available from India. To explore nurses and nursing students' views on social norms and beliefs that support Violence against women with mental illness. A descriptive cross-sectional survey was carried out among randomly selected registered nurses and nursing students (N = 209) using self-reported questionnaires. Majority of the participants confronted norms (76.7%) and situations that justify (67.7%) abuse among women with mental illness. Nurses reported more negative attitudes than nursing students with regard to norms and beliefs (t = - 2.714, p < 0.007) and justifiability of abuse (t = - 3.089, p < 0.002). The findings suggest suitable academic programs to extinguish the prevailing cultural beliefs that support abuse in women with mental illness.

Effectiveness of a Module Based Training on Nurses' Attitude Towards Social Norms and Beliefs That Support Abuse Among women with Mental Illness.

Violence against women is a priority public health issue. Women with mental illness are at a double disadvantage. While social norms and beliefs either support or confront violence against women, research is limited on this issue. A randomized controlled design was adopted for the present study. This study was aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of module-based training in changing nurses' attitudes towards norms and beliefs that support violence against women in mental health care settings. In this study, 68 nurses were randomly assigned to either the experimental or control group (34 in each group). After receiving the training program, the mean scores on norms and beliefs and justifiability of abuse scales were significantly higher in the experimental group compared to the control group (p < 0.05). The results confirmed the positive impact of the training program in changing nurses' attitudes. However, further studies are required to draw firm conclusions on the effectiveness of the training intervention.

The role of culture-gene coevolution in morality judgment: examining the interplay between tightness-looseness and allelic variation of the serotonin transporter gene.

This research provides novel insights into the evolutionary basis of cultural norm development and maintenance. We yield evidence for a unique culture-gene coevolutionary model between ecological threat, allelic frequency of the serotonin transporter polymorphism (5-HTTLPR), cultural tightness-looseness-the strength of norms and tolerance for deviance from norms-and moral justifiability. As hypothesized, the results across 21 nations show that: (a) propensity for ecological threat correlates with short (S) allele frequency in the 5-HTTLPR, (b) allelic frequency in the 5-HTTLPR and vulnerability to ecological threat both correlate with cultural tightness-looseness, (c) susceptibility to ecological threat predicts tightness-looseness via the mediation of S allele carriers, and (d) frequency of S allele carriers predicts justifiability of morally relevant behavior via tightness-looseness. This research highlights the importance of studying the interplay between environmental, genetic, and cultural factors underlying contemporary differences in social behavior and presents an empirical framework for future research.