Does empathy predict decision-making in everyday trolley-like problems?

Abstract

Two ecological and social versions of the Trolley-like Problem (a direct-impact [DI] and a no-direct-impact [NDI] scenario) were created to investigate moral decision-making and determine whether age, gender, and empathy significantly predicted people’s choices. Two hundred and fifty-five participants were recruited in this study. We found that men and women made more Utilitarian Choices (UC) in the NDI scenario. In this scenario, the attribution of penalties was low (6%). In the DI scenario, we found that the UC rate was significantly reduced compared to the NDI scenario, and, surprisingly, women made more UC than men. We found that UC decreased as a function of men’s affective empathy in the NDI scenario. In the DI one, lower affective empathy levels predicted UC differently for men and women. Lastly, the attribution of penalties tripled. In conclusion, this study highlighted the role played by scenarios, gender, and empathy in predicting UC in Trolley-like Problems.