As of yet, none of our articles have yet directly addressed the question of the actual benefits of ethics. We have always addressed ethics in connection with a specific topic, such as in some of our most popular articles “The four principles of ethical action in medicine”, “What is an ethical dilemma?”, or “Ethical action in everyday life – how does it work?”, and many other popular articles on our website. Time to close that gap and provide some food for thought on that question.
What does ethics mean?
On the one hand, in the abstract, ethics is about moral principles, norms, and values. On the other hand, it is concretely about investigating what constitutes a good or right action, and then, even more concretely, applying such behavior in everyday life. Therefore, ethics analyzes moral decisions, their justifications, and their consequences. When applying ethics that are considered right and good (more on this topic in our article on the Golden Rule) there is no getting around the concept of self-control. This is because our instincts are not always ethical, requiring us to constantly control our impulses. In the following, we will answer the question of the benefits of ethics with the help of research on the topic of self-control by the social psychologist Roy Baumeister [1].
Self-control is a human “superpower”
Let’s take a look at the human capacity for conscious self-control and its relationship to ethics.
According to Baumeister, the ability to control instincts is crucial for human success as a „cultural animal.“ Most experts agree that humans are far more capable of self-regulation than other animals. By applying self-control, humans are able to abruptly stop what they are doing, which is virtually impossible for other animals. In other words, humans can overcome reactions that are already in progress. Self-control enables us to change our inner states, reactions, and behaviors. This gives us an extraordinary degree of flexibility and adaptability—our superpower. According to Baumeister, this ability largely explains the infinite variety of human behavior compared to the stereotypical and predictable behavior of most other animals.
Following rules is an essential part of human culture and represents a fundamental difference between human and animal behavior. Baumeister notes that rules exist to prevent humans from acting without considering the consequences or the rights of others or society as a whole. Following these rules, especially those related to ethics, morality, and law, requires humans to control their impulses. The more we can resist acting on our initial impulse in a given situation, the more we can align our behavior with ethics. Baumeister argues that humans can use their willpower to consciously change themselves by neutralizing their instinctive reactions and following ethical principles. Baumeister asserts that we would all be better off with more self-control. He divides the ability to control oneself into four main areas: 1) control over one’s thoughts, 2) control over one’s feelings, 3) control over one’s instinctive impulses and the ability to resist temptation, and 4) control over one’s willpower and perseverance …
The Different Dimensions of the Benefits of Ethics
The benefits of ethics have both a material and a spiritual dimension.
Hardly anyone would seriously doubt that successful self-control is an important key to success in life in general. This is evident from our own life experience. People who manage to effectively regulate their own behavior tend to be more successful than others. They generally achieve better results at school and at work. They have better interpersonal relationships, are more valued by others and are more trusted. They have fewer personal problems and are mentally more adaptable and resilient. On the subject of resilience, we would like to refer you to our article “Resilience research. What mindset gives me mental strength?„). According to Baumeister, self-control is one of the most useful psychological skills, alongside intelligence. Conversely, an inability to control oneself can lead to personal and social problems, including addiction, abuse, crime, violence, poor academic performance, financial problems, eating disorders, emotional overload, and lack of exercise. The connection with crime has been particularly thoroughly researched, according to Baumeister. By definition, crime is a violation of the explicit rules of a culture, and criminal acts often stem from an impulsive lack of self-control.
When it comes to consciously subjecting our thoughts and actions to ethical self-control, pursuing long-term goals instead of chasing short-term gains, building a better future or getting along and cooperating with others in the present, the benefits on a purely material level, as shown above, are already immense.
For people of faith, i.e. people who believe in the common basic principles of the monotheistic religions of revelation, i.e. above all in a continuation of life in the hereafter, in an account that life in this world has the purpose of sowing, the harvest of which is destined for the hereafter, the conscious observance of ethics has a further, spiritual level in addition to the purely material advantages described above. They subject their thoughts and actions to self-control not only for material reasons, but also to achieve a higher goal beyond life in this world. These people have the great advantage that their motivation for self-control and adherence to ethics is driven not only by the material advantages, but also by the advantages of believing in this second spiritual level. The foundation on which their super-power self-control is based is therefore incomparably more stable and would likely not collapse so quickly due to a strong unethical impulse. There are now a whole series of studies on this, all of which very clearly establish a connection between faith and improved self-control.[2]
Authors: The Ethica Rationalis editorial team
[1] Roy Baumeister is an American social psychologist who is known for his work on topics such as the self, self-control, motivation, aggression, consciousness and free will. In particular, the findings in his book “The Cultural Animal: Human Nature, Meaning, and Social Life, Oxford University Press; 1st Edition (February 10, 2005), ISBN-10: 0195167031, ISBN-13: 978-0195167030)
[2] Michael Inzlicht (2009), University of Toronto, “Religion Replenishes Self-Control”;
McCullough & Willoughby (2009), Psychological Bulletin, “Religion, Self-Regulation, and Self-Control: Associations, Explanations, and Implications”;
Baumeister, DeWall, & Vohs (2007), Current Directions in Psychological Science, “Religion, Self-Regulation, and Self-Control: Why God Helps You Exercise Restraint”;
Rounding, Lee, Jacobson, & Ji (2012), Psychological Science, “Religion Replenishes Self-Control”.
