When a person or a group maintains that something is morally good but does the opposite, we are facing a double standard. In general, the mechanism of double standards is as follows: something is prohibited or socially frowned upon and despite this it continues to be practiced in secret.
There is also talk of double standards to refer to those people who reject in others what they do. These kinds of attitudes are hypocritical and represent an obvious personal contradiction.
Morality and double standards
All cultures have codes of behavior that make it possible to distinguish what is right from what is wrong, what is morally good and what is bad. These codes are usually originally religious, but they end up being installed in the whole of society.
There are moral norms that are mostly accepted as valid (for example, the prohibition of incest, the rejection of violence or the different forms of slavery). However, other moral norms are partially rejected, since it is socially correct to say that they are not valid, but many people practice them in a hidden way. When this happens, the moral approach is false and becomes a double standard. If someone rejects prostitution because he considers it immoral, but uses the services of a prostitute, he is practicing a double standard.
The psychological mechanism
As a general rule, we all like to look good in front of others. To achieve this, we say everything that sounds good, what we know will be socially accepted. This need for acceptance is probably the foundation that explains the double standard in society.
The curious thing about double standards is the fact that we attribute this type of behavior to others, since we value ourselves very highly from the point of view of personal integrity. Let us think of the widespread criticism of labor exploitation in the world, a rejection that in many cases is accompanied by the purchase of products obtained from that same exploitation.
Integral people are those who practice what they profess
We can say many things about what is good or bad. However, what is truly important is that our words and our actions match. Whoever maintains coherence between his theoretical approach to morality and his personal life is someone of integrity.
Photos: Fotolia – Igor Zakowski / John Takai
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