Do Metaphysical Beliefs Manipulate Moral Competency? A Study in the Context of Cultural Diversities, Involving Global Population

Abstract

Morality is the faculty of the human mind that enables an individual to act according to what is "right" or stand for "truth" and exhibit moral behaviour. Moral competency is the measure of the consistency of moral behaviour and is influenced by various psycho-social, geo-political, biological and environmental factors. Metaphysical beliefs and religio-spiritual affiliation are some known psycho-social factors that play a major role in shaping the morality in course of moral development and socialization of an individual. The present study attempts to explore the influence of basic metaphysical beliefs like faith in God, Afterlife, and belief in the influence of present life on afterlife; on moral competency. The present study conducted on N=415 samples from across the world and diverse cultures reveals that metaphysical beliefs influence moral competency to a significant extent.