Cancel like you mean it! dual processes, dual attitudes, and moral hypocrisy in cancel culture

This paper explores the cognitive processes underlying cancel culture through the lens of the dual-process perspective, which distinguishes between intuitive (Type 1) and reflective (Type 2) modes of thinking. Using a survey experiment with an experimental manipulation of decision-making mode, we examine how politically incorrect statements about immigration and climate change influence canceling decisions. Both explicit and implicit attitudes towards xenophobia and climate change were measured to understand their impact on canceling behaviors. Our findings show that politically incorrect statements lead to higher rates of canceling in the reflective condition compared to the intuitive condition, with explicit attitudes playing a stronger role in reflective decision-making. Importantly, the discrepancy between implicit and explicit attitudes not only shapes the treatment effect of decision-making mode but also reveals patterns of moral hypocrisy. Under reflective conditions, individuals often cancel others to conform to social norms, even when their implicit attitudes conflict with these public actions. This highlights the complex interplay between cognition, social norms, and moral judgment in cancel culture, where reflective thinking may lead to performative rather than genuine moral behavior.