Nitin Nohria, in the Washington Post, explores the idea that we are not as virtuous as we think we are. Nitin has coined the term "moral overconfidence. Which she explains as, "this gap between how people believe they would behave and how they actually behave." Nitin goes on to say, "Moral overconfidence is on display in politics, in business, in sports—really, in all aspects of life." This gap is most obvious "…in high-pressure situations, when there is some inherent ambiguity, when there are competing claims on our sense of right and wrong, and when our moral transgressions are incremental, taking us down a slippery slope."

One way to overcome this overconfidence is to stay away from certain situations. Nitin says, "… when we are under extreme time pressure, we are more likely to behave unethically. When we operate in isolation, we are more likely to break rules. When incentives are very steep, we are more likely to try to achieve them by hook or by crook." The goal to overcome all of this is to find moral humility and moral courage.

Source:

Nitin Nohria, “You’re not as virtuous as you think,” The Washington Post (10-15-15)