By Jason Hreha

Glossary

Moral Foundations Theory

Reviewed by Jason Hreha

Published 2 min read

What is moral foundations theory?

Moral foundations theory, developed by Jonathan Haidt and colleagues, proposes that moral judgments draw on several kinds of moral concern. It is a research framework, not a definitive list of everything that makes an action right or wrong.

What the foundations mean

The following hypothetical judgments illustrate the five-domain version:

  • Care: objecting to cruelty because another person is suffering.
  • Fairness: objecting when someone takes a benefit without honoring a reciprocal agreement.
  • Loyalty: seeing abandonment of one’s group in a difficult moment as betrayal.
  • Authority: valuing respect for a legitimate leader or an established tradition.
  • Purity: judging an act as a desecration of something regarded as sacred, even without an obvious direct injury.

Versions and evidence

Graham, Haidt, and Nosek’s 2009 studies examined five domains: care, fairness, loyalty, authority, and purity. Liberals in those studies emphasized the first two more relative to the others; conservatives endorsed the five more evenly. These are group findings, not rules for every person.

The framework and its measures have changed. The 2023 Moral Foundations Questionnaire-2 study separated equality from proportionality while retaining care, loyalty, authority, and purity.

Liberty/oppression is a separate proposed foundation concerning domination and restrictions on freedom. The theory’s research group describes it as a candidate. A six-foundation version that adds liberty to the original five is therefore different from MFQ-2’s six-domain structure, which splits fairness into equality and proportionality.

Equality versus proportionality

Imagine dividing a team bonus. An equality judgment favors the same amount for each person; a proportionality judgment favors shares based on each person’s contribution. Both concern fairness, but they can recommend different allocations. This illustration explains the distinction without deciding which rule a workplace should use.

Limits

Evidence for questionnaire dimensions does not by itself prove that each is an innate, separate biological system. Claims about political or cultural differences need to specify the version, sample, and measure. The theory also does not establish which group is more moral.