Facilitating and preventing factors in moral and immoral behaviors based on the implicit theories of the Iranian people: The role of benefit and costs

Introduction: In the present study, the factors that facilitate and prevent moral and immoral behaviors were examined according to the role of benefits and costs of each of these behaviors. Materials and Methods: This study was phenomenological qualitative research. Structured interviews were used to collect data. Then, the information obtained from the interview was analyzed by explicit content analysis method during three stages of the process of implementation open coding, axial coding, and selective coding. Participants in the study included 222 people (121 high school students aged 16 to 19 years and 101 adults aged 20 to 52 years) from Khuzestan, Lorestan, Hamadan, Mazandaran, Tehran, Arak, Fars, Isfahan, Khorasan Razavi, Ilam, Kermanshah, and Kurdistan provinces that were selected using the convenient sampling method. Results: The results of the content analysis of the interviews showed that according to the implicit theories of the Iranian people, the benefits factor (psychological benefit and situational benefit) has an important role in facilitating and preventing the performance of any moral and immoral behaviors. Based on the findings, it can be said that the benefit factor (psychological-situational) and cost (psychological-situational) play important roles in the likelihood of the formation, occurrence, and inhibition of moral and immoral behaviors by preventing them in various work, study, social, and life situations. Conclusion: Overall, the research findings give new insights into the role of benefit and cost as factors that control the occurrence or non-occurrence of moral and immoral behaviors in various situations.