Does injustice affect your sense of taste and smell? The mediating role of moral disgust

• Published in: Journal of experimental social psychology 2013-09, Vol.49 (5), p.852-859
• Main Authors: Skarlicki, Daniel P., Hoegg, JoAndrea, Aquino, Karl, Nadisic, Thierry
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Business administration; Disgust; Economics and Finance; Emotions; Humanities and Social Sciences; Interpersonal injustice; Moral emotions; Morality; Sensory responses; Social psychology
• ISSN: 0022-1031; 1096-0465
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jesp.2013.03.011

Unfair treatment can activate strong negative emotions among victims and third parties. Less is known about other innate and evolutionary-based reactions to unfairness, such as those that manifest themselves through our senses. In three experiments, we found that interpersonally unfair treatment at work, defined as treatment that violates an individual's sense of dignity and respect, triggered disgust emotions over and above anger which subsequently related to stronger taste and smell reactions to gustatory and olfactory stimuli. This effect was observed for pleasant and unpleasant tasting products, for agreeable and malodorous scents, and among both mistreatment victims and third parties. Our findings suggest that violations of dignity and respect can trigger an evolutionary based reaction that activates a human alarm system, warning individuals of impending threats even when no oral threat is imminent. •Violations of interpersonal justice trigger a heightened sense of taste and smell.•Disgust mediates the relationship between injustice and sensory perception.•These effects occur over and above feelings of anger.