Sex differences in moral judgements across 67 countries

Most of the empirical research on sex differences and cultural variations
in morality has relied on within-culture analyses or small-scale
cross-cultural data. To further broaden the scientific understanding of
sex differences in morality, the current research relies on two
international samples to provide the first large-scale examination of sex
differences in moral judgements nested within cultures. Using a sample
from 67 countries (Study 1; n = 336,691), we found culturally-variable sex
differences in moral judgements, as conceptualized by Moral Foundations
Theory. Women consistently scored higher than men on Care, Fairness, and
Purity. In contrast, sex differences in Loyalty and Authority were
negligible and highly variable across cultures. Country-level sex
differences in moral judgements were also examined in relation to
cultural, socio-economic, and gender-equality indicators revealing that
sex differences in moral judgements are larger in individualist, Western,
and gender-equal societies. In Study 2 (19 countries; n = 11,969), these
results were largely replicated using Bayesian multi-level modeling in a
distinct sample. The findings were robust even when incorporating cultural
non-independence of countries into the models. Specifically, women
consistently showed higher concerns for Care, Fairness, and Purity in
their moral judgements than did men. Sex differences in moral judgements
were larger in individualist and gender-equal societies with more flexible
social norms. We discuss the implications of these findings for the
ongoing debate about the origin of sex differences and cultural variations
in moral judgements as well as theoretical and pragmatic implications for
moral and evolutionary psychology.

现有关于道德领域性别差异与文化变异的实证研究，大多依赖文化内部分析或小规模跨文化数据集。为进一步深化学界对道德领域性别差异的科学认知，本研究依托两份国际样本，首次开展了嵌套于文化语境下的道德判断性别差异大规模考察。研究1涵盖67个国家（样本量n=336,691），结果显示：基于道德基础理论（Moral Foundations Theory）所界定的道德判断维度中，性别差异随文化语境呈现显著变化。女性在关怀（Care）、公平（Fairness）与纯洁（Purity）维度上的得分始终高于男性；与之相对，忠诚（Loyalty）与权威（Authority）维度的性别差异可忽略不计，且在不同文化间波动幅度极大。
本研究还检验了国家层面道德判断性别差异与文化、社会经济及性别平等指标的关联，结果发现：个体主义、西方社会及性别平等程度更高的社会中，道德判断的性别差异更为显著。研究2涵盖19个国家（样本量n=11,969），通过贝叶斯多层模型对独立样本进行分析，上述结果得到了基本重复。即便将国家间的文化非独立性纳入模型，研究结论依然稳健。具体而言，女性在道德判断中对关怀、公平与纯洁的关注度始终高于男性；在个体主义程度更高、性别更平等且社会规范更灵活的社会中，道德判断的性别差异更为显著。
本研究最后讨论了上述发现对当下关于道德判断性别差异与文化变异起源的争论的启示，以及其对道德心理学与进化心理学的理论与实践意义。