Cooperation, different faces of morality, and their links to risk, fear, and personality during a crisis

Morality-as-Cooperation theory posits that moral behaviour evolved to facilitate group cohesion and collective action. The COVID-19 pandemic, particularly the imposition and subsequent easing of strict regulations in Australia, presented a real-world test of this, where individual decisions had a significant impact on the collective. This study examines whether psychological profiles can predict cooperative behaviour in a crisis. 582 Australian adults were recruited via Prolific and surveyed twice between January and June 2022. Participants completed morality, risk-taking propensity, fears, personality, and behaviour measures. CFA identified morality and risk factors. Latent profile analysis (LPA) determined psychological and behavioural profiles. Three moral factors, Binding, Individualised, and Dark Morality (self-serving disengagement), emerged alongside a Risk Propensity factor. LPA revealed three classes: Amoral Risk-Seekers (~14 %) with high dark morality, high risk-taking, and low cooperation; Moral Risk-Averse (~55 %) with high cooperation and low dark morality; and Anxious Compliant (~31 %) with high fears and cooperation. Profiles differed in agreeableness, conscientiousness, and neuroticism. These findings enhance our understanding of the psychology behind cooperation. They extend the Morality-as-Cooperation theory by incorporating personality and risk, offering a more nuanced and novel account of moral decision-making in crisis. The study offers practical insights for tailored interventions in future emergencies. • First to test Morality-as-Cooperation Theory with COVID-19 behavioural data • Introduced a Dark-Morality factor combining amorality, reactance, and chaos • Distinct clusters: amoral risk-seekers, moral risk-averse, and anxious-compliant • Linked clusters to personality, cognition, demographics, and compliance behaviours • Practical implications for predicting and managing real-life moral decisions