How Perceptions of Harm Drive Moral Outrage and Political Conflict

In episode 61, we explored Outraged! with Kurt Gray, discussing the harm-based model of morality and how our perceptions of harm and victimization fuel moral outrage. But there’s so much more to uncover.

In this episode, we take a deeper dive into the research behind these ideas with moral psychology researcher Sam Pratt. We examine the paper Morality in Our Mind and Across Cultures and Politics, unpacking how different moral perspectives shape political polarization, why people moralize certain issues differently, and the tension between moral relativism vs. universalism.

We also discuss how victimhood and morality interact—why some people strongly identify as victims in political and social conflicts, and how this influences the broader psychology of morality.

If you’ve ever wondered why people see the same events through completely different moral lenses, this episode is for you.

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Also check out our companion podcasts, This Week in Outrage and Outrage Science Bites.

Intro music and outro music by Michael Ramir C.

Many thanks to my co-editor and co-director, Austin Chen.