Meta-synthesis of factors that affect adults’ ethical decision making to identify the role creative morality plays in it

This study was conducted in order to identify the factors contributing to the ethical decision-making of adults, and to understand the role that creative morality plays in it.

To identify the factors affecting the moral decision-making of adults, a meta-synthesis of scientific researches in the field of ethical decision-making was performed. The articles used in this meta-synthesis were published in the 1990s in Iran. Actually, fifty-four articles were used in this meta-synthesis, all of which were published in scientific journals.

The result of this meta-synthesis shows the following seven factors to be the main influences on adults’ ethical decision making: one’s external environment, attitude, personality traits, learning abilities, mental and cognitive capabilities, demographic characteristics, and the specific conditions/circumstances of the moral issue at hand.

four of these factors, namely one’s environment, attitude, learning abilities, and the circumstances surrounding the moral issue signify the central role that creativity plays in moral decision making; through/using which a solution to various moral dilemmas could be found/through which a general scheme for solving ethical dilemmas can be devised.