I had to scratch my head recently when Hasbro announced the debut of a cheater’s version of Monopoly. Yes, I know, it’s all in fun. But I had to wonder if this isn’t reflective of the gradual decline of ethics in our daily lives. Now comes this story about the correlation between lack of sleep and ethics.
Professor Christopher Barnes at the Foster School of Business, University of Washington, has conducted empirical experiments to study the effect of sleep on “moral awareness.” His research results suggest that “demanding circumstances like long hours or family conflict that cut into the sleep may also reduce people’s moral awareness.” Since moral awareness is a necessary prerequisite to conscious moral judgment that culminates in an ethical decision, its impairment could result in unethical choices or cheating.
In other words, get some sleep.