The findings from a large survey study, co-authored by Kyle Hull, Kevin Smith and Clarisse Warren, demonstrate the willingness of people to bend their morals - even behave unethically - when engaging in the political realm.

Results also suggest that hostility toward outgroups (i.e., opposing party) is the driving factor for the moral ambiguity exercised when respondents switch from the personal to the political arena.

And there is not just one guilty party.

"People, regardless of age or ideology, were more willing to engage in immoral behaviors and judgments if the behaviors were in the political realm," said Hull, a visiting assistant professor in political science. "And a lot of it was just driven by genuine internal dislike of the 'other' side."

"I think there's some reason for concern," Hull said. "As long as there is some internalized dislike of the outgroup, there's certainly a risk of behaviors that may be involved when people are willing to act less morally. Politics makes us do things that we just normally wouldn't do and tolerate things we wouldn't normally tolerate. It brings out, sometimes, the worst in us.

"The way some politicians and media speak about the other party fuels that fire in a way. The more we engage in pitting one party or the other as the bad guys, and the more you feel that way, the more you are willing to set your morals aside."