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# Moral Licensing
- URL: https://nousimon.com/moral-licensing/
- Published: 2026-07-10T07:44:27.000Z
- Updated: 2026-07-10T07:44:27.000Z
- Author: Pavlos Papadopoulos
- Tags: Articles

## What Is Moral Licensing in Simple Terms?

Moral licensing is a psychological pattern in which people, after doing something they see as good, feel they have earned permission to do something bad.

### Moral Licensing in Real Life

1. A person goes to the gym and then feels entitled to eat unhealthy food afterward.
2. A person quits a bad habit and then feels entitled to judge others who still have it.
3. A person recycles regularly and then feels excused for polluting the environment in some unrelated way, believing the recycling cancels out the harm.
4. A CEO donates to charity to appear ethical, using the donation to offset criticism of harmful practices elsewhere in their business.

### Conclusion

Individuals license themselves to act less virtuously, based on the moral credit they believe their past actions have earned them.

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