Thinking about hygiene and being tidy makes people more ethical, study claims Researchers carried out experiments designed to disgust participants They were then asked questions on their willingness to lie for financial gain The more disgusted a participant was, the more likely they were to cheat But, when told to think about something clean this impulse was reduced This was as simple as asking them to think of cleaning products, or tidying up their working environment Next time you need to make an important decision, new research suggests you should think 'clean' thoughts. While feelings of disgust have been found to make people lie and cheat, cleanliness and thinking about something clean can help cause them to make more ethical decisions. The study highlights the powerful impact emotions have on individual decision-making. While feelings of disgust have been found to make people lie and cheat, cleanliness and thinking about something clean, such as cleaning products (pictured) can cause them to make more ethical decisions, according to researchers led by Rice University in Texas "As an emotion, disgust is designed as a protection," said lead researcher Vikas Mittal, from Rice University's Jones Graduate School of Business. When people feel disgusted, they tend to remove themselves from a situation. The instinct is to protect oneself. Consequently, it causes people to become focused on themselves, and less likely to think about other people, causing cheating to occur. For example, if a person feels disgusted they are more focused on themselves and feel like they need to lie to gain an. In turn, the researchers found that cleansing behaviours actually tone down these self-serving effects of disgust. This includes making people think about something clean, such as cleaning products. "If you can create conditions where people's disgust is mitigated, you should not see this unethical effect," Professor Mittal added. The researchers carried out three random experiments on 600 volunteers, equally split between the genders, across the US. In one experiment, participants evaluated products such as antidiarrheal medicine, feminine pads, cat litter and incontinence products. In another, participants wrote essays about their most disgusting memory. While, during the third, participants watched a toilet scene from the movie Trainspotting. The volunteers were then put through experiments that judged their willingness to lie and cheat for financial gain. Professor Mittal and his colleagues found people who experienced disgust consistently displayed self-interested behaviours at a higher rate than those who did not. In another set of experiments, after disgusting the participants, the researchers asked them to evaluate cleansing products, such as disinfectants, and body washes. Those who evaluated the cleansing products did not engage in deceptive behaviours any more than those in the neutral group. One way to mitigate disgust is to make people think about something clean. If you can make people think of cleaning products - for example, Kleenex or Windex - the emotion of disgust is mitigated, so the likelihood of cheating also goes away. 'People don't know it, but these small emotions are constantly affecting them. Professor Mittal co-authored the paper with Karen Page Winterich, an associate professor of marketing at Penn State's Smeal College of Business, and Andrea Morales, a professor of marketing at Arizona State's W.P. Carey School of Business. It is published in the journal Organisational Behaviour and Human Decision Processes. The tests were designed to evoke disgust in participants through various means. In one experiment, participants evaluated products such as antidiarrheal medicine, diapers, feminine care pads, cat litter and adult incontinence products. While, during the third, participants watched a disgusting toilet scene from the movie "rainspotting. Once the researchers felt the participants were sufficiently disgusted, they were put through experiments that judged their willingness to lie and cheat for financial gain. Professor Mittal and his colleagues found that people who experienced disgust consistently engaged in self-interested behaviours at a significantly higher rate than those who did not. "At the basic level, if you have workplaces that are cleaner, people should be less likely to feel disgusted," Professor Vikas Mittal said."If there is less likelihood to feel disgusted, there will be a lower likelihood that people need to be self-focused and there will be a higher likelihood for people to cooperate with each other" In another set of experiments, after disgusting the participants, the researchers asked them to evaluate cleansing products, such as disinfectants, household cleaners and body washes. Those who evaluated the cleansing products did not engage in deceptive behaviours any more than those in the neutral emotion condition. "At the basic level, if you have environments that are cleaner, if you have workplaces that are cleaner, people should be less likely to feel disgusted," Professor Mittal said. If there is less likelihood to feel disgusted, there will be a lower likelihood that people need to be self-focused and there will be a higher likelihood for people to cooperate with each other. What we found is that unless you ask people, they often don't know they're feeling disgusted. Small things can trigger specific emotions, which can deeply affect people's decision-making. The question is how to make people more self-aware and more thoughtful about the decision-making process.