Objectifying working animals: The interplay of morality, empathy, and social norms

Working animals such as police dogs, guide dogs, and draft animals occupy an ambiguous position between indispensable tools and sentient partners, rendering their objectification a pressing ethical concern. Although philosophical work on speciesism and animal capabilities is extensive, the psychological mechanisms that inhibit or reinforce the objectification of working animals remain insufficiently explored. The present study examines how moral sensitivity, empathy toward animals, and perceived social norms jointly shape attitudes toward the objectification of working animals and tests a dual-pathway mediation model. A two-wave cross-sectional online survey was conducted with a Chinese community sample (N = 875), and data were analyzed using structural equation modeling with bootstrapped mediation tests. Moral sensitivity, empathy, and protective social norms each showed significant direct negative associations with objectification attitudes. Empathy and social norms partially mediated the link between moral sensitivity and objectification, with the social-norm pathway accounting for a larger proportion of the total effect. These findings suggest that resistance to the objectification of working animals is jointly driven by internal moral identity, cross-species emotional resonance, and the perceived strength of protective social norms. The study extends social-psychological theories of moral motivation and norms to the domain of human–animal relations and provides a theoretical basis for interventions that seek to reduce animal objectification by enhancing moral sensitivity, cultivating empathy toward animals, and strengthening protective social norms.