Don’t mind milk? The role of animal suffering, speciesism, and guilt in the denial of mind and moral status of dairy cows

Reminding meat-eaters that animals are being harmed for meat production, elicits psychological tension about meat consumption. Individuals deal with this tension by either reducing or stopping meat consumption or by denying the mind of food animals, thereby lowering the moral status of animals. It is currently unclear whether similar reactions occur when considering dairy consumption. In a preregistered experiment (N = 345 animal product consumers), we manipulated perceived harm levels inflicted upon dairy cows (higher versus lower) to investigate people’s use of dairy-related cognitive dissonance reduction strategies. Participants in the high (vs low) harm condition felt more guilty which in turn, was associated with a) lower mind attribution and moral concern for the cow and b) greater intentions to reduce or stop dairy consumption. These effects were especially pronounced for participants higher in speciesism, while among those lower in speciesism, the effects were weaker (on guilt and intentions to change dairy consumption) or non-significant (on mind attribution, moral concern). The findings demonstrate that increased awareness of animal harm in dairy farms, elicits guilt and dissonance reduction reactions similar to meat-related dissonance reactions. Evidence of dairy-related cognitive dissonance highlights the need for a greater research focus on the consumption of animal products other than meat.