Impacting the World by understanding why I need to

so i am thinking, i really like psychology. i really want to study morals and principles.

how does this impact the world?

it impacts the people in the world every day. i want to know... i want to explore compassion. i want to explore fortitude. i want to explore empathy.

actually, i'm more interested in finding out what causes these things to lack.

what do thieves think of themselves?
assassins? petty murderers? drunkards?

why do i have the opportunity to cheat... yet don't cheat? in almost any other part of society if i had an opportunity to advance myself and DIDN'T, i would be considered stupid.

argument: cheating on tests is cheating yourself b/c you didn't learn it yourself.
rebuttal: cheating on a test for a class you are not going to use-- say, for example, AP Basket-Weaving-- is not going to hurt you because you don't need the knowledge in the first place.

rebuttal 2: the art of cheating is, in itself, a discipline that can be learned and practiced to greater effect. thus, if you evolve your skill at cheating you are in the process of learning which is beneficial.

these are perhaps philosophical conundrums instead of psychological ones... but what i'm interested in most is the underlying thought processes behind the philosophical ideas.