Ethical and Moral Philosophy Sources of Our Moral Values Family Moral Values.
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Transcript of Ethical and Moral Philosophy Sources of Our Moral Values Family Moral Values.
Sources of Our Moral Values
Family
Moral Values
Culture Leadership/Mentors
Religion
Personality
Education
Sources of Our Moral Values
Family
Moral Values
Culture Leadership/Mentors
Religion
Experience Personality
Education
Sources of Our Moral Values
Family
Moral Values
Culture Leadership/Mentors
Religion
Experience Personality
Reflection
Education
Ethical Systems and Schools of
Thought
Rule Based: Deontology
Ends-Based: Teleology
Care-Based:
Situational
Ethical Systems
DeontologyDeontological ethics (from the Greek Deon meaning obligation) or Deontology is an ethical theory holding that decisions should be made solely or primarily by considering one's duties and the rights of others. Deontology posits the existence of a priori moral obligations, further suggesting that people ought to live by a set of permanently defined principles that do not change merely as a result of a change in circumstances.
Ethical Systems and Schools of
Thought
Ethical Systems
Teleology Teleological moral systems are characterized primarily by a focus on the consequences which any action might have (for that reason, they are often referred to as consequentalist moral systems, and both terms are used here). Thus, in order to make correct moral choices, we have to have some understanding of what will result from our choices. When we make choices which result in the correct consequences, then we are acting morally; when we make choices which result in the incorrect consequences, then we are acting immorally.
Rule Based: Deontology Ends-Based:
Teleology
Care-Based:
Situational
Ethical Systems and Schools of
Thought
Ethical Systems
Ethic of Care The ethics of care is one of a cluster of normative ethical theories that were developed by feminists in the second half of the twentieth century. While consequentialist and deontological ethical theories emphasize universal standards and impartiality, ethics of care emphasize the importance of relationships. The basis of the theory is the recognition of: 1) The interdependence of all individuals for achieving their interests; 2) The belief that those particularly vulnerable to our choices and their outcomes deserve extra consideration to be measured according to the level of their vulnerability to one's choices and the level of their affectedness by one's choices and no one elses; 3) The necessity of attending to the contextual details of the situation in order to safeguard and promote the actual specific interests of those involved.result in the incorrect consequences, then we are acting immorally.
Care-Based:
Situational
Rule Based: Deontology
Ends-Based: Teleology
Ethical Systems and Schools of Thought
The Grand Mean
Categorical Imperative
Utilitarianism
Situational Relativism
Devine Command
Justice
Egoism
Ethical Systems
Rule Based: Deontology
Ends-Based: Teleology
Care-Based: Situational
Cultural Relativism
Moral Values
Personal Code of Ethics
Ethical Systems and Schools of Thought
Law
Our Personal Code of Ethics
Professional Ethics
Personal Code of Ethics
Leadership
Business Ethics
Corporate Citizenship
Social Change
Making a Difference Through Leadership
The Relativist Perspective Defines ethical behavior subjectively from the
experiences of individuals and groups Relativists use themselves or those around them as their
basis for defining ethical standards A positive group consensus indicates that an action is
considered ethical by the group Acknowledges that we live in a society in which people
have different views There are many different bases from which to justify a
decision as right or wrong
Deontology
Adapted from: Lawrence M. Hinman, Ph.D. http://ethics.sandiego.edu/
Aristotle and the Ethics of Virtue
Kant and the Categorical Imperative
Divine Command
Deontology Focuses on the rights of the individual, not consequences
(considers intentions) Believes in equal respect and views certain behaviors as
inherently right Proposes that individuals have certain inherent freedoms
Freedoms: conscience, consent, privacy, speech and due process
Rule deontologist Conformity to general moral principles
Act deontologists Evaluate ethicalness based on the act
Virtue Strength of character
(habit) Involving both feeling
and action Seeks the mean between
excess and deficiency relative to us
Promotes human flourishing
Aristotle
Virtues and Spheres of Existence
Sphere of Existence Deficiency Mean Excess
Attitude toward self Servility Self-deprecation
Proper Self-Love Proper Pride Self-Respect
Arrogance Conceit Egoism
Narcissism Vanity
Attitude toward offenses of others
Ignoring them Being a Doormat
Anger Forgiveness
Understanding
Revenge Grudge
Resentment Attitude toward good
deeds of others Suspicion
Envy Ignoring them
Gratitude Admiration
Over indebtedness
Attitude toward our own offenses
Indifference Remorselessness
Downplaying
Agent Regret Remorse
Making Amends Learning from them
Self-Forgiveness
Toxic Guilt Scrupulosity
Shame
Attitude toward our friends
Indifference
Loyalty
Obsequiousness
Spheres of Existence--2Attitude toward our
own good deeds Belittling
Disappointment
Sense of Accomplishment
Humility
Self-righteousness
Attitude toward the suffering of others
Callousness
Compassion
Pity “Bleeding Heart”
Attitude toward the achievements of
others
Self-satisfaction Complacency Competition
Admiration Emulation
Envy
Attitude toward death and danger
Cowardice
Courage
Foolhardiness
Attitude toward our own desires
Anhedonia
Temperance Moderation
Lust Gluttony
Attitude toward other people
Exploitation
Respect
Deferentiality
Two Conceptions of Morality
We can contrast two approaches to the moral life. The childhood conception of morality:
Comes from outside (usually parents). Is negative (“don’t touch that stove burner!”). Rules and habit formation are central.
The adult conception of morality. Comes from within (self-directed). Is positive (“this is the kind of person I want to be.”). Virtue-centered,often modeled on ideals.
The Purpose of Morality Both of these conceptions of morality are
appropriate at different times in life. Adolescence and early adulthood is the time when
some people make the transition from the adolescent conception of morality to the adult conception.
Rightly-ordered Desires Aristotle draws an interesting contrast between:
Continent people, who have unruly desires but manage to control them.
Temperate people, whose desires are naturally—or through habit, second-nature—directed toward that which is good for them.
Weakness of will (akrasia) occurs when individuals cannot keep their desires under control.
The Goals of Moral Education
Moral education may initially seek to control unruly desires through rules, the formation of habits, etc.
Ultimately, moral education aims at forming rightly-ordered desires, that is, teaching people to desire what is genuinely good for them.
Virtue As the Golden Mean Strength of character (virtue), Aristotle suggests,
involves finding the proper balance between two extremes. Excess: having too much of something. Deficiency: having too little of something.
Not mediocrity, but harmony and balance.
Virtue and Habit For Aristotle, virtue is something that is
practiced and thereby learned—it is habit (hexis).
This has clear implications for moral education, for Aristotle obviously thinks that you can teach people to be virtuous.
Courage
The strength of character necessary to continue in the face of our fears Deficiency: Cowardice, the inability to do what is
necessary to have those things in life which we need in order to flourish Too much fear Too little confidence
Excess Too little fear Too much confidence Poor judgment about ends worth achieving
Courage
Both children and adults need courage. Without courage, we are unable to take the risks
necessary to achieve some of the things we most value in life. Risk to ask someone out on a date. Risk to show genuine vulnerability. Risk to try an academically challenging program such
as pre-med.
Courage and the Unity of the Virtues
To have any single strength of character in full measure, a person must have the other ones as well. Courage without good judgment is blind, risking without
knowing what is worth the risk. Courage without perseverance is short-lived, etc. Courage without a clear sense of your own abilities is
foolhardy.
CourageExcess Mean Deficiency Underestimates actual danger
Correctly estimates actual danger
Overestimates actual danger
Overestimates own ability
Correctly estimates own ability
Underestimates own ability
Undervalues means, what is being placed at risk
Properly values means that are being put at risk
Overvalues the means, what is being placed at risk
Overvalues goal, what the risk is being taken for
Properly values goal that is being sought
Undervalues goal, what the risk would be taken for
Compassion Etymology: to feel or suffer with… Both cognitive and emotional Leads to action Excess: the “bleeding heart” Deficiency: moral callousness Contrast with pity
Compassion as an Emotion Emotion is often necessary:
to recognize the suffering of others emotional attunement
part of the response to that suffering others often need to feel that you care
Cleverness and Wisdom The clever person knows the best means to
any possible end. The wise person knows which ends are worth
striving for.
Self-Love Involves feeling, knowing, and acting Characteristics of loving another person:
Feelings of tenderness, care, appreciation, respect toward that person
Knowing that person (infatuation usually does not involve knowledge)
Acting in ways that promote the flourishing of that person
Self-Love: Principal CharacteristicsCharacteristics of self-love
Having feelings of care, appreciation, and respect for others
Valuing yourself--flows from feelings of self-love
Knowing yourself--a long, often arduous, and never completed task
Acting in ways that promote your genuine flourishing
Self-Love: DeficiencyDeficiency
Too little feeling: self-loathing Too little self-valuing: self-deprecating Too little self-knowledge: unwilling or unable to
look at one’s own motivations, feelings, etc. Too little acting: not taking steps to insure one’s
own well-being
Self-Love: Excess Excesses of self-love take many forms: arrogance,
conceit, egoism, vanity, and narcissism are but a few of the ways in which we can err in this direction.
Too much caring: self-centeredness Too much self-valuing: arrogance, conceit Too much self-knowledge: narcissistic Too much acting for self: selfishness
Forgiveness This, too, is a virtue indispensable for human
flourishing In any long-term relationship (friendship, marriage, etc.),
each party will do things that must be forgiven by the other.
Long term relationships are necessary to human flourishing.
If we cannot forgive, we cannot have continuing long term relationships
Forgiveness: Excess and Deficiency Excess: the person who forgives too easily and too
quickly may undervalue self may underestimate offense
Deficiency: the person who can never forgive may overestimate his or her own importance usually lives a life of bitterness and anger
Concluding Evaluation Virtues are those strengths of character that
enable us to flourish The virtuous person has practical wisdom, the
ability to know when and how best to apply these various moral perspectives.
Divine Command
We will consider three different accounts of the relationship between religion and reason in ethics:
Religion takes priority over reason: Divine command theories Teleological suspension of the ethical
Compatibilist theories Autonomy of reason theories These theories claim that something is right because God
wills it.
Compatibilist Theories Compatibilist theories say that reason and
religion can never contradict one another Strong: they are saying the same thing Weak: they say different things, but not
contradictory things
Weak CompatibilismThomas Aquinas believed that reason and faith could never contradict one another, but faith may reveals truths beyond the react of reason.
Rationalistic TheistsImmanuel Kant believed in God, but felt that even God was subject to the dictates of reason.
A Crucial Distinction Distinguish two questions:
Content. Can reason provide us with adequate guidelines about how we should act? The answer appears to be “yes.”
Motivation. Can reason provide us with adequate motivation to do the right thing? Here the answer appears to be “no.”
Possible Relationships between Religion and Reason in Ethics
Supremacy of Religion
Compatibilist Theories
Supremacy of Reason
Strong version All morality based on divine commands Fundamentalism
Reason and religion are identical Hegel
Ethics based only on reason; atheistic or agnostic Russell
Weak version Teleological Suspension of the Ethical Kierkegaard
Reason and religion may be different but do not conflict Aquinas
Even God must follow dictates of reasonKant
God’s Interaction with the World In this view, God interacts with the world
in several ways: God creates the world God is in contact interaction with the world God’s creative act (esse) continually sustains
the world in its existence God gives the world a final purpose or goal or
telos toward which it strives
Overview
We will consider three different accounts of the relationship between religion and reason in ethics:
Religion takes priority over reason: Divine command theories Teleological suspension of the ethical
Compatibilist theories Autonomy of reason theories
Divine Command Theories These theories claim that something is right
because God will it. Augustine and the voluntarist tradition Clear in Islam, where the will of Allah is the
measure of all that is right Also characteristic of much of
fundamentalism in all religions.
Criticisms of Divine Command Theories
How can we know God’s will? Does divine command theory undermine
human autonomy? Can be used to subjugate the masses.
The Story of Abraham
Genesis, 22:1-10And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am. And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of. And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son, and clave the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him. Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off. And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you. And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together. And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering? And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together. And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Abraham built an altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar upon the wood. And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son.
The Story of Abraham
Genesis, 22:11-19And the angel of the LORD called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he
said, Here am I. And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me. And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son. And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovahjireh: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the LORD it shall be seen. And the angel of the LORD called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time, And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the LORD, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.
So Abraham returned unto his young men, and they rose up and went together to Beersheba; and Abraham dwelt at Beersheba.
The Issue God’s command that Abraham should kill
his only son as a sacrifice to God seems to go against reason and morality
The issue: can God ask us to do things that go against reason and morality? Which takes precedence, God’s command or reason?
Two Conceptions of Duty
Duty as following orders The Adolph Eichmann model Duty is external Duty is imposed by others
Duty as freely imposing obligation on one’s own self The Kantian model Duty is internal We impose duty on ourselves
The second conception of duty is much more morally advanced than the first.
Duty and Inclination Kant was mistrustful of inclinations
(Neigungen) as motivations This was part of his view of the physical world as
causally determined Saw feelings as
Unreliable Passive Phenomenal
Types of Imperatives Hypothetical Imperative:
“If you want to drive to UCLA from San Diego, take the 405 freeway.”
Structure: if…then… Categorical Imperative
“Always tell the truth” Unconditional, applicable at all times
Most of us live by rules much of the time. Some of these are what Kant called Categorical Imperatives—unconditional commands that are binding on everyone at all times.
The Categorical Imperative
“Always act in such a way that the maxim of your action can be willed as a universal law of humanity.”
--Immanuel Kant
Categorical Imperatives: Respect “Always treat humanity, whether in yourself
or in other people, as an end in itself and never as a mere means.”
--Immanuel Kant
Categorical Imperative: Publicity Always act in such a way that you would not
be embarrassed to have your actions described on the front page of The New York Times.
Conclusion Kant saw that morality must be fair and
evenhanded. The Kantian path offers a certain kind of
moral safety in an uncertain world.
Teleology
Considers acts as morally right or acceptable if they produce some desired result such as pleasure, knowledge, career growth, the realization of a self interest, or utility
Assesses moral worth by looking at
the consequences for the individual
Categories of Teleology Egoism
Right or acceptable behavior defined in terms of consequences to the individual
Maximizes personal interestsEnlightened egoists take a longer term perspective and allow for the
well being of others. Utilitarianism
Concerned with consequences Considers a cost/benefit analysis Behavior based on principles of rules that promote the greatest
utility rather than on an examination of each situation (greatest good for greatest number of people)
The Relativist Perspective Defines ethical behavior subjectively from the
experiences of individuals and groups Relativists use themselves or those around them
as their basis for defining ethical standards A positive group consensus indicates that an
action is considered ethical by the group Acknowledges that we live in a society in which
people have different views There are many different bases from which to
justify a decision as right or wrong
Three Types of Justice Distributive justice
An evaluation of the outcomes or results of a business relationship (evaluating benefits derived/equity in rewards)
Procedural justice Based on the processes and activities that produce the outcomes
or results (evaluating decision making processes and level of access, openness and participation)
Interactional justice Based on an evaluation of the communication processes used in
business relationships (evaluating accuracy of information and truthfulness, respect and courtesy in the process)
Cognitive Moral Development Kohlberg’s model consist of 6
stages: Punishment and obedience Individual instrumental purpose and
exchange Mutual interpersonal expectations,
relationships, and conformity Social system and conscience
maintenance Prior rights, social contract or utility Universal ethical principles
Kohlberg’s Model Kohlberg’s 6 stages can be reduced to 3
different levels of ethical concern: Concern with immediate interests and with
rewards and punishments Concern with “right” as expected by the larger
society or some significant reference group Seeing beyond norms, laws, and the authority of
groups or individuals