Value pluralism and decision making
A comment
Setting value based priorities in a world of value pluralism
• Different values must be respected and must to be taken into account if decisions with ethical consequences are to be accepted
• Policy decisions may need ethical justification for acceptance—who and how– Ethical committees, advising governments
international organizations – Frameworks/process to provide ethical guidance in
decision process– Ethical delphi/consensus/ ethical matrix and many
others
Deciding how to decide
• No single generic framework that can be used to assess and manage ethical issues across all technologies/issues or over the life-cycle of these
• Key Framework characteristics for deliberations– Democratic deliberation– ethical pluralism
• Ethical Matrix fulfills these characteristics as does the ethical delphi, consensus groups• (Beauchamps et Childress, 1979, 2001 , Mepham 1995,2005)
Ethical Matrix: an ethical tool in food and agricultural ethics
• Well being, autonomy and justice—columns– Specific definitions are a function of the issue
• Stakeholders/interest groups -- rows– Broad range of interest groups
• Applications: biotechnology acceptance/taxes/
Ethical matrix example: future challenges of fisheries in Norway
• Question: to enforce a special tax for the usage of common resources like sea and coastline.
• Future consequences of measure not uniquely economic potential– Basic uncertainty about future developments/cc/– Ethical scenarios---future scenarios and ethical
consequences of each
Justice Dignity Well-beingFishermen Equql rights –categories Right to control work
situation & respectSafe/secure workplace & income
Fishing industry Equal terms as for fisheries and other
Acknowledge place in value chain
Stable deliveries fro,m the industry
Other users marine Equal access to resources Respect for their needs and use of sea and coast
Access to welfare goods directed at marine activities as other users
Society Equal living conditions urban rural
Freedom to manage resources for welfare of society as a whole
Income from marine activities
Consumers Quality products for different groups
Choice and possibility to influence food products
Healthy food in adequate amts
Future generations Conservation of marine environment
Knowing that other generations acted respect for their welfare
No activities that threaten health or living conditions
Biosphere Diffusion of a viable level of burdens to all society
Limit harm to nature Fish & other animals not exposed to unnecessary pain
Ethical scenario process
• Acceptable consequence: does not violate priority values and respects as many values as possible.
• Mapping of values and weighting of them– Pluses(respected values),minuses(violated
values),and zeros(values not relevant)
Top Related