1.1.1 Normative ethical theories key words Flashcards
what does ‘ethics’ mean?
Philosophy concerned with the study of moral judgements.
What does ‘moral’ mean?
Actions, behaviour or intentions that are considered good or right.
What does ‘immoral’ mean?
Actions, behaviour or intentions that are considered bad or wrong.
What does ‘ethical theory’ mean?
Ideas about ethics & how people should behave.
What does ‘moral agent’ mean?
Someone involved in making ethical & moral decisions.
What does ‘normative ethics’ mean?
Ethics discussing what individuals should & should not do.
What does ‘consequentialist’ mean?
Theories which judge if an action is right or wrong on the based on the consequence of an action, not the actual action itself.
What does ‘deontological’ mean?
Theories which make judgements on ethical issues based on the intention of moral agents or whether they’re consistent with moral laws (e.g. MNL).
What does ‘teleological’ mean?
Theories which are interested in the outcome of actions, rather that the means of the actions (e.g. situation ethics).
What does ‘act-centred’ mean?
Theories which make judgements about actions rather than people (e.g. utilitarianism).
What does ‘character-based’ mean?
Theories which make judgements about people rather than actions (e.g. Aristotle’s virtue ethics.
What does ‘applied ethics’ mean?
Application of ethical thinking to real-world issues (e.g. euthanasia or sexuality).
