Ethics Flashcards
Why are values important in policy?
Policy is concerned with choice among competing values
Values
One’s judgement of what is important or of worth, the assumption of which can be the basis for ethical action
- what we care about
Example of the role of values in a public policy setting - speed limits
- Evidence showed lowering speed limits will reduce vehicle and pedestrian accidents
- People may disagree - although it is proven to be good for health, people may have different values regarding this
- People may value getting places faster and accepting the risks over health
Why do we not always follow science when making health policies?
- because of differing values
Ex. closing schools in covid - science says that schools should close bec it would reduce transmission of infection
BUT… - some may want schools to stay open and take the risk of contracting virus bc they value education
- Some might want schools to close bc they value their health over education
When do values enter into policy making?
at every step
- when evaluative language is used (right, wrong, good, or bad)
- when establishing policy objectives
- when navigating trade-offs
- when values are invoked (ie. equity, fairness, minimizing harms, autonomy, patient-centred care)
Example of values role in navigating trade offs in policies
do we want to vaccinate health care workers, who are more at risk, 1st before the general pop?
- do we want healthcare workers to have both doses and be very protected
OR - have the general pop all have 1 dose and having partial protection –> trade off
Ethics
The systematic study of moral choices; it concerns the values that underpin moral choices and the language used to describe those choices
- seeks to identify, clarify, and resolve questions dealing with concepts of right and wrong, good and bad
What is the is-ought problem?
One cannot logically infer what one ethically ‘ought’ to do simply on the basis of how things ‘are’
- ignores logic and other factors
- The fact that people tend to act in a certain way doesn’t automatically imply that they morally should act that way
Example of the is-ought problem
Premise: COVID-19 vaccines are effective in reducing risks of severe disease, hospitalization, death, infection, and transmission
Conclusion: One ought, morally speaking, to be vaccinated
How to fix the is-ought problem
- use of science and ethics
- Introduce explicit arguments rather than just leaping to conclusion
- Need mulitple premise supporting - linking ethical argument with facts
Example of fixing the is-ought problem?
Premise 1: COVID-19 vaccines are effective in reducing risks of severe disease, hospitalization, death,1 and to a lesser extent, infection and transmission
Premise 2: Being vaccinated against COVID-19 represents a minimal burden for nearly all people
Premise 3: One ought to prevent suffering and death, especially when doing so carries a minimal burden
Conclusion: One ought, morally speaking, to be vaccinated
Descriptive Moral Relativism
As a matter of empirical fact, there are deep and widespread moral disagreements across different societies, and these disagreements are much more significant than whatever agreements there may be
Metaethical Moral Relativism
- The truth or falsity of moral judgments, or their justification, is not absolute or universal, but is relative to the traditions, convictions, or practices of a group of persons
- no universal truth
ex; killing is wrong –> what makes this true? is that an opinion? - they are not absolute, but only relative to particular standpoints
Criticism for metaethical moral relativism
- no use of reasoning and making arguments
- arguments are not made with logic, facts, evidence
- self-defeating theory - how is it true that there is no objectivity? is that in itself just an opinion?
Ethics is NOT about ____
opinions
- You may have an opinion, but that doesn’t mean it is ‘right’, coherent, justified, or ought to be the basis for policy