Lecture 1 Flashcards
Why aren’t we morally perfect?
Humans tend to be:
- Selfish or weak-willed
- Bad incentives
- We can conform when others are acting badly
- Sometimes we are operating on auto-pilot and dont realize we are doing something bad
What is effective altruism?
Effective altruism is a philosophical and social movement that applies evidence and reason to determine the most effective ways to improve the world. Its core idea is to use resources—such as time, money, and skills—in ways that bring about the greatest positive impact.
What is moral confusion?
Moral confusion refers to a state of uncertainty or lack of clarity about what is right or wrong in a given situation. It often arises when individuals face complex ethical dilemmas where values, principles, or norms conflict, making it difficult to determine the best course of action.
How much of our bad behaviour does moral confusion explain? what are reasons for skepticism?
- Some to be sure
- Moral philosophers don’t appear to behave better than their peers.
- More mudane factors appear to be much more common
- Moral philosophers don’t appear to behave better than their peers.
What is the difference between Descriptive and Normative Claims?
Descriptive claims about how the world is and Normative claims about how the world ought to be or should be; claims about value.
What were the key findings of the Princeton Theological Seminary Experiment?
- The experiment demonstrated that situational factors, such as time pressure, have a significant impact on helping behavior.
- Even individuals with strong moral and religious commitments (seminary students) are less likely to engage in helping behavior when they are under time pressure.
- This finding suggests that contextual elements often override personal disposition or moral reasoning when it comes to actual behavior in real-life situations.
Implications:
- The study highlights the importance of considering situational influences in understanding human behavior, particularly in the context of ethical and altruistic actions.
- It suggests that promoting an environment that reduces time pressure and other situational constraints can foster more helping and prosocial behavior.
What is Ethics?
Ethics is the branch of philosophy that deals with questions of morality and the principles of right and wrong behavior. Ethics concerns how we ought to live and how we should treat others.
What are central concerns to ethics?
- Protecting people’s well-being, fairness, justice, respect for others and their autonomy, virtue, responsibility, rights, liberties, praise and blame.
- Ethics/Morality is normative. It concerns what we “ought” to do, what we should do.
What is conventional morality?
The system of widely accepted rules and principles, created by and for human beings, that members of a culture or society use to govern their own lives and assess the actions and motivation of others.
What is critical morality?
The evaluation and questioning of existing moral norms and standards. It encourages individuals to think critically about what is considered morally right or wrong, often challenging conventional beliefs and seeking to establish more reasoned and just principles. This type of morality is the focus of the course.
What is morality?
A set of principles, values, and beliefs that guide individuals in determining what is right and wrong, good and bad, fair and unfair. It encompasses the standards by which people judge their actions and the actions of others, influencing behavior and decision-making in various aspects of life. Morality is shaped by cultural, religious, philosophical, and personal factors and can vary widely across different societies and communities.
What is cultural relativism?
What is right or wrong is determined by the consensus of a culture
What is Ethical subjectivism?
What is right and wrong is determined by each individual
