week 9: rationality irrationality

Question 1

describe situationism

Answer 1

• we make ethical decisions based on the basis of institutions influenced by random situational factors
  
  • critique of rational moral psychology

Question 2

describe rational moral psychology

Answer 2

• rational moral psychology holds that ethical decision-making in human beings is primarily a matter of rational judgment
  
  • reasons → will → action
  • reasons guide our action
• Kant’s moral philosophy emphasizes the place of abstract reason within moral decision-making
• Aristotle and practical syllogisms
  
  • practical syllogism
    
    • humans should help people in distress
    • this person near me drowning is in distress
    • I should help this person
  • Aristotle: conclusion to this is action.. action before the concluding thought

Question 3

describe challenges to rationalism - intuitionism

Answer 3

• Haidt: “moral reasoning is rarely the direct cause of moral judgment”
  
  • intuition guides our action
• intuitions (with emotional dimension) cause our judgments while reason searches for a post hoc justification
  
  • intuition → action/judgment → reason
  • post hoc = after the foot justification
• intuition appears quickly and directly while rational justification takes longer to develop
  
  • intuitionist moral psychology:
    
    • intuition → will → action → post hoc rationalization
  • our ethical judgments are primarily intuitive
• Haidt’s intuitionism involves a meta-level rationlism in contrasting reason and emotion

Question 4

describe dual process theory

Answer 4

• holds that cognitive processes can occur in one of 2 tracks:
  
  • intuitive: implicit, automatic, intuitive, fast approach
  • rational: explicit, controlled, rational, slow approach
• Haidt’s view: make intuitive judgment in ethics → post hoc rational justification
• social psychology, behavioral economics, and critique of rationalist models
  
  • does not explain reasoning in the world around us
  • cannot switch from intuitive thinking and rational
• problem of interaction between approaches and empirical adequacy
  
  • it is unclear how we switch between 2 tracks
  • what is making the choice between 2 tracks

Question 5

describe a reflective view

Answer 5

• get interplay between intuition and reason
• intuitive action leads to the reason for self-examination
• have intuitive judgment and realize it was bad → self-examination → different intuitive judgments
• only looks at how we look in certain situations, doesn’t think about actions after the fact

Question 6

describe the differences between rationalism, intuitionism, and situationism

Answer 6

• rationalism = process of rational reflection that leads to ethical judgment/action
• intuitionism = unreflective intuition leads to ethical judgment/action
• situationism = situational factors lead to ethical judgment/action

Question 7

describe challenges to rationalism - situationism

Answer 7

• situationism holds that our moral judgment is the product of various external situational factors rather than internal character
  
  • situational factors tweak our ethical judgments
  • depending on the situation can tweak different motives within us
  • critique: determination or conditions
    
    • is our judgment purely based on situational judgment.. it influences your decision but does not determine the situation
• interactionism: reason and intuition and situation determine our ethical judgment/action