Post by Dᴀɴɴʏ Pʜᴀɴᴛᴏᴍ on Nov 10, 2016 20:21:57 GMT -5
Note: I am not looking to start a debate over ethical issues. I personally don't care about what you think about abortion or capital punishment. You do you. I'm interested in the philosophy of ethics, especially where you see yourself aligning. Do not bring your ethical issues here.
The main ethical philosophies explained:
Deontology - The belief that an action is moral only if it adheres strictly to the rules. Deontologists believe that any act that breaks a rule is immoral regardless of the perpetrator's reasons for doing it.
Consequentialism - The belief that the morality of an action should be determined by its consequences. Consequentialists believe that an act is moral if it has a good consequence.
Utilitarianism - Judges the morality of an act based on how much happiness it brings to the greatest number of people. An act that brings a great amount of benefit to a large amount of people is seen as moral, while any action that focuses on a small group or an individual is immoral.
State consequentialism - An act is moral if it benefits the welfare of the state. Any act that is detrimental to order, material wealth and/or population growth is immoral. For example, a state consequentialist would see violent protesting as an immoral act as it disrupts order and does nothing to benefit the health of the state.
Ethical egoism - The belief that an action is moral if it promotes the well-being of the self. Egoists are not necessarily selfish, but will not do or accept an action that damages their own well-being as they see it as immoral. An egoist can either regard or disregard the well-being of others as long as they are not sacrificing their own self-interests.
Situational ethics - Belief that an act is moral only if it creates and promotes unconditional love. Someone who identifies with situational ethics believes that moral actions are done without the expectation of anything in return. In their eyes, a person should care about others as much as they care about themselves.
Ethical intellectualism - An ethical intellectualist believes that a moral act is one that best promotes knowledge. They believe that knowledge is more important than anything, and that an individual is acting in the right if they do something to promote the preservation of knowledge and the growth of the mind.
Welfarism - Generally, welfarism in normative ethics is defined as the belief that one should act with the intent of improving the economy. In the eyes of a welfarist, an act is moral if it leads to economic progress and promotes the health of the economy. They believe that the success of the economy is the most important thing in regards to ensuring the survival of a civilization.
Preference utilitarianism - The belief that an act is moral if it fulfills the interests of an individual. Preference utilitarianists believe that it should be up to an individual to determine the morality of their own actions.
Ethical pragmatism - Ethical pragmatists believe that morality has evolved in much the same way as science. They argue that morality evolves as society does, and therefore social reform should be focused on more heavily than the consequences of any one action. This ethical theory states that, if we reform society, then morality will automatically change along with it.
Ethical altruism - Belief that one should act with the impact their action will have on others their primary concern. Ethical altruists are concerned only with the impact their actions have on others, and do not care about the impact an action will have on themselves. An altruist is more concerned with ensuring the welfare of others over themselves.
Not all of the ethical theories are here, but the major ones are. Which one do you find yourself aligning with the most? Post what you vote, just because I'm curious where on the spectrum different forumers see themselves falling.
The main ethical philosophies explained:
Deontology - The belief that an action is moral only if it adheres strictly to the rules. Deontologists believe that any act that breaks a rule is immoral regardless of the perpetrator's reasons for doing it.
Consequentialism - The belief that the morality of an action should be determined by its consequences. Consequentialists believe that an act is moral if it has a good consequence.
Utilitarianism - Judges the morality of an act based on how much happiness it brings to the greatest number of people. An act that brings a great amount of benefit to a large amount of people is seen as moral, while any action that focuses on a small group or an individual is immoral.
State consequentialism - An act is moral if it benefits the welfare of the state. Any act that is detrimental to order, material wealth and/or population growth is immoral. For example, a state consequentialist would see violent protesting as an immoral act as it disrupts order and does nothing to benefit the health of the state.
Ethical egoism - The belief that an action is moral if it promotes the well-being of the self. Egoists are not necessarily selfish, but will not do or accept an action that damages their own well-being as they see it as immoral. An egoist can either regard or disregard the well-being of others as long as they are not sacrificing their own self-interests.
Situational ethics - Belief that an act is moral only if it creates and promotes unconditional love. Someone who identifies with situational ethics believes that moral actions are done without the expectation of anything in return. In their eyes, a person should care about others as much as they care about themselves.
Ethical intellectualism - An ethical intellectualist believes that a moral act is one that best promotes knowledge. They believe that knowledge is more important than anything, and that an individual is acting in the right if they do something to promote the preservation of knowledge and the growth of the mind.
Welfarism - Generally, welfarism in normative ethics is defined as the belief that one should act with the intent of improving the economy. In the eyes of a welfarist, an act is moral if it leads to economic progress and promotes the health of the economy. They believe that the success of the economy is the most important thing in regards to ensuring the survival of a civilization.
Preference utilitarianism - The belief that an act is moral if it fulfills the interests of an individual. Preference utilitarianists believe that it should be up to an individual to determine the morality of their own actions.
Ethical pragmatism - Ethical pragmatists believe that morality has evolved in much the same way as science. They argue that morality evolves as society does, and therefore social reform should be focused on more heavily than the consequences of any one action. This ethical theory states that, if we reform society, then morality will automatically change along with it.
Ethical altruism - Belief that one should act with the impact their action will have on others their primary concern. Ethical altruists are concerned only with the impact their actions have on others, and do not care about the impact an action will have on themselves. An altruist is more concerned with ensuring the welfare of others over themselves.
Not all of the ethical theories are here, but the major ones are. Which one do you find yourself aligning with the most? Post what you vote, just because I'm curious where on the spectrum different forumers see themselves falling.