DSST Ethics in America flashcards

33 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Utilitarianism

Ethical theory holding that the right action is the one producing the greatest net good (utility, welfare, or happiness) for all affected parties, weighing aggregate consequences rather than intentions.

Categorical imperative

Kant's unconditional moral law binding on all rational agents regardless of desires; tested by whether a maxim can be universalized and whether it treats persons as ends.

Hypothetical imperative

Kant's term for a command conditional on a desired end, such as 'if you want health, exercise'; it guides prudence but carries no unconditional moral obligation.

Veil of ignorance

Rawlsian device in the original position that hides each person's talents, status, and conception of the good, forcing impartial choice of principles of justice.

Difference principle

Rawls's rule that social and economic inequalities are just only when they maximize the position of the least advantaged members of society.

Virtue ethics

Approach centering on character rather than acts or rules, asking what a virtuous person would do and how traits like courage and honesty are cultivated through practice.

Phronesis

Aristotle's term for practical wisdom: the deliberative capacity to perceive what a situation requires and to apply general virtue in particular circumstances.

Ethical egoism

Normative claim that each agent ought to act so as to maximize his or her own self-interest; distinct from psychological egoism, which merely describes motivation.

Natural law theory

View that moral standards derive from human nature and purposes and are knowable through reason, classically systematized by Thomas Aquinas.

Divine command theory

Metaethical position that an act's moral status depends on God's command or will, raising the Euthyphro dilemma about whether goodness precedes or follows that will.

Cultural relativism

Descriptive and normative view that moral standards are valid only relative to a particular culture's practices, denying a single cross-cultural standard.

Emotivism

Metaethical theory associated with Ayer and Stevenson holding that moral statements express attitudes or emotions rather than asserting truth-evaluable facts.

Harm principle

Mill's liberal principle that the only justified reason to restrict a person's liberty against their will is to prevent harm to others.

Euthyphro dilemma

Plato's question whether actions are good because God commands them or God commands them because they are good, challenging divine command theory either way.

Moral objectivism

Metaethical claim that at least some moral judgments are true or false independently of what any individual or culture happens to believe.

Golden mean

Aristotelian doctrine that each virtue lies between two vices, one of excess and one of deficiency, relative to the situation and the agent.

Social contract

Theory (Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau) that political obligation and moral constraints derive from an actual or hypothetical agreement among persons to form society.

Act vs. rule utilitarianism

Act utilitarianism evaluates each individual action by its consequences; rule utilitarianism evaluates general rules by the consequences of their widespread acceptance.

Kant's humanity formula

Categorical imperative formulation requiring that persons be treated always as ends in themselves and never merely as means to others' purposes.

Autonomy

Capacity for self-governance and rational self-legislation; in Kant, the ground of dignity, and in bioethics, the basis of informed consent.

Moral realism

Metaethical view that moral facts exist independently of human beliefs and attitudes, so moral claims can be objectively true.

Egoism versus altruism

Contrast between the view that agents ought to prioritize their own interests and the view that they ought to promote the welfare of others, sometimes at personal cost.

Distributive justice

Branch of justice concerned with fair allocation of benefits and burdens, invoking criteria such as equality, need, merit, and contribution.

Retributive justice

Theory of punishment holding that offenders deserve proportionate suffering or penalty because of wrongdoing, independent of deterrence or rehabilitation effects.

Restorative justice

Approach to wrongdoing emphasizing repair of harm through offender accountability, victim participation, and community dialogue rather than purely punitive measures.

Due process

Constitutional guarantee of fair procedures - notice, hearing, impartial decision-maker - before government deprives a person of life, liberty, or property.

Whistleblowing

Disclosure of organizational wrongdoing to parties able to act; classically justified when the wrongdoing is serious, internal channels fail, and harm is imminent.

Conflict of interest

Situation in which a professional's private interest or obligation could improperly influence judgment about a duty owed to another party.

Informed consent

Authorization to act based on disclosure of material information, comprehension by the person, voluntariness, and decision-making capacity.

Trolley problem

Thought experiment contrasting killing one person to save five (footbridge) with redirecting a threat that kills one to save five, probing act-omission and intention distinctions.

Doctrine of double effect

Principle permitting an act with a foreseen harmful side effect when the intended effect is good, the harm is not a means, and proportionality holds.

Moral luck

Phenomenon, analyzed by Williams and Nagel, that moral judgment of an agent can depend on factors beyond the agent's control.

Slippery slope argument

Argument that permitting a seemingly acceptable first step will lead, through precedent or erosion of restraint, to clearly unacceptable later consequences.