ETHICS TERMS AND TERMINOLOGY (2024)

ETHICS TERMS AND TERMINOLOGY

Absolutism– As a political theory, absolutism is typically a synonym for despotism. As anethical theory, it can be contrasted with relativism. Anabsolutist would assert that there is one correct approach to the moral life,across persons and cultures. (The term is rarely used other than pejoratively,either in political theory or ethical theory.) Absolute ethical dictates mightbe attributed by adherents to the (unequivocally revealed) will of God, thedictates of Nature (to the extent that's not redundant), or apprehensionthrough humanreason.

Act deontology– Theory that deontological (i.e., non-consequentialist) principles are -- orshould be -- applied by individuals to each unique circ*mstance. Situations areseen as too idiosyncratic, in general, to be subsumable under general rules.Contrast with ruledeontology.

Act utilitarianism– Theory that the principle of utility is -- or ought to be -- applied toparticular acts in particular circ*mstances. An act utilitarian justifiesactions simply by direct appeal to the principle of utility. Contrast with ruleutilitarianism.

Altruism– Regard for others. As a theory of action, this can be descriptive (i.e., thatpeople do, at least sometimes, appear to act in other than self-regardingways). Or it can be a normative position about how people ought to behave(viz., at least sometimes, people should act in non-self-regarding ways).Contrast with egoism.

Autonomy– The principle of respect for persons, and of individual self-determinationconsistent with that principle. As most commonly defined, autonomy points inthe direction of personal liberty of action in accordance with a plan chosenonly by oneself. In Kant'sformulation, which reconciles with some difficulty with our usualindividualistic views, autonomy is fully realized only when one governs oneselfin accordance with universally valid moral principles.

Beneficence– Moral principle that one should help others further their important andlegitimate interests, either as those persons understand them (respecting autonomy) or as weconceive them (paternalism).Under this principle, failure to increase the good of others when one isknowingly in a position to do so is morally wrong. Nonetheless, the principleis usually understood restrictively: in most theories, one is obligated to actto benefit others when one can do so with minimal risk, inconvenience orexpense. (Formally, the principle or duty of beneficence corresponds to thevirtue or human characteristic of benevolence; in common parlance, these termsare often used interchangeably.) See also nonmaleficence.

Confidentiality– The principle that one should keep one's promises about information(re)disclosure. A subset of duties of fidelity.

Consequentialisttheories – Generally, a normative approach to morality that viewswhat should be done as determined by consequences. The most commonethical/philosophical expressions are utilitarianism in its various flavors(viz., actand ruleutilitarianism). More rarely, consequentialist theories can be merelydescriptive in character -- that is a view of how moraliity is derived,desirability issues aside. Also labeled teleologicaltheories. Compare with deontological(non-consequentialist) theories.

Deontological(non-consequentialist) theories – Generally, a normative stance thatviews what should be done as determined by fundamental principles that do notderive solely or even primarily from consequences. An act or rule is rightinsofar as it satisfies the demands of some over-riding (non-consequentialist)principle of moral duty. Deontologists sometimes stress that the value ofactions lies more in motives than in consequences. Religious revelation("divine command") is the historically common foundation fordeontological moral principles: things are right or wrong if, and only if,commanded or forbidden by God. Natural law or human reason may also be cited assources. For example, John Rawls’ Theory of Justice articulates a deontologicalapproach based on appeal to a social contract,reached by rational participants under conditions of absolute fairness and equality.Some philosophers (and many sociobiologists) take the position thatdeontological principles are simply those that have "tested out" ashaving good consequences over a long period, and are accordingly sanctioned bycustom, religious practice, etc.

Duty –Action, or an act, that is due by moral or legal obligation. Rights, groundedin core ethical principles such as autonomy, beneficence/nonmaleficence andjustice, create duties -- either of non-interference (for negative rights) orfor provision of social goods (positive rights). Duty need not be grounded onlyin the strong language of rights. Day-to-day social interactions also give riseto notions of duty: promises create duties of fidelity, gifts create duties ofgratitude, and so forth. Many moral philosophers have argued that participationin a political-social system creates a duty to abide by its laws and standards(but see civildisobedience).

Factsand values – Bifurcation of the world into statements about what is(facts) and what ought to be (values). The division is by no means universallyaccepted; and those that accept the division are not necessarily in closeagreement on the dividing line. One of the central controversies of moralphilosophy is whether value judgements (including moral judgements) canultimately be proved, verified or justified in terms of facts or rationalreasoning.

Fidelity– The principle that one should keep one's promises.

Justice –Commonly described as fairness, but more closely aligned to the concept of"desert" (pronounced like, but not to be confused with,"dessert" of the ice-cream et al variety): One has acted justlytoward a person when one gives that person what is due or owed, and thereforwhat is deserved. Common to all definitions of justice is the minimal principlethat relevantly similar cases (persons) be treated alike. Unfortunately, thedefinition of "relevantly similar" is not always self-evident. Someof the most intractable questions about justice arise over how to specify andprioritize among the relevant characteristics by which people are to beconsidered equal or unequal. (Consider affirmative action.) Moreover, theprinciple of "treat equals equally" leaves unanswered the question ofappropriate differences in treatment, when relevant dissimilarities are foundto exist. The term "distributive justice" refers, more restrictively,to the distribution of social benefits and burdens; "retributive justice"applies to issues of correction and punishment; "procedural justice"refers to social processes (most familiarly, in the judicial system). Egalitariantheories of justice stress equal access to primary social goods; libertariantheories of justice give primacy to social and economic freedom; Marxisttheories emphasize need ("to each according to his needs; from each accordingto his abilities"); utilitariantheories are focused on criteria to maximize well-being; and so on.

Morality (ethics)– The science of human duty; the rules of human conduct. The function ofmorality is "to combat the deleterious consequences of humansympathies" (Beauchamp). Its aim is "to contribute to betterment --or at least non-deterioration -- of the human predicament" (Warnock)."Ethics aims at discovering what are those other properties belonging toall things which are good" (Moore). Moral/ethical principles have thefollowing characteristics, in most but not all formulations: They are (1)supremely authoritative or over-riding as a guide to action; (2) prescriptive,not merely descriptive; and (3) universalizable, to relevantly similarsituations. (But see also relativism, asregards the last of these.)

Nonmaleficence– Moral principle that one should refrain from harming others ("first, dono harm"). Compare with beneficence.

Paternalism– Stance that a person’s liberty isjustifiably restricted to prevent self-harm, or to promote that person’s ownwell-being. Paternalism is an inherently liberty-limiting principle. It isgrounded in a theory of impairment, viz., that an individual lacks sufficientfacts or mental capacity to make a sound choice. It is sometimes defended by atheory of future consent: viz., that the person whose liberty is circ*mscribedwill (or, at least in principle, could) eventually agree that the restrictionwas desirable, given better facts or improved cognitive capacity in future.

Rights –That which is due to individuals, based on core ethical principles. Rightscreate parallel dutieson the part of others, or on society as a whole. So-called negative rights arerights of non-interference (e.g., with one’s speech, conscience, associations),typically grounded in the principle of autonomy. Positiverights, by contrast, are rights of "recipience" (e.g., to education,health care), typically grounded in the principle of justice.

ETHICS TERMS AND TERMINOLOGY (2024)

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