ETHICS: VALUES AND FACTS

Open Ended

Which of the theories discussed would you choose? Provide a reason for your answer

Multiple Choice

What kind of problem are you face with in this example

• Moral Dilemma

• Ethical dilemma

• Humanitarian Dilemma

• Utilitarian dilemma

​What distinguishes our knowledge about morality from our understanding of anything else?

Think back to the distinctions made earlier about different kinds of knowledge claims. Observational or factual statements are about the material world; they can be tested to be true or false based on evidence. On the other hand, our moral value judgements are assessments on a conceptual scale and cannot be proved materially. There is no ‘goodness test’ whereby litmus paper can be applied to an action: if it turns red, the action is good; if it turns blue, the action is terrible.

​Certainly, we justify many of our moral judgements by using our factual statements about the world. In the image above, Auntie Neena can be observed to act in ways that support the knowledge claim that she is a good person – surely according to anybody’s definition! Our conclusion that she is good is based on plenty of evidence, and we can support a

​conclusion through inductive reasoning. Moreover, we can predict that if we turn to Auntie Neena tomorrow for help, she will respond in a way consistent with her behaviour all her life. Our knowledge claim that ‘My Auntie Neena is a good person’ is well justified, even though it remains a moral judgement that is not itself a fact about the material world.

Morality and Ethics: Values

​Ethics gives us some significant perspectives on being good and making good choices—perspectives that provide different vantage points that pick out and highlight other features of morality. We will start with two that would most certainly approve of Auntie Neena.

1. One central ethical school of thought centres on a person’s character and stresses honesty, fairness, compassion, courage and generosity. (Auntie Neena is certainly compassionate and generous!)

​Another central ethical school of thought focuses on caring about others and stresses compassion, love and loyalty. It sees ethics in terms of someone’s caring relationships with others. (Auntie Neena is certainly loving, loyal and compassionate; she is supportive and nurturing in her relationships.)

Other major ethical perspectives exist, too, and you will come to them shortly.

​Quiz-time

Multiple Choice

What type of statements are based on the material world and can be tested as true or false?

• Moral judgments

• Ethical claims

• Observational or factual statements

• Conceptual assessments

Multiple Choice

Why can moral judgments not be tested in the same way as factual statements?

• They are not based on observable evidence

• There is a "goodness test" for moral actions

• They only involve hypothetical situations

• They rely solely on opinions

Multiple Choice

What reasoning process is used to support the conclusion that Auntie Neena is a good person?

• Deductive reasoning

• Inductive reasoning

• Hypothetical reasoning

• Moral reasoning

Multiple Choice

Which of the following is NOT a characteristic associated with the ethical perspective focusing on a person’s character?

• Honesty

• Fairness

• Self-interest

• Courage

Multiple Choice

Which ethical perspective focuses on caring relationships with others?

• Character-centered ethics

• Virtue ethics

• Evidence-based ethics

• Relationship-centered ethics

Multiple Choice

Why do we turn to ethics for knowledge about moral issues?

• To replace our personal values

• To avoid making mistakes

• To view morality in a larger context and learn how humanity has framed moral issues

• To find concrete evidence for every action

Multiple Choice

According to the information, what two qualities describe Auntie Neena based on the caring ethical perspective?

• Supportive and nurturing

• Independent and decisive

• Fair and justLogical and efficient

• Logical and efficient

Multiple Choice

Which of the following best describes ethics?

• The study of the material world

• The study of observable evidence

• The study of morality and ways of thinking about being good

• The study of personal preferences

Multiple Choice

How does the character-centered ethical perspective view morality?

• Through the lens of observable behaviors only

• As a collection of caring relationships

• By dismissing character traits as irrelevant

• By highlighting qualities such as honesty and courage in a person’s character

Multiple Choice

What is a key benefit of studying ethics

• It eliminates personal biases

• It provides a singular view of morality

• It enriches our thinking by offering multiple perspectives on moral choices

• It categorizes all actions as either good or bad

​Morality and human sciences: facts

​But ethics is one of many sources of knowledge about moral decision-making. Whereas ethics studies what people should do, the human sciences examine what people do by running experiments and observing. They build observational, factual knowledge, contributing to our understanding of moral values in human behaviour.

Open Ended

In your opinion, to what extent can we align ethics and scientific studies?

​HOMEWORK

​Write a 300-word reflection on the following prompt: "How do moral judgments differ from factual statements, and how can we justify moral claims? Use an example from your life to support your response.