Biomedical Ethics
Biomedical Ethics Exam 1 Study Guide Answers 1. The central aim of the normative theory is to provide well supported principles of conduct and value that will be useful for guiding people’s actions.
There are 2 branches : 1. Right conduct theory: what makes right acts right? Example—abortion.. “hurting others is wrong”.. “killing people is wrong” 2. Value theory: what sorts of things are intrinsically valuable? 2. The central aim of the Value theory -Intrinsic value: love, happiness ….something valuable for its own sake. -Instrumental(non-intrinsic)
The 2 basic theories of the Value theory: 1. Hedonism- happiness/pleasure is the sole intrinsic value 2. Non-Hedonism- other things besides happiness can have intrinsic value (love, knowledge, virtue, beauty, etc.) 3. The 6 criteria that are most often used to evaluate a moral theory: 1. Logical consistency: the theory shouldn’t say that the same act is both right and wrong. 2. Determinacy: the theory should give clear guidance about what to do in most cases. 3. Livability: the theory shouldn’t be too cumbersome to apply. 4. Publicity: the theory should permit itself to be taught to others. 5. Coherence with other knowledge: the theory should agree with things we know from other disciplines.
6. Coherence with our most basic moral judgments: the theory should agree with our most basic set of morals and from this we can pass “judgement” based on those morals. 4. Ethical Egoism: an act is right only if it is in the actors best interests. Objections to Ethical Egoism: 1. Egoism fails the publicity requirements: you won’t want to teach egoism to others because then they will compete with you.
There are 2 branches : 1. Right conduct theory: what makes right acts right? Example—abortion.. “hurting others is wrong”.. “killing people is wrong” 2. Value theory: what sorts of things are intrinsically valuable? 2. The central aim of the Value theory -Intrinsic value: love, happiness ….something valuable for its own sake. -Instrumental(non-intrinsic)
The 2 basic theories of the Value theory: 1. Hedonism- happiness/pleasure is the sole intrinsic value 2. Non-Hedonism- other things besides happiness can have intrinsic value (love, knowledge, virtue, beauty, etc.) 3. The 6 criteria that are most often used to evaluate a moral theory: 1. Logical consistency: the theory shouldn’t say that the same act is both right and wrong. 2. Determinacy: the theory should give clear guidance about what to do in most cases. 3. Livability: the theory shouldn’t be too cumbersome to apply. 4. Publicity: the theory should permit itself to be taught to others. 5. Coherence with other knowledge: the theory should agree with things we know from other disciplines.
6. Coherence with our most basic moral judgments: the theory should agree with our most basic set of morals and from this we can pass “judgement” based on those morals. 4. Ethical Egoism: an act is right only if it is in the actors best interests. Objections to Ethical Egoism: 1. Egoism fails the publicity requirements: you won’t want to teach egoism to others because then they will compete with you.