are moral disputes intractable?
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Are Moral Disputes Intractable?. Stephen Stich Dept. of Philosophy & Center for Cognitive Science Rutgers University WORKSHOP ON INFORMAL INSTITUTIONS AND INTRACTABLE GLOBAL PROBLEMS. Introduction. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Are Moral Disputes Are Moral Disputes Intractable?Intractable?
Stephen StichStephen StichDept. of Philosophy &
Center for Cognitive ScienceRutgers University
WORKSHOP ON INFORMAL INSTITUTIONS AND INTRACTABLE GLOBAL PROBLEMS
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IntroductionIntroduction
Many of the most vexing global problems are -- at least in part -- rooted in moral disputesmoral disputes
The question I want to address is whether some of these disputes are intractableintractable
I’ll approach the question from the perspective of an empirically oriented philosopher interested in the psychology & evolution of moral psychology & evolution of moral normsnorms
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IntroductionIntroduction
This is an exciting time for philosophers who take an empirical approach to moral norms
Over the last decade there has been an explosion of interest in the area
Resulting in an impressive body of philosophically informed philosophically informed and empirically sophisticated empirically sophisticated inter-inter-disciplinary researchdisciplinary research
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IntroductionIntroduction
My theme will be that this work gives us the tools to ask the question tools to ask the question I have posed in my title in a new and new and innovative wayinnovative way
And to provide at least the beginning of an answerbeginning of an answer as well as a roadmap for future research roadmap for future research
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What is an “intractable” moral What is an “intractable” moral dispute?dispute?
One way to get clear about this is to focus on a theory of moral psych-focus on a theory of moral psych-ologyology on which moral disputes are moral disputes are NOT intractableNOT intractable
If that theory is mistakenmistaken, and I will argue that it is, then alternative accounts will show us some of the ways in which moral disputes can be intractable, and can help us think about how to deal with them
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What is an “intractable” moral What is an “intractable” moral dispute?dispute?
The first step is the “linguistic analogy” “linguistic analogy” first suggested by Rawls in A Theory of Justice and recently developed in great detail in an important new book by John John MikhailMikhail
6John
Milhail
What is an “intractable” moral What is an “intractable” moral dispute?dispute?
The starting point of the analogy is the observation that moral judgments, like grammatical judgments, can be made about an endless number of new cases endless number of new cases that we have never encountered before, and that typically these judgments are made very quicklyquickly with no no conscious accessconscious access to the underlying cognitive processes
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Trolley cases Trolley cases provide a clear example
The first time we encounter these cases we quickly make a judgment about whether the action on morally permissible
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What is an “intractable” moral What is an “intractable” moral dispute?dispute?
Jon Haidt’s Jon Haidt’s notorious dogdog and chickenchicken cases provide additional examples
“A family’s dog was killed by a car in front of their house. They had heard that dog meat was delicious, so they cut up the dog’s body and cooked it and ate it for dinner.”
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What is an “intractable” moral What is an “intractable” moral dispute?dispute?
Should the family be stopped or punished in any way?
Jon Haidt’s Jon Haidt’s notorious dogdog and chickenchicken cases provide additional examples
“A man does to the super market once a week and buys a dead chicken. But before cooking the chicken, he has sexual intercourse with it.”
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What is an “intractable” moral What is an “intractable” moral dispute?dispute?
Should the man be stopped or punished in any way?
Clearly, we don’t have judgments about specific specific trolley casestrolley cases and strange sex strange sex cases stored stored in our mind/brain in our mind/brain ready to be retrieved when a question arises
Rather, Mikhail suggests, we have a set of general rules or principlesgeneral rules or principles -- just as we do in the case of grammargrammar
These rules must be applied to specific cases applied to specific cases in a way that depends on the facts about depends on the facts about that casethat case
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What is an “intractable” moral What is an “intractable” moral dispute?dispute?
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General Moral Principles & Rules
(“moral grammar”)
Beliefs about the facts of the case
+ Judgment About the Case
What is an “intractable” moral What is an “intractable” moral dispute?dispute?
Where Do the Rules Come From?
The most venerable answer is nativismnativism:
The rules are innateinnate and are shared by all normal humans
Endorsed by a Endorsed by a wide variety of wide variety of thinkersthinkers, from antiquity to the present, including
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PlatoCiceroHume
Adam Smith J.J. Rousseau
JeffersonDarwinMikhail
What is an “intractable” moral What is an “intractable” moral dispute?dispute?
Many nativistsnativists, both historical & contemporary, have also been moral realistsmoral realists: they hold that (most) moral claims are either true true or falsefalse
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InnatInnatee CorrecCorrec
t t (True) (True)
If these If these are trueare true
These will These will be true be true
tootoo
What is an “intractable” moral What is an “intractable” moral dispute?dispute?
Many nativistsnativists, both historical & contemporary, have also been moral realistsmoral realists: they hold that (most) moral claims are either true true or falsefalse
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InnatInnatee CorrecCorrec
t t (True) (True)
What is an “intractable” moral What is an “intractable” moral dispute?dispute?
Why should we think that InnateInnate moral principles are CorrectCorrect? Some religious religious
philosophers philosophers think that they were implanted in our mind by GodGod
Many nativistsnativists, both historical & contemporary, have also been moral realistsmoral realists: they hold that (most) moral claims are either true true or falsefalse
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InnatInnatee CorrecCorrec
t t (True) (True)
What is an “intractable” moral What is an “intractable” moral dispute?dispute?
Why should we think that InnateInnate moral principles are CorrectCorrect? Some secular thinkers secular thinkers think
that they reflect “the “the wisdom of nature” wisdom of nature” or natural selectionnatural selection
Why nativistsnativists (& many moral realistsmoral realists) think that moral disputes are tractable
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Everyone agrees that there is a LOT of LOT of disagreement disagreement in moral judgments moral judgments both WITHINWITHIN and BETWEENBETWEEN cultures
What is an “intractable” moral What is an “intractable” moral dispute?dispute?
Why nativistsnativists (& many moral realistsmoral realists) think that moral disputes are tractable
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If nativism is correct, then ALLALL of that diversity must be explained by different different beliefs about the beliefs about the facts of the casefacts of the case
What is an “intractable” moral What is an “intractable” moral dispute?dispute?
Why nativistsnativists (& many moral realistsmoral realists) think that moral disputes are tractable
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If nativism is correct, then ALLALL of that diversity must be explained by different different beliefs about the beliefs about the facts of the casefacts of the case
…… or by a failure to grasp what the rules & principles say about the case
What is an “intractable” moral What is an “intractable” moral dispute?dispute?
Why nativistsnativists (& many moral realistsmoral realists) think that moral disputes are tractable
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Thus nativistsnativists (and many moral realistsmoral realists) make TWO TWO PREDICTIONSPREDICTIONS
What is an “intractable” moral What is an “intractable” moral dispute?dispute?
Why nativistsnativists (& many moral realistsmoral realists) think that moral disputes are tractable
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What is an “intractable” moral What is an “intractable” moral dispute?dispute?
1. When people make different moral different moral judgments judgments about the same case, it is because they have different different factual beliefs about the factual beliefs about the casecase.
2. If these factual factual disagreements were disagreements were eliminatedeliminated, moral moral disagreement would be disagreement would be eliminated as welleliminated as well.
Why nativistsnativists (& many moral realistsmoral realists) think that moral disputes are tractable
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What is an “intractable” moral What is an “intractable” moral dispute?dispute?
1. When people make different moral different moral judgments judgments about the same case, it is because they have different different factual beliefs about the factual beliefs about the casecase.
2. If these factual factual disagreements were disagreements were eliminatedeliminated, moral moral disagreement would be disagreement would be eliminated as welleliminated as well.
I will call this the “Eliminating Eliminating
Factual Factual Disagreement Disagreement
Will Eliminate All Will Eliminate All Moral Moral
Disagreement” Disagreement” Prediction
Why nativistsnativists (& many moral realistsmoral realists) think that moral disputes are tractable
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What is an “intractable” moral What is an “intractable” moral dispute?dispute?
1. When people make different moral different moral judgments judgments about the same case, it is because they have different different factual beliefs about the factual beliefs about the casecase.
2. If these factual factual disagreements were disagreements were eliminatedeliminated, moral moral disagreement would be disagreement would be eliminated as welleliminated as well.
I will call this the “Eliminating Eliminating
Factual Factual Disagreement Disagreement
Will Eliminate All Will Eliminate All Moral Moral
Disagreement” Disagreement” Prediction
If the prediction is true, then there is a clear sense in
which moral disagreements are
tractabletractable!
Do nativistsnativists and moral realists moral realists really think that eliminating factual disagreement would eliminate moral disagreement? Richard Boyd Richard Boyd - one of the foundersof contemporary moral realism
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What is an “intractable” moral What is an “intractable” moral dispute?dispute?
“Careful philosophical exam- ination will reveal …that agreement on nonmoral issues agreement on nonmoral issues would eliminate almost all would eliminate almost all disagreement about the sorts disagreement about the sorts of issues which arise in of issues which arise in ordinary moral practiceordinary moral practice.” (1988)
There is now a substantial body of research suggesting that the answer is NONO
Haidt’s dog
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Is the Prediction True? Is the Prediction True? Are Moral Disputes Really Are Moral Disputes Really
Tractable? Tractable?
% yes
There is now a substantial body of research suggesting that the answer is NONO
Haidt’s chicken
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Is the Prediction True? Is the Prediction True? Are Moral Disputes Really Are Moral Disputes Really
Tractable? Tractable?
% yes
It is singularly implausible that the high SES & low SES participants have different factual beliefs different factual beliefs about eating dogs or masturbating with chickens
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Is the Prediction True? Is the Prediction True? Are Moral Disputes Really Are Moral Disputes Really
Tractable? Tractable?
% yes
% yes
It is much more plausible that the disagreement herehere
derives from a difference herehere not herehere
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Is the Prediction True? Is the Prediction True? Are Moral Disputes Really Are Moral Disputes Really
Tractable? Tractable?
There are many other studies that point in the same direction
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Is the Prediction True? Is the Prediction True? Are Moral Disputes Really Are Moral Disputes Really
Tractable? Tractable?
There are many other studies that point in the same direction
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Is the Prediction True? Is the Prediction True? Are Moral Disputes Really Are Moral Disputes Really
Tractable? Tractable?
There are many other studies that point in the same direction
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Is the Prediction True? Is the Prediction True? Are Moral Disputes Really Are Moral Disputes Really
Tractable? Tractable?
There are many other studies that point in the same direction
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Is the Prediction True? Is the Prediction True? Are Moral Disputes Really Are Moral Disputes Really
Tractable? Tractable?
So it looks like nativistsnativists and moral moral realistsrealists like Boyd are wrong
Eliminating factual disagreement will NOTNOT eliminate all moral disagreement
Some important moral disputes NOTNOT tractable
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Is the Prediction True? Is the Prediction True? Are Moral Disputes Really Are Moral Disputes Really
Tractable? Tractable?
So where DODO the Rules Come From?
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Where do we go from here? Where do we go from here?
Boyd & Richerson, Henrich and others have made a powerful case that they are the product of social learningsocial learning, a process in which information-rich mental states are copied from one mind to another
So where DODO the Rules Come From?
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Where do we go from here? Where do we go from here?
Boyd & Richerson, Henrich and others have made a powerful case that they are the product of social learningsocial learning, a process in which information-rich mental states are copied from one mind to another
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Where do we go from here? Where do we go from here?
Different sets of rules Different sets of rules will arise in different different material, cultural and historical settingsmaterial, cultural and historical settings, and will be transformed by a process of cultural cultural group selectiongroup selection
If we are to learn to deal with the global global problems that arise from these intractable problems that arise from these intractable moral disputesmoral disputes, we’ll have to learn much more about the dynamics of social learningdynamics of social learning and the psychological and neurological processes psychological and neurological processes that underlie itthat underlie it.
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Where do we go from here? Where do we go from here?
Among the questionsquestions we’ll need to answer are:
What are the factors that affect whether a newly introduced normnewly introduced norm will spreadspread thru a population?
What are the factors that lead to a widely widely shared norm shared norm becoming less common less common within a population?
What effect does competition between competition between groups groups have on which norms survive and survive and spread spread and which disappeardisappear?