Summer2 2014 Ethics Course Study Questions

Return to Ethics -- Benin

Reference Dates: We don't have specific class dates in this online course, but here are some dates that I might post information on.

Thursday June 5, 2014

Ariely

1. What were Ariely's findings on honesty?
2. What is the possible significance of his research for understanding the nature of ethics?

Monday June 9, 2014

Haidt, Intro and Chapter 1

1. Describe Haidt's research on disgust. What is its possible significance for understanding the nature of ethics.
2. What is Haidt's criticism of developmental psychology's past approach to understanding the nature of ethics?
3. Why does Haidt think that Turiel's and Schweder's research represent an improvement over the nature/nuture debate?

Tuesday June 10, 2014

Haidt, "The Divided Self"

1. How do we use metaphors to think about the psyche, soul, and human identity?
2. What organic features of consciousness does Haidt think we need to consider when doing ethics? How might they be usefull?
3. What picture of the mind does Haidt leave us with?

Monday June 16, 2014

Haidt, Chapter 2

1. How does Haidt criticize philosophers on the topic of the relationship between reason and emotion?
2. How do evolutionary psychologists help us see the elephant talking? (And what does that even mean?)
3. What is the social intuitionist model of moral judgement? (Start comparing to other theories, like virtue ethics.)

Haidt, Chapter 3

1. Do we have an inner lawyer?
2. Does it operate the way Haidt thinks?
3. How do you get the elephant to listen?

Tuesday June 17, 2014

Haidt, Chapter 4

1. What evidence does Haidt provide for the claim that we are constantly concerned with our status and that we tend to conserve our views even at the expense of good reasoning?
2. Given Haidt's view that intuition comes first, what is the function of moral reasoning?
3. How does Haidt think this evidence ought to influence our view of politics?
4. Compare Haidt's view of social deliberation with Aristotle's view of deliberate choice.