The Wisdom of Moral Principles
Short Definition
Moral principles are a cornerstone of human wisdom. This research constitutes a detailed case study of the generation and application of three moral principles.
Summary Points
- Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) revealed activation of dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) during the judgment of harmful omissions, relatively to harmful actions. This activity was greatest when subjects strongly condemned omissions, and least when subjects weakly condemned omissions.
- Moral principles are a cornerstone of human wisdom,
- Using a combination of behavioral testing and functional neuroimaging, our research constitutes a detailed case study of the generation and application of three moral principles
- This research has three main objectives.
- This research speaks directly to current debates concerning the roles played by, and relationship between, intuitive emotional processes and controlled cognitive processes in moral judgment.
- The proposed research may shed light on normative issues of broad significance.
Text from Wisdom Institute
People consider it worse to actively harm (e.g. drowning a person) than to fail to save (e.g. not throw a drowning person a life preserver). Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) revealed activation of dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) during the judgment of harmful omissions, relatively to harmful actions. This activity was greatest when subjects strongly condemned omissions, and least when subjects weakly condemned omissions. This suggests that the moral condemnation of harmful actions is relatively automatic, while the moral condemnation of harmful omissions requires effort and control, possibly explaining why it is less robust. This may cast doubt on the wisdom of a moral distinction between active and passive harm, depending on one’s assumptions about the relative reliability of automatic versus controlled processes in the context of complex moral decision-making.
The Wisdom of Moral Principles
Moral principles are a cornerstone of human wisdom, enabling the codification and communication of hard-won social knowledge. But where do moral principles come from? And how are they used? Using a combination of behavioral testing and functional neuroimaging, our research constitutes a detailed case study of the generation and application of three moral principles that feature prominently in law, public policy, moral philosophy, and commonsense moral judgment. These are the action/omission principle (harming through action is worse than harming though omission), the means/side-effect principle (harming as a means to an end is worse than harming as a side-effect), and the contact/no contact principle (harming through direct physical contact is worse than harming without contact). This research has three main objectives. The first is to investigate the psychological mechanisms that support moral intuitions, giving rise to consistent patterns of moral judgment that may form the basis of moral principles. More specifically, we test the hypothesis that non-moral assessments of causal responsibility and intention give rise to the moral content of the action/omission and means/side-effect principles. Our second objective is to determine whether people abstract moral principles from consistent patterns of intuitive moral judgment, and to evaluate the role of prefrontal cortical function in this process. Our third objective is to determine how and when such moral principles affect moral judgments. This research speaks directly to current debates concerning the roles played by, and relationship between, intuitive emotional processes and controlled cognitive processes in moral judgment. Additionally, the proposed research may shed light on normative issues of broad significance. By understanding how different moral principles are formed and applied, we stand to choose among them more wisely.
Currently, Greene and collaborator Fiery Cushman continue with the process of stimulus design and pilot testing for Experiment 1: “The Means/Side-Effect and Action/Omission Distinctions in Moral and Non-Moral Scenarios”. Pilot behavioral tests conducted on the stimuli designed during the first quarter revealed effects that, while statistically significant, were insufficiently large to confidently transition into the scanner. Thus, their focus during the second quarter was on redesigning aspects of the experiment and the stimuli to achieve stronger effects. They have also taken steps to ensure rapid fMRI data collection going forward.
https://wisdomcenter.uchicago.edu/about/project-1-defining-wisdom