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Chapter 7 - Has Cognitive Science Debunked Deontology?

Double Effect and Greene’s Debunking Argument

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 December 2021

Joshua Stuchlik
Affiliation:
University of St Thomas, Minnesota
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Summary

In Chapter 7, I argue that the solidarity rationale for the PDE from Chapter 3 enables a response to Joshua Greene’s argument that findings from empirical psychology debunk deontological constraints on causing harm. Greene’s deontological debunking argument is based on the dual-process theory of moral judgment, and I begin by reviewing the main elements of this theory. Next, I describe the two stages of Greene’s debunking argument. Stage 1 aims to debunk the case-based intuitions that seem to support deontology over consequentialism, while Stage 2 aims to debunk deontological normative ethics. I argue that Stage 2 of Greene’s argument is unsatisfactory, and I explain why it fails to undermine the solidarity rationale for the PDE. Finally, I outline two possible explanations of why our case-based intuitions should be sensitive (even if imperfectly) to a feature of conduct – intentional harm – that is morally significant.

Type
Chapter
Information
Intention and Wrongdoing
In Defense of Double Effect
, pp. 162 - 179
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2021

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