The aim of this course is to present students with an overview of the philosophical and empirical study of moral psychology. Readings will be drawn from a combination of classical philosophical texts, recent empirical work, and ongoing work at the boundary of philosophy and the sciences. Some of the questions raised in this course include: to what extent do our moral judgments affect the way we evaluate others? What kinds of cognitive processes operate in our moral and social evaluations, and how conscious or aware of these processes are we? To what extent are there moral 'tribes' whose members view moral and social issues in a particular way? What are the cognitive differences that underlie different moral tribes? To what extent does the difference between the political right and the political left correspond to these underlying cognitive differences?
- Teacher: Preston John Stovall