Humans express complex moral behaviour, from altruism to antisocial acts. The investigationof the neural and cognitive mechanisms underlying our moral minds is of profoundimportance for understanding these behaviours. By reviewing recent findings in cognitive andmoral neuroscience, along with other relevant areas of research, the current study aims to: (1)Investigate the neural correlates of moral intuition and moral reasoning, and see how thesetwo systems relate to moral judgement and moral behaviour. (2) Examine how the moralintuitive system and the moral reasoning system relate to one another. Neuroscientificevidence suggests that these two systems are supported by different areas in the brain. Whiletheir relationship is argued to be both sequential, integrative and competitive, evidenceindicates that the moral reasoning system primarily functions as a post hoc rationalization ofour intuitive-driven judgements and behaviours. While our moral intuitive system motivateskin altruism, both moral intuition and moral reasoning serve to uphold reciprocal altruism.

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico / This dissertation aims to explain and discuss the Kantian proposal regarding the grounds of moral action from the pure practical reason, and the relationship between these grounds and the "moral sense", i.e., the feeling of "respect". Thus, it is presented the reconstruction of the Kantian argumentation concerning the problem of objective validity of the moral law as a determinant of human will, as well as an analysis of the respective sections of the Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals and the Critique of Practical Reason, which present the Kant's arguments concerning the relation between the moral law and the feeling of respect, as a central figure to the practice of this law. In order to do so, the first chapter deals with a terminological analysis of the concept of feeling of Respect, distinguishing it from the conception of moral sense and the feeling of happiness. In the second chapter it is intended to show how the moral law can be realized in the hearts of a finite rational human being like a man, in view of the issue of moral motivation and the systematic link between the feeling of respect and the moral law. Finally, in the third chapter, the dissertation addresses the relationship between the feeling of respect and the fact of reason. / A presente dissertação tem como objetivo principal explicitar e discutir a proposta kantiana quanto à fundamentação do agir moral a partir da razão prática pura, e a relação desta fundamentação com o chamado sentimento moral , i.e., o sentimento do respeito . Nessa medida, apresenta-se a reconstrução da argumentação kantiana acerca do problema da validade objetiva da lei moral como determinante da vontade humana, bem como uma análise dos respectivos trechos da Fundamentação da Metafísica dos Costumes e da Crítica da Razão Prática, que apresentam os argumentos de Kant referentes à relação da lei moral com o sentimento do respeito, como figura central para a prática desta lei. Para isso, no primeiro capítulo, faz-se uma análise terminológica do conceito do sentimento do respeito, distinguindo-o da concepção de senso moral e do sentimento de felicidade. No segundo capítulo busca-se mostrar como a lei moral pode ser efetivada no ânimo de um ser racional finito como o homem, tendo em vista a questão da motivação moral e a ligação sistemática entre o sentimento do respeito e a lei moral. Por fim, no terceiro capítulo, a dissertação aborda a questão da relação entre o sentimento do respeito e o facto da razão. A presente dissertação tem como objetivo principal explicitar e discutir a proposta kantiana quanto à fundamentação do agir moral a partir da razão prática pura, e a relação desta fundamentação com o chamado sentimento moral , i.e., o sentimento do respeito . Nessa medida, apresenta-se a reconstrução da argumentação kantiana acerca do problema da validade objetiva da lei moral como determinante da vontade humana, bem como uma análise dos respectivos trechos da Fundamentação da Metafísica dos Costumes e da Crítica da Razão Prática, que apresentam os argumentos de Kant referentes à relação da lei moral com o sentimento do respeito, como figura central para a prática desta lei. Para isso, no primeiro capítulo, faz-se uma análise terminológica do conceito do sentimento do respeito, distinguindo-o da concepção de senso moral e do sentimento de felicidade. No segundo capítulo busca-se mostrar como a lei moral pode ser efetivada no ânimo de um ser racional finito como o homem, tendo em vista a questão da motivação moral e a ligação sistemática entre o sentimento do respeito e a lei moral. Por fim, no terceiro capítulo, a dissertação aborda a questão da relação entre o sentimento do respeito e o facto da razão.

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico / The present study discusses the union among relations based on the philosophical proposals of Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) focusing on some of his practical philosophy such as Morality, Religion and Education. The aim into attempting to rebuild the course of Kant practical philosophy is to present the development process and the contribution of pedagogy in the process of moral formation. The objective is to present in an articulated manner, the idea of progress and improvements on human conduct along with the project on the metaphysics of moral and its ending of uniting all men of good will, in other words, in an ethical community way. First, the moral law is presented as a necessary condition for a good conduct in oneself, straying from any sensible representation in which it pretends to serve as a reference to every virtuous conduct. The explanation being held in this study is only about the possibility of a purely moral conduct, and only if the reference for the formulation of a good character is based on the rational law. However, the requisite for a good moral character is only valid if in accordance with practical reason law. Concerning the union of men, the consequence of this match is the origin of evil just as the union of some equal virtuous interest is capable of overcoming bad actions due to ideas of an ethic community. Finally, in the third chapter, the research strategy does not apply only to Pedagogy but also to other several masterworks, aiming to systematize the proposal of a moral education, seen by Kant, as essential and indispensable on the formation of a virtuous individual member of a certain ethic community. / O presente trabalho aborda o enlace e as relações da proposta de Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) no que tange a alguns temas de sua filosofia prática, a saber, Moralidade, Religião e Educação. Esta tentativa de reconstruir o percurso destes conceitos da filosofia prática kantiana tem por intenção apresentar o processo de desenvolvimento e a contribuição da pedagogia no processo da formação moral. O objetivo é apresentar, de forma articulada, a ideia de progresso e aperfeiçoamento da conduta humana, condizente com o projeto da metafísica da moral e seu desfecho na união de todos os homens de boa ação, ou seja, na forma de uma comunidade ética. Inicialmente apresenta-se a lei moral como condição necessária para uma boa conduta em si, afastando-se de qualquer representação sensível que pretenda ser referência para toda conduta virtuosa. O que se busca explanar aqui é apenas a possibilidade de uma conduta puramente moral, desde que a referência para a formulação da boa conduta esteja ancorada na lei racional. Contudo, o requisito para uma conduta moralmente boa é sua validação a partir da lei pura da razão. Kant atribui a origem do mal ao encontro dos homens. De forma que nosso autor acredita que a solução para o mal está justamente na unificação de um mesmo interesse virtuoso, único capaz de superar ações más por conta da ideia de uma comunidade ética. Por fim, no terceiro capítulo, a estratégia de pesquisa não se restringe apenas a obra Pedagogia, mas a várias obras, procurando sistematizar a proposta de uma educação moral, vista, por Kant, como essencial e indispensável na formação de um sujeito virtuoso, membro de uma esperada comunidade ética.

Informe de Seminario para optar al grado de Licenciado en Filosofía

Memoria (licenciado en ciencias jurídicas y sociales) / No autorizada por el autor para ser publicada a texto completo / Las últimas décadas de la filosofía moral se han caracterizado por el surgimiento de una constelación de disciplinas que tienen por objeto diversos ámbitos prácticos. Es el caso, por ejemplo, de la bioética cuya esfera de dominio es la reflexión en torno a los avances tecnológicos en su aplicación a la vida. También, puede ser citado el caso de la ética empresarial, destinada a evaluar críticamente las prácticas asociadas al tráfico comercial. Estas y otras actividades, reclaman constituirse en ámbitos diferenciados en los cuales sus peculiaridades determinen el tipo de juzgamiento moral de las acciones que allí se ejecutan. Suele denominarse a esta parcela de la filosofía moral como ética aplicada. Una de las dificultades que exhiben estas disciplinas, es la precariedad de las categorías conceptuales con las cuales sus exponentes se aproximan a los asuntos prácticos de su dominio. La oscuridad de los significados de las palabras, probablemente acaba petrificando el desacuerdo. Un modo elocuente de destrabar el diálogo, es mediante la clarificación del vocabulario que se utiliza. La presente Memoria de Prueba pretende contribuir a elucidar un par de conceptos de uso recurrente en esta clase de discusiones, a saber, el de estatus moral y el de persona

The concept of moral standing applies to those who are of a direct moral concern, i.e. we have a reason to directly include those with a moral standing in our moral deliberation- they matter for themselves. How one accounts for the concept in question is controversial and thus there are several different accounts that one can consult when pondering what content the concept ought to have. This paper investigates the plausibility of some of the most influential accounts of moral standing, concluding that they, as they stand alone, are insufficient. Instead an alternative account of moral standing with a kantian foundation is offered, an account which is heavily based on Christine Korsgaard’s notion of final goods, with moral standing understood as a comparative concept as its distinguishing component.

Magister Psychologiae - MPsych / The purpose of the study was to explore what parents expect of schools regarding citizenship and moral education. It was argued that it is important that parents' views are taken into accouint when exploring citizenship and moral education in the schools in order to enhance congruence between values and associated virtues promoted at school and at home. / South Africa

In human society, people encounter various deontic conflicts every day. Deontic decisions are those that include moral, ethical, and normative aspects. Here, the concern is with deontic conflicts: decisions where all the alternatives lead to the violation of some norms. People think critically about these kinds of decisions. But, just ‘what’ they think about is not always clear. People use certain estimating factors/criteria to balance the tradeoffs when they encounter deontic conflicts. It is unclear what subjective factors people use to make a deontic decision. An elicitation approach called the Open Factor Conjoint System is proposed, which applies an online elicitation methodology which is a combination of two well-know research methodologies: repertory grid and conjoint analysis. This new methodology is extended to be a web based application. It seeks to elicit additional relevant (subjective) factors from people, which affect deontic decisions. The relative importance and utility values are used for the development of a decision model to predict people’s decisions. Fundamentally, this methodology was developed and intended to be applicable for a wide range of elicitation applications with minimal experimenter bias. Comparing with the traditional method, this online survey method reduces the limitation of time and space in data collection and this methodology can be applied in many fields. Two possible applications were addressed: robotic vehicles and the choice of medical treatment. In addition, this method can be applied to many research related disciplines in cross-cultural research due to its online ability with global capacity.

This research deals with socially responsible investing (SRI) in its broadest context in South Africa and includes an analysis of the risk-adjusted performance of local SRI funds. SRI refers to an investment strategy whereby investors integrate moral as well as environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations alongside conventional financial criteria in evaluating investment opportunities. Typical SRI strategies include screening, shareholder activism and cause-based (targeted) investing. The primary objective of this research was to obtain a deeper understanding of SRI in South Africa as it represents a powerful means whereby private sector capital can be channelled into areas of national priority. Data and methodological triangulation strategies were adopted to investigate the research problem, respond to the research questions and test the research hypotheses of this study. The phenomenological component of the research consisted of an extensive literature review as well as in-depth, face-to-face interviews conducted with twelve SRI fund managers and industry experts. The positivistic dimension of this research centred on the construction of the first complete database of SRI funds in South Africa, the sourcing of quantitative primary data and the testing of eight pairs of null and alternative hypotheses. Risk-adjusted performance was evaluated by means of the Sharpe, Sortino and Upside-potential ratios during three sub-periods, namely 1 June 1992 to 31 August 1998, 1 September 1998 to 31 March 2002 and 1 April 2002 to 31 March 2006. Forty-three SRI funds have been launched in South Africa since June 1992 and it is estimated that SRIs constitute approximately 0.7 percent of the total investment capacity in the country. It was found that most local SRI funds combine a cause-based investment strategy with a positive or best-of-sector screening approach. ESG screens were found to focus on the promotion of broad-based Black Economic Empowerment and the development of social infrastructure in South Africa. The FTSE/JSE SRI Index and the Financial Sector Charter were identified as the most prominent drivers of SRI in South Africa, whereas a lack of skills and a shortage of new SRI opportunities, asset classes and funds were seen as impediments to the growth of the local SRI sector. The empirical evidence shows that: - local SRI funds underperformed relative to their respective benchmark indices during the first two sub-periods but significantly outperformed them during sub-period three (the resurgence period of SRI in South Africa); - local SRI fund performance is not significantly different from that of a matched sample of conventional (non-SRI) funds; and - local SRI funds significantly underperformed relative to the general equity market in South Africa during sub-period two (the decline period of SRI in South Africa) but performed on a par with the FTSE/JSE All Share Index during sub-periods one and two. The findings of this research therefore suggest that investors can consider SRI funds as part of a well-diversified investment strategy. It is strongly recommended that a Social Investment Forum be established in South Africa to address the educational needs of stakeholders in the local SRI sector. It is also recommended that local asset managers adopt a focused differentiation strategy to take advantage of the growing SRI sector in South Africa.

Most writers on moral education see moral principles as central to that enterprise. The aim of moral education is to produce moral persons and that, it is believed, is achieved by getting students to grasp, or to develop, moral principles. It is important, therefore, for anyone engaged in moral education, or for anyone developing or assessing programs of moral education, to have a clear understanding of just what moral principles are. This paper is an attempt to become clearer about what moral principles are and in what ways they are important to moral education. The approach taken consists in first considering the theory of moral development put forward as a basis of moral education by Professor Lawrence Kohlberg who has to date, done the most extensive work in this area. Second, the question 'What is a moral principle?' is examined at length and arguments presented for the view that there are two distinct and equally important senses of moral principle. In the light of this examination a critique is offered of Professor Kohlberg's account of the nature of moral principles. Finally, consideration is given to the task of moral education. / Education, Faculty of / Graduate