Basics of social cognitive and affective neuroscience. XVI. Moral decision

Summary

The three main classic moral theories in Western thinking are

• virtue theory,
• deontology,
• utilitarianism.

1. intuitive primacy but not dictatorship of emotions people make rapid evaluative judgements of others, moral judgement involves brain areas related to emotions, morally charged behaviour involves brain areas related to emotion, psychopaths have emotional deficits, people sometimes can´t explain their moral judgements, moral perceptual abilities emerge in infancy, manipulation of emotions changes judgements, reasoning is often guided by desires, research in political psychology and research on prosocial behaviour points to intuitions not reasoning,
2. moral thinking is for social doing,
3. morality binds and builds.

Key words:
moral theory, contemporary moral psychology, moral foundations theory.