RS a level ETHICS SPEC

all of the spec points with every topic

Natural Law

telos - origins in Aristotle and its religious development through Aquinas

4 tiers of Law - what they are and how they’re related: eternal, divine, natural, human

precepts - what they are and how they’re related: the key precept, 5 primary precepts, secondary precepts

Situation Ethics

agape - origins in the NT and religious developments by Fletcher

6 propositions - what they are and how they give rise to SE’s approach to moral decision making

4 working principles - what they are and how they’re intended to be applied

conscience - a verb not a noun; a term that describes attempts to make decisions creatively according to Fletcher

Kantian Ethics

duty - origins of the concept of duty in deontological and absolutist ethics

hypothetical imperative - what it is and why it is not the imperative of morality

categorical imperative and its 3 formulations - what it is and why it is the imperative of morality

3 postulates - what they are and why in obeying a moral command they are accepted: freedom, immortality, God

Utilitarianism

utility - the use of the concept of utility in teleological and relativist ethics

hedonic calculus - what it is and its use as a measure of individual pleasure

act utilitarianism - what it is (calculating the consequence of each situation on its own merits) and its use in promoting the greatest amount of good over evil/pleasure over pain

rule utilitarianism - what it is (following accepted laws that lead to the greatest overall balance of good over evil/pleasure over pain) and its use in promoting the common good

euthanasia

sanctity of life - religious origins

quality of life - secular origins

voluntary euthanasia - what it is and its use in the case of incurable or terminal illness

non-voluntary euthanasia - what it is and its use in the case of a person in a persistent vegetative state

application of Natural Law and Situation Ethics to Euthanasia

business ethics

corporate social responsibility - what it is and its application to stakeholders such as employees, customers, local community, country, and governments

whistle-blowing - what it is and its application to the contract between employee and employer

good ethics is good business - what it is and its application to shareholders and profit-making

globalisation - what it is and its impact on stakeholders

application of Kantian ethics and Utilitarianism to business ethics

meta-ethical theories

naturalism - what it is and its application to absolutism

intuitionism - what it is and its application to the term ‘good’

emotivism - what it is and its application to relativism

conscience

Aquinas’ theological approach - ratio, conscientia, synderesis, vincible ignorance, invincible ignorance

Freud’s psychological approach - psychosexual development, id, ego, superego

sexual ethics

areas of sexual ethics - premarital and extramarital sex, homosexuality

the influence and developments in religious beliefs and practices in the tolerability, morality, and legality of these areas of sexual ethics

application of Natural Law, Situationism, Utilitarianism, and Kantian Ethics and issues raised by their use