Understanding Social Actions and Ethical Theories
Types of Shares
Individual Action
Individual action is a voluntary and conscious act performed by a subject in society, without external requirement. (Example: Taking an object)
Collective Action
Collective action is performed by a group of people with a shared objective. (Example: Hiking)
Social Action
Social action combines individual and collective aspects. When an individual acts within society, the action gains meaning through customs and traditions. There are two types of social actions:
Teleological Action
Focuses on choosing the most appropriate means to achieve an end, considering the consequences. Teleological actions can be:
Instrumental Action
Considers technical rules; the subject uses an object for a specific purpose.
Strategic Action
The subject considers the means to achieve a desired end.
Communicative Action
Involves the interaction of two individuals establishing an interpersonal relationship to communicate. This can involve verbal (speech), nonverbal (gestures), and extraverbal means. While each individual may have their own goal, they agree to coordinate their actions.
Components of Action
Every action stems from a motive and an intention, leading to an act and a consequence. Actions have two components:
Observable: Physical body movements.
Unobservable: The underlying motivation and intention.
Motivated Action
Reason: The cause that prompts us to act.
Example: Lack of money motivates withdrawing money from the bank. Failing a test motivates studying more.
External/Internal Factors: Objective factors that influence our actions, or internal events that determine our choices.
Purpose: The desired outcome of the action.
Example: Withdrawing money to buy something. Studying for an exam to pass it.
Intentional Action
The aim pursued by a person to modify a situation according to their will. Intentions are initially ideas and mental contents, becoming facts only when the action is successful.
Example: Going to work by taxi.
Outcome: Success/Failure
Reason: Taxi breaks down.
Result: Arriving late/not arriving at all.
Intention: Taking a taxi to reach the office.
Consequence: Being on time/being late.
Understanding and Explaining Actions
Understanding an action requires knowing the reasons and intentions behind it, which are not directly observable. Once understood, the action can be explained.
Example:
Question: What are you doing?
Insufficient Answer: I write verses on paper.
Expected Answer: I’m writing a letter, a list, etc.
Simply writing symbols on paper is not an action if it lacks meaning.
Morality and Ethics
Morality
Moral Standards: Regulate individual and collective actions. Morality has two aspects:
Moral Content: Specific rules and principles governing behavior.
Moral Structure: Features of human nature that obligate us to act according to established standards.
Morality originates from customs and habits, shaping an individual’s character. Character influences actions and their rightness or wrongness.
Moral Norms
Rules that dictate how we should act. These can be:
Explicit: Written legal codes.
Implicit: Habits or customs (e.g., saving children first in an accident).
Moral Conscience
Responsible for accepting, assimilating, and judging the correctness of actions based on moral rules.
Ethics
The study of human actions, evaluating their goodness or badness. Ethics has two objectives:
Material Objective: Human actions themselves.
Formal Objective: Considering the goodness or badness of actions.
Ethics must be:
Scientific: An ordered set of truths based on knowledge of their causes.
Practical: Applying knowledge to human actions, prohibiting certain acts and prescribing others.
Philosophical: Ethical judgments require knowledge of humanity, its meaning, and purpose.
Structure of Morality
Events, Attitudes, and Character
Acts: The central element of moral behavior. Acts are judged as morally good or bad.
Attitudes: Stable and selective predispositions to act or perceive in certain ways. Attitudes influence actions.
Character: The overall moral constitution of a person, rooted in attitudes and the origin of their actions.
These three elements are interconnected. Character influences attitudes, which predispose individuals to certain acts. Acts are explained by attitudes and character, and attitudes are formed through repeated acts. Human beings have the responsibility to shape their character through their actions, but are also influenced by biological, social, and psychological factors.
Norms, Values, and Conscience
Norms: Rules that guide actions towards what is preferable. They have both social and personal dimensions.
Values: Principles that inform the application of rules. Values can be rigid (absolute and untouchable) or flexible (adaptable to circumstances).
Conscience: The internalization of norms and values, guiding moral judgment.
Ethical Theories
Moral Intellectualism (Socrates): Knowing what is good leads to doing good.
Eudaimonism (Aristotle): The ultimate goal is happiness, understood as a contemplative life focused on reason.
Hedonism (Cyrenaics, Epicureans): Pleasure is the ultimate good, whether bodily pleasure or the absence of pain.
Stoicism: Emphasizes detachment from external pleasures and pains, focusing on austerity and self-control.
Formalism (Kant): Moral rules should have universal validity, rejecting ethics based on specific goods.
Emotivism (Hume): Moral judgments are based on feelings and emotions.
Utilitarianism (Bentham, Mill): Actions should maximize happiness and pleasure, focusing on the greatest good for the greatest number of people.
Discourse Ethics: Focuses on the procedures for determining valid moral rules, emphasizing duty and communication.