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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/87599
Description
Title
Nature and Origin of Moral Agency in Mammalia
Author(s)
Reid, Mark D.
Issue Date
2006
Doctoral Committee Chair(s)
James Wallace
Department of Study
Philosophy
Discipline
Philosophy
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Degree Level
Dissertation
Keyword(s)
Philosophy
Language
eng
Abstract
Moral philosophers often claim that animals lack the basic capacities needed for morality. However, with no account that states the minimal requirements for being a moral agent, that claim is vulnerable. After developing such an account, the dissertation shows that many species of mammals satisfy the minimal requirements for moral agency---specialized emotional capacities that emerge from early attachment processes and motivate moral behavior in humans and other mammals. Additionally, the absence of these emotional capacities explains the absence of moral agency---psychopathy, in humans and other mammals. Making a clear case that mammals possess moral agency has importance for philosophical ethics, philosophical psychology, empirical thought and research, and societal beliefs and practices.
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