Classical ethical positions and their relevance in justifying behavior: A model of prescriptive attribution

Abstract

This paper separates empirical research on ethics from classical research on
morality and relates it to other central questions of social psychology and sociology,
e.g., values, culture, justice, attribution. In addition, reference is made to some
founding studies of ethical research and its historical development. Based on this
line of tradition the development of prescriptive attribution research is introduced,
which concentrates on the justification of actions by weighting the importance of
the four classical ethical positions, hedonism, intuitionism, utilitarianism and deontology,
as to why it was "good" or "right" that an action is performed. Six empirical
studies are discussed, the first, using a questionnaire based on the four positions
reveals marked differences in the justifications given by East and West German
workers regarding their work performance. The East Germans tend more towards
collectivism, weighting the utilitarian and deontological positions more
highly. The second study makes use of a content analytical technique, and concentrates
on the difference between the justifications of various professional
groups. Economists, doctors and lawyers are asked to justify the introduction of a
human germ-cell therapy. Economists are more hedonistic than the other two
professional groups, who are more utilitarian and deontological
The third study, based on a questionnaire, compares East and West German
opinion as to whether it is right to remain in a close partnership (marriage) with
interpersonal conflicts or whether it is right to dissolve the relationship. In this
study, too, the justifications based on utilitarianism and deontology are given
precedence by East German subjects, whereas hedonism is more important for
West German respondents. After this regional comparison, the fourth study compares
the justifications of a more collectivist (ROK) with a more individualistic
culture (Germany). Here the difef rences reveal a greater importance of consequentialism
(hedonism, utilitarianism) in the individualistic culture (Germany)
and a greater weighting of the rule-directed position (d eontology) in the collectivist
culture (ROK). No difef rences are apparent regarding the intuitionist position.
The fifth and sixth studies use a content analytic approach to investigate the
justifications of social behavior found in newspapers and prescriptions in the ethical
standards of scientific societies. This resulted in an inverse relation between
utilitarian and deontological arguments: 2 vs. 1 in newspapers and 1 vs. 2 in ethical
standards.
To summarize, one could say that a deeper understanding of explanations
leads towards the classical de-scriptive attribution theories, whilst a deeper understanding
of the energizing forces behind an action lead towards the concept of empirical
prescriptive attribution research as proposed here.