The Theory Of Effective Altruism - 968 Words

Effective altruism is a movement that focused on both the heart and the head. It allows people to feel empathy towards others and use reason to make a decision that is â€Å"effective and well-directed.† Peter Singer, a moral philosopher, addresses an audience in a TED talk regarding effective altruism and personal obligation towards others. His effective altruism relates closely to the ethical framework of utilitarianism as well as deontology of philosopher Immanuel Kant. Peter Singer’s idea of effective altruism follows greatly from his commitment to utilitarianism. Utilitarianism is an ethical theory that claims that an action is moral only if it maximizes utility, or happiness, for the collective good. In his TED talk, Singer uses several examples of effective altruism that follow his commitment to utilitarianism. One of the main concerns related to effective altruism that he addresses is the overall effectiveness of certain charities and this relates to his commitm ent to utilitarianism. One example that he used was related to providing a blind American person with a trained service dog. These dogs cost about $40,000 to train and they benefit one person. However, with that same amount of money, somewhere between 400 and 2,000 people living with trachoma in developing countries could have been cured of their blindness. In this case, Singer would argue that providing a service dog to a blind American would not be ethical because it does not provide the greatest amount ofShow MoreRelatedKant And Kant s Theory1368 Words   |  6 Pagesone also needs to consider whether his / her actions respect the human being goals or just merely using them for own selfish ambitions. In addition, if no is the answer, then such action should not be undertaken. Kant’s theory is a good example of the deontological moral theory, which takes that the rightness, as well as wrongness of an action, depends on the fulfillment of our duties and not on their consequences. Kant further believed that there exist a supreme principle of morality which he categorizedRead More1. Introduction Altruism is unselfish regard for or devotion to the welfare of others; behaviour by1700 Words   |  7 Pages1. Introduction Altruism is unselfish regard for or devotion to the welfare of others; behaviour by an animal that is not beneficial to or may be harmful to itself but that benefits others of its species. (Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, n.d.) We often may feel like we are doing something to benefit others, but consider Darwinian evolution, which is the theory according to which species evolve by natural selection - the basic mechanism of evolution whereby those individuals in a population thatRead MoreEvolution and Moral Truths Essay1399 Words   |  6 Pagesmorals come directly from God and can not be proven by physical and earthly means such as evolution. This paper will examine the opposing idea, which states that evolution does in fact provide evidence for morality and that moral truths can back up the theory of evolution. In order to fully examine this argument, it must first be determined what moral and absolute truths are. Attempting to define absolute truths is quite difficult. In today’s culture, it is often confused with relative truth. The ideaRead MoreThe Salience Of Humanity And Self Actualized People1359 Words   |  6 Pageshypothesize that humanity is salient in self-actualized people. Regard-ing perceived similarity, perhaps some people see themselves as being similar to most every-one, therefore have less reliance on stereotypes and schemas. Empathy A central element of altruism is empathy, involving affective, cognitive, and neuro-physiological processes. Three key components of empathy are personal distress, empathic concern, and perspective taking (Habashi, Graziano, Hoover, 2016). Personal distress is self-centeredRead MoreOrganizational Citizenship Behavior Is Defined As A Set Of Behaviors1669 Words   |  7 PagesThey presented their genuine theories that was further carried by a number of researchers like Podsakoff and Mackenzie in 1993, Jhangir et al., in the year of 2004, Khalid and Ali in 2005. In 1983, researcher named as Smith et al., specified two basic dimensions of organizational citizenship behavior which are known as altruism and generalized compliance. But later on in 1988, Organ identified five dimensions of Organizational citizenship behavior named as altruism, sportsmanship, conscientiousnessRead MoreRoles And Values Within The Profession Of Nursing969 Words   |  4 Pagesdifferent roles in the nursing profession is the fact that they each rely on nursing research, theories, and evidence based practice to provide safe, quality care to patients. Without nursing research, theories, and evidence based practice, nursing care would be based on trial and error methods that often cause more harm than good to the patient. As a provider of care, professional nurses depend on research, theories, and evidence based practice to guide the care they provide to patients. Nurses deliverRead MoreAltruism : David Sloan Wilson1960 Words   |  8 PagesIntroduction The subject of altruism has a long history of contention amongst academic researchers and religious scholars alike. The term itself originated in the 19th century, first coined by French philosopher, Auguste Comte. Since then however, there have been many different theories and evaluations regarding altruism. David Sloan Wilson, a distinguished Professor of Biological Sciences and Anthropology at Binghamton University, has attempted to provide a new insight into this topic, using hisRead MoreThe Importance Of Professionalism At A Physical Therapy Degree Program944 Words   |  4 Pagesphysical therapy degree program I am asked to define professionalism. Professionalism, according to the American Physical Therapy Association, is broken down into five core values: integrity, accountability, excellence, compassion and caring, and altruism.1 Each of these core values are equally important and will be discussed in the following paragraphs. Integrity is the first core value and one that I deem to be most important. Integrity is honesty with yourself and the people with which my educationRead MoreSelfish Relations : An Evolutionary Explanation Of Altruistic Behaviors1528 Words   |  7 Pagesbenefits. This idea can be supported by examples of reciprocity, altruistic punishment, and Malthusianism. This discourse will also discuss whether â€Å"true altruism† exists, and that if cooperation is to be associated with altruistic behavior then the only explanatory model possible for its emergence is via group selection, which indicates that altruism is an insipidly evolved trait. There are very clear benefits to cooperative behavior, especially for exceptionally social species like humans. SelfishRead MoreConsequentialism Essay1566 Words   |  7 Pages2006). The three sub-categories of consequentialism are altruism, utilitarianism and egoism. Altruism is when the actions of a person promote the best consequences for others, yet do not benefit the person who performed the act. Abruzzi and McGandy (2006) explain that Auguste Comte developed the term to support his ethical stance that humans are morally obliged to serve the interests of others, even at their own expense. From an altruism perspective the teacher should take her need to be employed