Social Contract Theory and Virtue Ethics

Ethical Frameworks CS-3111 Computer Ethics

? 2018 James Allert All rights Reserved

Social Contract Theory and Virtue Ethics

Ethical Framework #6: Social Contract Theory

Often called "Contractualism" or "Contractarianism" Based on social contract theory of Thomas Hobbes, Jean Jacques Rousseau and

John Locke.

Social life is unorganized and dangerous without laws Hobbes: life without laws is "nasty, brutish and short."

To insure that it's members survive, social groups organize themselves based on a

number of rights and obligations their members recognize

Primitive life without rights (in need of civilization) Primitive life without rights (the noble savage) Comparison

Do not look at the consequences of a decision to see if it was right Do not look at the universal moral imperatives to see if they were upheld Look instead at the social contract you have with others

If your decision violates that contract it is bad If your decision upholds the contract it is good The contract specifies What the rights are (given you by the society/government) What the obligations are To be ethical, a decision must not trample on the rights of others

The social contract Where does the contract come from?

Inalienable rights Consent of the governed

Positive and Negative Rights

 A `right' is an entitlement or claim to something Negative rights ? the right to be left alone and not interfered with. Lots of these

in US Constitution.

Freedom of speech Right to own property Right of privacy Right to not have email monitored by the NSA? Positive rights ? the right to be provided with something Right to medical care Right to education Right to Internet access?

Where do rights come from?

Society is held together informally by arrangements of universal human rights

(inalienable rights) that exist regardless of governments.

However, governments can help by specifically identifying the rights of their

citizens. Consent of the governed

The first 10 amendments to the U.S. Constitution make up the Bill of Rights. They were written by James Madison in response to calls from several states for

greater constitutional protection for individual liberties.

The Bill of Rights lists specific prohibitions on governmental power (negative

rights).

US Bill of Rights US Bill of Rights Canadian Bill of Rights Fundamental Rights of India Rights in China The Social Contract

Life is grounded in a "social contract" Without this contract society lapses back into anarchy Society provides protection for individual rights (like life, liberty and property) in

return for obedience to rules of law.

Contractualism is all about respecting the legal and moral rights of others

 The challenge is in determining how far each right extends Example: Free speech

A More Recent Version

John Rawls' Theory of Justice Addresses "inalienable rights" The right actions are those that are consistent with the principles of justice and

fairness

Whether a person has a legal right or not, they may still have a universal moral

right to something

Rawls's Theory of Justice

How do we determine what is just and fair? Every nation may define fairness differently in their laws There are universal principles that tell us. Principles of justice are those which equal, rational, self-interested individuals

would choose for themselves.

The "veil of ignorance" The "veil of ignorance" The "veil of ignorance" The Veil of Ignorance Veil of Ignorance Top 10 List of Rights Rawls's Theory of Justice

Principle 1: Each person is to have an equal right to the most extensive total

system of equal basic liberties compatible with a similar system of equal liberty for all

Principle 2: Social and economic inequalities are to be arranged so that the least advantaged get the most benefits

Example: free education, free healthcare, etc.

offices and positions are open to all, fairly and equally

31 Articles in the Universal Human Rights Article 1

 All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood. Article 2

Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.

Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty. Article 3

Everyone has the right to life, liberty and the security of person.

Article 4

No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms. Article 5

No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. Article 6

Everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law.

Examples of rights that might apply to computing

Personal rights Right to privacy Right to data confidentiality Right to control over personal data dissemination Right to data accuracy Right to data security

Corporation rights Right to property (including information)

The Case For Social Contract Theory

 It is framed in the language of rights It is based on a solid understanding of human nature: rational people act out of

self-interest if there is no common agreement

It explains why, under certain circumstances, civil disobedience can be the

morally right decision (if laws are at odds with human rights)

None of us signed any "social contract" Some actions can be characterized in multiple ways (lawsuits argue rights on

both sides)

How do you solve situations with conflicting rights?

Spam is free speech Spam is invasion of privacy

The social contract might not work in your favor.

If healthcare is not included in the social contract then... Bankrupted by health problem? Too bad. You may need to sell your home,

property, etc. and live in poverty the rest of your life.

What about this one? Case Study: Employee Email

A corporation has to make a policy decision about random inspection of

employee email

This is legal but seems to invade employee privacy Managers face three options

Keep email confidential Inspect email with employees informed of the policy Inspect email surreptitiously

Which option is the best one? Analyze the situation using a social contract theory approach to guide your

decision Conventional social contract theory analysis

Companies have the legal right to monitor employee email. So they can do it if

they so choose.

Employees have no Constitutionally-protected right to privacy and furthermore

they have an employment obligation to not use company assets for their personal business.

 So there is no ethical quandary here. The company has a right to do whatever

they like. Workers gave up those rights to privacy when they signed on.

Rawl's rights-based analysis

What would we say about this from behind the veil?

Rawl's analysis

Companies have the legal right to monitor employee email. So they can do it if

they so choose.

Employees have a more fundamental right to privacy. So monitoring email would be unjust unless the employees willingly gave up that

right.

From behind the veil of ignorance we might have made rules that said

"If you create something it belongs to you." "Nobody can look at another person's stuff without getting permission."

Ethical Frameworks Ethical Framework #7: Virtue Ethics

It is not about acting in a right way it is really about being in a right way Virtues are about who we are at our core. We should act the way a virtuous

person would.

The right action is the action that a virtuous person (role model) would do in the same circumstances. WWJD

A virtuous person is one who possesses and lives out the virtues The virtues are those character traits human beings need in order to flourish and

be truly happy

Virtue

Acting virtuously ---that is, acting in accordance with reason---is acting in the

way characteristic of the nature of human beings and this will lead to happiness.

The good life for humans is the life of virtue and therefore it is in our interest to

be virtuous.

 Virtue is its own reward. The virtues realize our capacity for rationality and therefore contribute to our

well-being and perfection in that sense. Virtue in action Comparisons

Suppose it is obvious that someone in need should be helped.

A utilitarian will point to the fact that the consequences of doing so will

maximize well-being,

A deontologist will point to the fact that, in doing so the agent will be

acting in accordance with a moral rule such as "Do unto others as you would be done by"

A virtue ethicist will point to the fact that in helping the person we would

be living in a virtuous manner (helping ourselves to become more virtuous). Aristotle's Foundational Beliefs

Every action aims at some good result. Aristotle claims that all the things that are ends in themselves also contribute to

a wider end, an end that is the greatest good of all.

For example, the knife has a function, to cut, and it performs its function

well when it cuts well.

Each person has a function and the good person is the person who performs

that function well. What about this one? Case Study: Employee Email

A corporation has to make a policy decision about random inspection of

employee email

This is legal but seems to invade employee privacy Managers face three options

Keep email confidential Inspect email with employees informed of the policy Inspect email surreptitiously

Which option is the best one? Analyze the situation using a virtue ethics approach to guide your decision

Analysis

A good person will not read another person's email

Not because it maximizes happiness

 Not because it treats others the way you want to be treated But because they are being good by not doing it.

The ethical decision flows from the virtue of goodness within the person making

the decision. Aristotle's List of Moral Virtues 1. Courage in the face of fear 2. Temperance in the face of pleasure and pain 3. Liberality with wealth and possessions 4. Magnificence with great wealth and possessions 5. Magnanimity with great honors 6. Proper ambition with normal honors 7. Truthfulness with self-expression 8. Wittiness in conversation 9. Friendliness in social conduct 10. Modesty in the face of shame or shamelessness 11. Righteous indignation in the face of injury

Aristotle and the Virtuous Life

Scouts Honor Confucius

To practice five things under all circumstances constitutes perfect virtue

Gravity Generosity of soul Sincerity Earnestness Kindness

Instantiation Instantiation Instantiation The Case For Virtue Ethics

In many cases it makes more sense to focus on virtues rather than duties, rights

or consequences

Living up to a standard rather than analyzing situations Patriotism

It factors personal feelings into decision-making It recognizes that our moral decision-making skills can develop over time as we

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