Are We Sending Mixed Messages? How Philosophical Naturalism Erodes Ethical Instruction

Abstract

accountability, conscience, ethics instruction, materialism, metaphysics, moral standards, naturalism, substance dualism,

Evolutionary constructivism and humanistic psychology.

“…Naturalistic approaches generally restrict understanding to natural events and processes while minimizing or disavowing explanations that invoke God and the supernatural (Slife & Reber, 2009). Naturalism has come in for extensive criticism in psychology, not only for its perceived antitheistic bias (Slife & Reber, 2009), but also for its tendency to minimize human agency and reframe ethics as emergent from natural properties of the world (Cooper, 2007; Racine, 2008). However, Racine's (2008) identification of various “waves” of naturalism potentially addresses some of these concerns.…”

Strengthening College Students’ Confidence in Their Ethical Reasoning Ability

“…The research literature asserts that ethics instruction must extend beyond ethical issue identification to include practice in ethical reasoning and actually making ethical decisions (Cooper, 2007;Poff, 2007). Ethical reasoning curricula provides a domain of study that fosters students' abilities to evaluate their own values and beliefs, think critically about ethical issues, and apply an ethical reasoning process to generate sound decisions.…”

“…Ethical reasoning skills entail students assessing their ethical values and considering how differing ethical perspectives and contexts can be leveraged to better understand and resolve ethical dilemmas (Association of American Colleges and Universities [AAC&U], 2009). The research literature shows that awareness of these ethical challenges is not sufficient preparation and that college students must be taught the skills to make ethical decisions (Cooper, 2007;Poff, 2007). The Association of American Colleges and Universities' (AAC&U) Liberal Education and America's Promise (LEAP) national public advocacy initiative identifies ethical reasoning skills as an essential learning outcome of college attendance (AAC&U, 2007;AAC&U, 2009).…”