PHI 336—The Science of Morals

This course provides an overview of the science of morals - also known as empirical moral psychology - which is the empirical study of moral reasoning, judgment, and behavior. An interdisciplinary field that combines philosophical theorizing with the methods and tools of the behavioral sciences, the science of morals carefully examines the ways in which people reason about morality, make moral judgments about other people’s behavior, and do things that are moral or immoral. The goal of the science of morals is to understand why we think some actions or character traits are moral or immoral and why we construct and enforce moral norms that govern individual and collective behavior.