Leveraging a Sturdy Norm: How Ethicists Really Argue.

Area of Science:

• Philosophy
• Ethics
• Moral Philosophy

Background:

• Everyday ethical discussions seldom reference formal ethical theories.
• Even professional ethicists infrequently utilize comprehensive ethical theories in their arguments.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explain how ethical arguments can be successful without explicit reliance on ethical theories.
• To propose an alternative model for ethical argumentation based on specific norms.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of the argumentative structure in five influential ethics articles.
• Examination of the relationship between norm-based argumentation and ethical justification models.

Main Results:

• Powerful ethical arguments often leverage specific, sturdy norms instead of general ethical theories.
• The proposed model of norm-based ethical argumentation is compatible with the coherence model of ethical justification.

Conclusions:

• Ethical argumentation can be effective by focusing on specific norms, which are more practical than broad theories.
• Explicitly invoking comprehensive ethical theories is often unnecessary and potentially detrimental to practical ethical discourse.