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Conscience: Secular approaches

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Presentation on theme: "Conscience: Secular approaches"— Presentation transcript:

1 Conscience: Secular approaches

2 Secular view of conscience
There is no supernatural entity called conscience. It is a psychological construct.

3 Secular view of conscience: key thinkers
Sigmund Freud: Austrian neurologist and the father of psychoanalysis. Jean Piaget: Swiss developmental psychologist and philosopher known for his epistemological studies with children.

4 Secular view of conscience: key thinkers
Lawrence Kohlberg ( ): American psychologist best known for his theory of stages of moral development. Eric Fromm ( ): German social psychologist, psychoanalyst, sociologist, humanistic philosopher, and democratic socialist.

5 Sigmund Freud “The Outline of Psychoanalysis” (1949): the human psyche is inspired by powerful instinctive desires that demand satisfaction. Freud identified 3 stages in the moral development of a human being: the id; the ego and the superego. ‘Conscience is the internal perception of the rejection of a particular wish operating within us.’

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7 The mind is mechanistic
Id The unconscious/ irrational self; drives, repressed memories. Super-Ego Last to develop. Stores rules and morals embedded by authority figures. Ego The conscious/ rational self, perceived by the outside world. Negotiates between the Id and Superego.

8 Sigmund Freud (1856 – 1939) Super-ego initialises the disapproval of others and creates guilt. Conscience is a psychological construct associated with religious/ secular authority. Moral Codes are shaped by experience.

9 Sigmund Freud (1856 – 1939) The sense of moral obligation grows into an internal force. There is no thought or reflection. Moral behaviour is learned and observed, so action is never free.

10 Development of the Conscience
Jean Piaget (1896 – 1980) Development of the Conscience Piaget – A child’s moral development grows and the ability to reason morally depends on cognitive development.

11 Stages of moral development
Jean Piaget (1896 – 1980) Stages of moral development 1. Heteronomous morality Consequentialist Rules must not be broken There are punishments

12 Jean Piaget (1896 – 1980) 2. Autonomous morality Self-determined rules
Social cohesion Less dependence on others for guidance

13 Lawrence Kohlberg – Development of Conscience
Level 1 (Pre-Conventional) 1. Obedience and punishment orientation How can I avoid punishment? 2. Self-interest orientation What's in it for me?

14 Lawrence Kohlberg – Development of Conscience
Level 2 (Conventional) 3. Interpersonal accord and conformity Social norms; the good boy attitude 4. Authority and social-order maintaining orientation Law and order morality

15 Lawrence Kohlberg – Development of Conscience
Level 3 (Post-Conventional) 5. Social contract orientation 6. Universal ethical principles

16 Authoritarian Conscience
Erich Fromm (1900 – 1980) Authoritarian Conscience We are all influenced by external authorities. Religion or Government. Individuals internalise these rules. Conscience is subjective. Guilty Conscience = displeasing the authority. If the authority is God?

17 Authoritarian Conscience
Erich Fromm (1900 – 1980) Authoritarian Conscience Disobedience  Guilt Guilt  Weakens Power Weakness  Submission to authority Consider the Nazi Government’s manipulation of the Germans. Fromm escaped from Nazi Germany.

18 The Humanistic Conscience
Erich Fromm (1900 – 1980) The Humanistic Conscience We assess and evaluate our own behaviour. Our conscience judges how successful we are as people and leads us to realise our potential.

19 Jeremy Bentham “Fanaticism never sleeps… it is never stopped by conscience; for it has pressed conscience into its service.”

20 Essay on Conscience Deadline: Wednesday 22nd February CHOICE OF TITLE
Critically assess the claim that conscience is the voice of God. OR ‘Ethics comes from the human mind not from God.’ Discuss.


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