The Moral Agent

The Moral Agent

Outline:
I. Role of Culture in Moral Behavior
a) How does Culture shape Moral Behavior?
b) Cultural Relativism vs. Universal Moral Values
c) Filipino Cultural Values
II. Moral Character and Virtues
a) Character
b) Interplay between Moral Character and Virtue
III. Stages of Moral Development
a) Piaget’s Stages of Moral Development
b) Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development
Role of Culture in Moral Behavior
• Culture is a manner of looking at reality by a
certain group of people, in a certain place, and in
a certain time in history.

• Culture consists of the way people relate to the

world through basic assumptions and images
which would more or less give them a coherent
view of reality they experience.
Role of Culture in Moral Behavior
• Culture involves the following:
a) material living (dress, housing and architecture);
b) way of behaving (customary manners and conduct);
c) way of speaking (language use);
d) way of thinking (thought processes);
e) way of feeling (shared psychology);
f) way of meaning (arts and symbols);
g) way of believing, valuing and meaning (views of life
and attitudes).
Role of Culture in Moral Behavior
• Human culture is a unique meaning and information
system, shared by a group and transmitted across
generations, that allows the group to meet basic needs
of survival, coordinate socially to achieve a viable
existence, transmit social behavior, pursue happiness and
well-being, and derive meaning from life.

• Since every culture is a carrier of a community’s social

practices and beliefs, the moral behavior and values are
also passed on from generation to the next.
How does Culture shape Moral Behavior?
• Within culture are moral codes that are practiced through social
behavior.

• Culture has its own ideas of what is considered right or wrong, and
what is regarded as good or bad.

• Moral codes are a set of rules or guidelines that a person or group

follows in order to live a just and good life.

• Moral codes are heavily dependent upon culture.

• Moral codes dictate many aspects of our lives, from how we act with
different age groups, to how we dress, and even how we treat other
people.
How does Culture shape Moral Behavior?

Culture defines who we are as human persons. It is

our identity. Who we are can be seen through how we
think, act, and behave, and what we consider as right
or wrong and good or bad. Who we are is manifested
through our behavior. One great factor that shapes
our behavior is our Culture.
Cultural Relativism vs. Universal Values
• Cultural relativism claims that ethical truths are
relative. The rightness of an action and the goodness
of an object depend on or consist in the attitude taken
towards it by some individual or group, and hence may
vary from individual to individual or from group to
group.

• Cultural relativism suggests that the terms right and

wrong are completely dictated by the culture that they
are being used in. A person’s actions should be looked
at with all things taken into account, especially the
religion and culture that they grew up in.
Cultural Relativism vs. Universal Values
• Universal human values are those ideals that we
believe should be privileged and promoted in the
lives of all human beings regardless of the
differing cultures and societies where we grew up.

• All societies must embrace a universal set of

moral rules or standards that are necessary for
society to exist.
 Cultural Relativism
• Morality/ethical truths are
relative.

• Morality/ethical truths are

subjective.
 Universal Values
• Morality/ethical truths are
standard.

• Morality/ethical truths are

objective.
Filipino Cultural and Moral Values
Filipino Cultural and Moral Values
Moral Character and Virtues
Moral Virtue
• Rests upon an individual’s moral character.
Moral Character
• dispositions of both the heart and mind to do
virtuous acts.
Character
• One cannot simply separate one’s character from
one’s choice of actions. Every action carries with
it an imprint or a stamp of his character.
Character affects one’s maturity in such a way
that it determines the kind of moral choices one
makes and the kind of person he ought to be.

• One’s character is one’s identity. One’s identity is

manifested by one’s actions and choices.

• A human person’s character is defined by what is

within and not based on material and physical
considerations.
Interplay between
Character and Virtues

Virtues-Aristotle.pptx
Stages of Moral Development

• Moral development refers to the process

whereby an individual form a progressive sense
of what is right and wrong, proper and
improper.

• Piaget and Kohlberg are two leading

psychologists who theorized that our moral
sense develops progressively.
Piaget’s Stages of Moral Development
Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development
 “Watch your thoughts; they become words.
Watch your words, they become actions.
Watch your actions; they become habits.
Watch your habits; they become character.
Watch your character; it becomes your destiny.”