Civics Polity

Ethical Theories and Philosophy

2,306 Questions

Ethical theories and philosophy explore concepts such as Kantianism, virtue ethics, and altruism. This area examines how moral compasses are developed and how individual conscience guides decision making. It forms a vital part of general studies and civil services aptitude tests.

Kantian ethicsVirtue ethicsMoral developmentAltruism theoriesJustice and fairness

Ethical Theories and Philosophy Questions

Multiple choice

Many codes/rules were created and must be religiously followed by humans refer to

  1. Moral relativism

  2. Classical or Act Utilitarianism

  3. Rule Utilitarianism

  4. Moral objectivism
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Moral objectivism is the position that moral truths exist independently of subjective human opinions or beliefs. Under this view, certain moral codes or rules are objective and must be followed universally by humans. Rule utilitarianism, by contrast, focuses on rules that maximize utility, while moral relativism asserts that morals are subjective.

Multiple choice

considers certain acts as objectively right or wrong, independent of human opinion

  1. Moral relativism

  2. Classical or Act Utilitarianism

  3. Moral objectivism

  4. Rule Utilitarianism
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Moral objectivism is the ethical position that moral principles are objectively valid and true, independent of individual or cultural human opinions. This contrasts with moral relativism, which holds that morals are subjective and culturally defined, and utilitarianism, which bases morality on the consequences of actions.

Multiple choice

Ethos is Greek for:

  1. values

  2. character

  3. morals

  4. ethics
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

The Greek word "ethos" originally means "character" or "custom." It is used in rhetoric to refer to the credibility or ethical appeal of a speaker, which is rooted in their character.

Multiple choice

In Ethical Egoism, “ego” is Latin for:

  1. one’s fulfillment

  2. one’s goals

  3. one’s beliefs

  4. one’s self
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

In Latin, "ego" translates directly to "I" or "self." Ethical egoism is the normative ethical position that moral agents ought to act in their own self-interest.

Multiple choice

It introduces the principle of universalizability and emphasises on respect for persons.

  1. John Rawls’s Egalitarian

  2. Aristotle’s Virtue Ethics Theory

  3. Utilitarian Theory of Ethics

  4. Kant’s Ethics of Duty Theory
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Immanuel Kant's deontological ethics centers on the Categorical Imperative, which includes the formula of universal law (universalizability) and the formula of humanity (treating people as ends in themselves, which is respect for persons).

Multiple choice

believed that reasons alone can give us the absolute moral truth and discover our sense of duty

  1. Aristotle’s Virtue

  2. Kant’s Ethics

  3. John Rawls’s Egalitarian

  4. Utilitarian Theory
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Immanuel Kant argued that moral truths and duties can be discovered purely through rational thought (reason) rather than through empirical observation or emotional desires. This rationalist approach forms the basis of his deontological ethics.

Multiple choice

It judges an action to be right by virtue of the consequences of performing that action.

  1. Classical or Act Utilitarianism

  2. Rule Utilitarianism

  3. 1st Categorical Imperative

  4. 2nd Categorical Imperative
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Act utilitarianism (or classical utilitarianism) evaluates the morality of each individual action based solely on the specific consequences produced by that action. In contrast, rule utilitarianism evaluates actions based on whether they conform to general rules that lead to good consequences.

Multiple choice

another term for consequential based ethical theories

  1. deontological

  2. meta-ethics

  3. normative

  4. teleological
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Teleological ethical theories (from the Greek 'telos', meaning end or purpose) determine the moral worth of an action based on its outcomes or consequences. Consequentialism is the primary modern form of teleological ethics.

Multiple choice

the view that what is right or wrong is not absolute

  1. moral objectivism

  2. utilitarianism

  3. Kant's ethics

  4. moral relativism
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Moral relativism is the view that moral judgments are relative to social, cultural, historical, or personal circumstances, rather than being absolute or universally applicable.

Multiple choice

What is the term for the belief that humans have a moral responsibility to care for the environment?

  1. Environmental stewardship

  2. Ecocentrism

  3. Biocentrism

  4. Anthropocentrism
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Environmental stewardship is the belief that humans have a responsibility to manage the environment in a way that ensures its sustainability for future generations.

Multiple choice

What is the term for the belief that all living things have inherent value, regardless of their usefulness to humans?

  1. Biocentrism

  2. Ecocentrism

  3. Anthropocentrism

  4. Environmental stewardship
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Biocentrism is the belief that all living things have inherent value, regardless of their usefulness to humans.