It should be like this: what is morality and how does it change over time?

Do you often encounter a situation where something is not prohibited, but it is better not to do it? When there are no legal prohibitions, only two restrictions apply: the laws of physics and moral standards.

Today we will discuss the rules and norms of public morality, we will understand what it is and why society needs it. Our “Cognitive Science” and “Self-Knowledge” programs will help you, which will teach you to think and act in such a way as to achieve success using environmentally friendly methods, without violating the rules of morality and legal norms.

So let's get started!

Definition of moral principles

In other words, moral principles are requirements that must be strictly followed in all life situations.

The formation of moral principles is strongly influenced by upbringing, family relationships, religion, environment, and culture. What seemed unacceptable and reprehensible some time ago may become the norm and not cause condemnation. And vice versa: some things that were considered ordinary may become completely unacceptable.

It is moral principles that allow a person to choose the right path in life and influence decision-making in accordance with his conscience throughout his life, giving him a general direction for his activities.

Every person goes through several stages of moral development at different stages of his life, and his own moral principles can change under the influence of external factors.

Moral principles are something that is formed and can change throughout life, is relevant for a particular society and for each person separately, without these principles the existence of a harmonious society is impossible.

Affect exit

Kohlberg, as a supporter of the rational approach, connected moral development with logical development: the higher our cognitive level and the more complex our inferences, the closer we are to the top of that same ladder of six steps.

Today, a number of researchers who study morality take a different position and believe that our reasoning is based not on rational arguments, but on emotions. Sometimes we even use logic to rationally and shamelessly justify an action committed intuitively. Such cases of “moral confusion” have been shown in experiments where participants solved an ethical dilemma straight away, and then spent a long, long time trying to explain how the hell they did it.

In fact, both factors matter—feelings and reasoning. The difference is in the approaches: rationalist scientists focus on cognitions (this or that behavior is primarily a “product” of thinking), while “intuitionists” believe that the main thing is a feeling, an erupted emotion.

It is clear that the second approach will not gain popularity in pedagogy and education. Forming an emotional reaction is more difficult than teaching someone to cheerfully talk about rays of light in a dark kingdom.

History of the term "morality"

It is impossible to say exactly when society first began to think about what morality is.

The earliest source that describes this concept is the parables of Solomon (mid-10th century BC). During Homer's life, society was well aware of conscience, virtue, honor, and legality.

Confucius (6th–5th centuries BC) wrote about issues of morality and morality, who considered mercy, philanthropy and integrity to be the most important universal values.

Cicero made a great contribution to the formation of the concept of morality. He talked a lot about how ethics, morality and law relate to each other. He sought to show that it is impossible to separate the concepts of law and morality, since together they make it possible to rid society of chaos and create order. Of course, Cicero, who lived in the 1st century BC, was far from a pioneer on this topic. But it was he who introduced the definition of morality that we still rely on today.

Pythagoras, Socrates and Plato also raised questions of morality in their contemporary society and gave examples of highly moral behavior by the standards of that time.

The term “morality” originates from the Latin moralitas, moralis, mores - tradition, folk custom, behavior, and later - disposition, character, mores. Ancient Roman authors translated the word as “conformity to good morals.” In the 18th century, a similar word was used in French and meant “equal to the law, legitimate.” The word “morality” also came into Russian through French (la morale) in the 18th century.

Approaches to understanding morality

There are four approaches to understanding morality:

1. Religious. Its adherents believed that the source of morality is the absolute. To curb his passions, a person is forced to turn to God for help. Faith in him helps to follow the absolute rules of behavior.
2. Evolutionary. In the process of natural selection, a person acquires and inherits a certain line of behavior. According to this version, morality comes from the instinct of sociability of people.
3. Naturalistic. The root cause of morality is nature. The human mind defines natural moral values ​​as good or evil.
4. Cultural. Morality is one of the elements of society's culture.

Video

Coffee capsule Nescafe Dolce Gusto Cappuccino, 3 packs of 16 capsules

1305 ₽ More details

Coffee capsules Nescafe Dolce Gusto Cappuccino, 8 servings (16 capsules)

435 ₽ More details

Sigma Lenses for Sony

Basic functions of morality

Morality performs the following functions:

• The integrative function of morality is to harmonize the internal state of a person.
• The evaluative function of morality is associated with a person’s ability to determine the criteria for his own and others’ actions based on the concepts of good and evil. Moral assessment is expressed in praise, blame, agreement, etc.
• The regulatory function of morality determines activities taking into account the needs of surrounding people and the entire society. Morality establishes social norms to be observed, imposes sanctions, and maintains rules of behavior.
• The controlling function of morality is checking the compliance of a person’s behavior with the norms established in society. Self-control based on the judgment of others or conscience.
• The educational function of morality is a mechanism for learning to live in society: how to learn to reckon with other people. Morality teaches us to understand and accept their needs and interests, shapes the individual’s personality, his worldview and personal concepts of good and evil.
• The value-orienting function of morality forms life values ​​and moral goals for each person, lays down the concept of the meaning of life.

About increasing complexity

It's nice to feel good and moral. Don't steal, don't lie, eat healthy food... (oh, no, that's different), don't kill - these are obvious truths!

Today, however, life constantly forces us to make increasingly difficult choices: neither the biblical sages, nor Aristotle, nor Kant had to think about genetic experiments, feminist scandals or the ethically questionable production of Chinese sneakers.

The world is becoming too fast and complex, and it is no longer possible to use the Ten Commandments, unambiguous virtues or an imperative formulated once and for all as a universal tool and guide to action. Representatives of different eras, nationalities and even social groups evaluate many phenomena far from the same. It is enough to remember how attitudes towards euthanasia, abortion, contraception, religious intolerance, gender scripts or hierarchy change, and the seemingly indestructible monolith of moral principles shatters into small fragments.

Research shows that our moral paradigms are not static. Thus, Australian scientists analyzed the frequency and context of the use of “moral” terms in literature from 1900 to 2007. It turned out that some concepts become extremely popular in one era, and in another, humanity seems to forget about them. For example, ideas related to holiness and piety, as well as sin and pollution, almost disappeared from discourse by 1980, only to suddenly re-emerge closer to the 21st century.

Classification of moral principles

A person recognizes moral principles as behavior that determines the nature of relationships in society.

The following moral principles are distinguished:

• The principle of humanism is the highest human value, which is expressed in love for one’s neighbor, protection of dignity, recognition of the right to a happy existence and self-realization.
• The principle of altruism is a moral norm that calls for providing selfless support to those in need.
• The principle of collectivism is the possibility of coexistence to achieve a common goal. It consists of cooperation, mutual assistance, and democracy.
• The principle of justice is equal rights and freedoms for all members of society. Social and economic benefits are available to everyone without exception and are distributed depending on the amount of effort on the part of each person.
• The principle of mercy is the willingness to sympathize and help those who ask, regardless of social status and appearance.
• The principle of peacefulness is based on the recognition of human life as the highest value. It assumes respect for national and regional characteristics and state sovereignty. Peacefulness helps maintain social order and mutual understanding between generations.
• The principle of patriotism is love for the Motherland, care for it, readiness to defend it from enemies, pride in state achievements, respect for history and respect for national property.
• The principle of tolerance means respect, acceptance and correct understanding of the rich diversity of cultures of our world, forms of self-expression and ways of manifesting human individuality. In other words, accepting the diversity of cultures without the desire to suppress or correct them.

Moral principles of communication

Moral norms and principles in the context of communication:

• self-respect and showing respect to interlocutors;
• priority of other people's or public interests over personal ones;
• conscious avoidance of using life's benefits for the sake of achieving a set goal;
• tackling complex social problems and working under extreme conditions for higher goals or ideals;
• responsibility and free care for those in need;
• building relationships with members of society based on kindness and benevolence;
• recognition of the inviolability of the personal dignity of each person;
• politeness and respect for the interlocutor, the use of generally accepted ethical standards;
• communication is a two-way process, not a monologue, each participant contributes to it;
• equality of parties participating in communication, regardless of gender, age, social status;
• sincerity in expressing feelings, truthfulness of transmitted information;
• clarity and accessibility for all participants in communication;
• consistency and correct order of communication elements, for example, question-answer, encouragement to respond.

Does a primary school teacher have the moral right to earn extra money in the evenings at a strip club?

If you don’t like thinking about it, then you have high demands on teachers on the fifth point (cleanliness). Do native Muscovites have any preferences over visitors? This is about group membership and fairness. Should all residents of the area be required to help victims of domestic violence? A matter of care.

Everyone can evaluate their system of moral attitudes according to the five listed parameters and note whether changes occur over time and what factors influence this.

Science knows that the views of an entire society change from era to era. Thus, psychologists from the University of Melbourne have found that care, compassion and safety are more important to us now than forty years ago, and, for example, the value of respect for authority has noticeably decreased since the beginning of the 20th century.

So, moral imperatives should be considered intermediate results of cultural evolution. How can you develop the necessary qualities in yourself without waiting for the next social paradigm to change?

Lack of moral principles

A complete absence of moral principles is impossible - a person in any case has some idea of ​​​​what can and cannot be done. These ideas may differ significantly from those generally accepted in a particular society, then such a person may be called immoral. If a person stops developing his personality, stops setting goals and guidelines for himself, then he begins to degrade. Along with this, a regression of formed moral norms and rules begins.