An ideal moral observer

    A substantive ideal involves a description or sketch of the way something would be under ideal conditions. We might describe the ideal state, the ideal person, the ideal teacher and so on. A procedural ideal is different; it is not an attempt to tell what the end product will look like; it does not attempt to fix a goal. Instead, procedural ideals establish the ideal conditions under which choices can be made. We might, for example, have in mind an ideal way to select a president of a country. That ideal might not make reference to the kind of person we want to be President, only to the way a president is selected. In ethics, ideal procedures are sometimes used to help make moral choices. We might, for example, imagine an ideal moral agent, a disinterested (he or she should not have a personal stake in the outcome), rational, fully knowledgeable judge who is sympathetic yet objective. Perhaps no such observer exists. But we can speculate on what judgments an ideal observer might make. Suppose you know a great deal about antiques and go to a yard sale held by an older, poorer person who knows nearly nothing about them. Say that person wants to sell an item for $5 that you know is worth at least $500. Are you morally permitted to buy it at $5 or should you share your information? The buyer's opinion on this might be biased because the bargain is so tempting, so an attempt might be made to solve this moral problem by considering what an ideal observer would say. Procedural ideals do not initially give rules about whether it is wrong or right to buy at $5, but, if an ideal is defined richly enough, it gives us a possible way determine the right thing to do.  Top

Social contract theory

    Appeal to an ideal observer is not the only procedural ideal. Social contract theory views proper moral beliefs as the result of a fair initial agreement. The conditions under which the initial agreement is made are ideal conditions, often conceived in terms of full equality, freedom, and knowledge. What kinds of moral rules and principles would informed, free, and equal people select in the initial choice situation? Whatever principles they select, they are the proper ethical principles, or so the social contractarians believe.
    When we reason completely under the guidance of a procedural ideal, the outcome of the deliberation is the morally proper path. In other words, the judgment that results from a serious application of the procedure is the morally correct opinion, whatever it involves.
    Procedural ideals are abstract and so may not seem to be part of moral experience. But actually people do recognize that their moral judgments may be based on special interest and try to find ways to eliminate bias, perhaps by imagining what someone with a very different background would conclude. A biased moral theory is unacceptable, nearly by definition, so we look to a moral theory to protect against bias, whether about race, sex, national or ethnic identity, occupation, or self-interest. Some theories, like social contract theory and Kantian ethics, offer explicit ways to control partiality, and some -- for example, act-utilitarianism, -- are presented as though unbiased judgments can be made without any explicit attempt discover covert or overt bias.   Top