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In philosophy, moral responsibility is the status of morally deserving praise, blame, reward, or punishment for an act or omission in accordance with one's moral obligations. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] Deciding what (if anything) counts as "morally obligatory" is a principal concern of ethics .
Moral residue, in this context, refers to backward-looking emotions like guilt or remorse. [4] [11] These emotions are due to the impression of having done something wrong, of having failed to live up to one's obligations. [5] In some cases of moral residue, the agent is responsible herself because she made a bad choice which she regrets afterward.
Good moral character is an ideal state of a person's beliefs and values that is considered most beneficial to society. [1] [2]In United States law, good moral character can be assessed through the requirement of virtuous acts or by principally evaluating negative conduct.
Most traditional moral theories rest on principles that determine whether an action is right or wrong. Classical theories in this vein include utilitarianism, Kantianism, and some forms of contractarianism. These theories mainly offered the use of overarching moral principles to resolve difficult moral decisions. [citation needed]
According to Aristotle, how to lead a good life is one of the central questions of ethics. [1]Ethics, also called moral philosophy, is the study of moral phenomena. It is one of the main branches of philosophy and investigates the nature of morality and the principles that govern the moral evaluation of conduct, character traits, and institutions.
A moral imperative is a strongly-felt principle that compels a person "in question" to act. It is a kind of categorical imperative, as defined by Immanuel Kant. Kant took the imperative to be a dictate of pure reason, in its practical aspect. Not following the moral law was seen to be self-defeating and thus contrary to reason.
Jean Piaget developed two phases of moral development, one common among children and the other common among adults. The first is known as the Heteronomous Phase. [7] This phase, more common among children, is characterized by the idea that rules come from authority figures in one's life such as parents, teachers, and God. [7]
They have a moral responsibility to fulfill their obligations. Duty is seen as the response to an individual's obligations. Obligations require an action being done and duty is the carrying out of this action. [6] Sociologists believe that an obligation is an objective force. Some philosophers however, believe obligations are moral imperatives. [5]