Title

Ultrasound Viewers’ Attribution of Moral Status to Fetal Humans: A Case for Presumptive Rationality

Department/School

Philosophy

Date

2020

Document Type

Article

Keywords

ethics, psychology, cognition, abortion, judgement, bias

DOI

https://doi.org/10.33392/diam.1472

Abstract

As several studies, along with a book and movie depicting the true story of a former clinic director, have recently brought to the public’s attention, fetal ultrasound images dramatically impact some viewers’ normative judgments: a small but non-negligible proportion of viewers attribute increased moral status to fetal humans and even form the belief that abortion is impermissible. I consider three types of psychological explanation for a viewer’s shift in beliefs: (1) increased bonding or empathy, (2) various forms of cognitive bias, and (3) type of cognitive processing involved. I consider the normative implications of each explanation, arguing that in each case the viewer’s judgment is presumptively rational.

Published in

Diametros

Citation/Other Information

Giebel, Heidi M. “Ultrasound Viewers’ Attribution of Moral Status to Fetal Humans: A Case for Presumptive Rationality.” Diametros 17, no. 64 (2020): 22-35. https://doi.org/10.33392/diam.1472.

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