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.