Although the principle of fair subject selection is a widely recognized requirement of ethical clinical research, it often yields conflicting imperatives, thus raising major ethical dilemmas regarding participant selection. In this paper, we diagnose the source of this problem, arguing that the principle of fair subject selection is best understood as a bundle of four distinct sub-principles, each with normative force and each yielding distinct imperatives: (1) fair inclusion; (2) fair burden sharing; (3) fair opportunity; and (4) fair distribution of (...) third-party risks. We first map out these distinct sub-principles, and then identify the ways in which they yield conflicting imperatives for the design of inclusion and exclusion criteria, and the recruitment of participants. We then offer guidance for how decision makers should navigate these conflicting imperatives to ensure that participants are selected fairly. (shrink)

Trust is generally held to have three different dimensions or aspects: a behavioral aspect, a cognitive aspect, and an affective aspect. While t here is hardly any disagreement about trusting behavior, there is some disagreement as to which of the two other aspects is more fundamental. After presenting some of the main ideas concerning the concept of trust as used in the analysis of social cooperation. I will argue that affective aspects of trust must be included in any adequate account (...) of the role of trust in social dilemma situations involving multiple equilibria. Cooperation in such situations requires coordination even though information on what another player might do is not available. A trusting person can handle such problems of cooperation by framing the situation in a way that goes beyond cognitive trust and solves what I shall call the problem of normative consent. I will conclude with some remarks ab out the design of institutions that foster trustful cooperation, especially in the context of the Internet. (shrink)

It is widely held that every person is a person essentially, where being a person is having special mental properties such as intelligence and self-consciousness. It follows that nothing can acquire or lose these properties. The paper argues that this rules out all familiar psychological-continuity views of personal identity over time. It also faces grave difficulties in accounting for the mental powers of human beings who are not intelligent and self-conscious, such as foetuses and those with dementia.

The majority rule has caught much attention in recent debate about the aggregation of judgments. But its role in finding the truth is limited. A majority of expert judgments is not necessarily authoritative, even if all experts are equally competent, if they make their judgments independently of each other, and if all the judgments are based on the same source of (good) evidence. In this paper I demonstrate this limitation by presenting a simple counterexample and a related general result. I (...) pave the way for this argument by introducing a Bayesian model of evidence and expert judgment in order to give a precise account of the basic problem. (shrink)

As health systems around the world turn towards highly distributed, specialized and cooperative structures to increase quality and safety of care as well as efficiency and efficacy of delivery processes, there is a growing need for supporting communication and collaboration of all parties involved with advanced ICT solutions. The Electronic Health Record (EHR) provides the information platform which is maturing towards the eHealth core application. To meet the requirements for sustainable, semantically interoperable, and trustworthy EHR solutions, different standards and different (...) national strategies have been established. The workshop summarizes the requirements for such advanced EHR systems and their underlying architecture, presents different strategies and solutions advocated by corresponding protagonists, discusses pros and cons as well as harmonization and migration strategies for those approaches. It particularly highlights a turn towards ontology-driven architectures. (shrink)

Ethical issues of information and communication technologies (ICTs) are important because they can have significant effects on human liberty, happiness, their ability to lead a good life. They are also of functional interest because they can determine whether technologies are used and whether their positive potential can unfold. For these reasons policy makers are interested in finding out what these issues are and how they can be addressed. The best way of creating ICT policy that is sensitive to ethical issues (...) would be to be proactive and address such issues at early stages of the technology life cycle. The present paper uses this position as a starting point and discusses how knowledge of ethical aspects of emerging ICTs can be gained. It develops a methodology that goes beyond established futures methodologies to cater for the difficult nature of ethical issues. The paper goes on to outline some of the preliminary findings of a European research project that has applied this method. (shrink)

In contrast to Axelrod’s advice “don’t be envious” it is argued that the emotion of envy may enhance cooperation. TIT FOR TAT does exhibit a certain degree of envy. But, it does so in inconsistent ways. Two variants of TIT FOR TAT are introduced and their strategic properties are analyzed. Both generate the very same actual play as TIT FOR TAT in a computer tournament without noise. However, if noise is introduced they display some greater degree of stability. This is (...) due to the fact that they form, in a prisoner’s dilemma supergame with suitable parameters, an equilibrium with themselves that is subgame perfect or (in case of the first strategy) close to subgame perfect. It is additionally argued that these strategies are exceptionally clear and comprehensible to others in that they conform to well known real live behavior patterns. (shrink)

Communication is an inherently strategic matter. This paper introduces simple game theoretic models of information transmission to identify different forms of uncertainty which may pose a problem of trust in testimony. Strategic analysis suggests discriminating between trust in integrity, trust in competence, trust in (the will to invest) effort and trust in honesty. Whereas uncertainty about the sender's honesty or integrity may directly influence a rational receiver's readiness to rely on sender's statements, neither uncertainty about the competence of a sender (...) nor uncertainty about his willingness to invest effort has any direct impact on rational reliance on its own. In this regard, trust in honesty and trust in integrity appear to be more basic than trust in competence or effort. (shrink)

Naturalism, as Binmore understands the term, is characterized by a scientific stance on moral behavior. Binmore claims that a naturalistic account of morality necessarily goes with the conviction “that only hypothetical imperatives make any sense”. In this paper it is argued that this claim is mistaken. First, as Hume’s theory of promising shows, naturalism in the sense of Binmore is very well compatible with acknowledging the importance of categorical imperatives in moral practice. Moreover, second, if Binmore’s own theory of moral (...) practice and its evolution is correct, then the actual moral practice does-and in fact must-incorporate norms, which have the form of a categorical imperative. Categorical imperatives are part of social reality and, therefore, any (normative) moral theory that adequately reflects moral practice must also include categorical imperatives. (shrink)

With increasing complexity of the networks of social interaction new and more abstract forms of trust are in need. A conceptual analysis of different forms of trust, namely interpersonal trust, trust in groups and institutional trust is given. It is argued that institutional trust cannot totally replace interpersonal trust. Institutional trust rather builds on more personal forms of trust in that it is primarily formed in personal encounters with salient representatives of the institution and presupposes trust in others trusting in (...) the institution. Any form of trust is grounded in some normative foundation. A trusting person can make herself vulnerable to the action of other individuals because she perceives those others as acting from shared aims or values. Thus, some sort of virtue is a prerequisite of any form of genuine trust. While institutional trust may in some respect be more easily acquired than interpersonal trust in general it may bear a fundamental problem: institutional trust may be extraordinary robust with regard to a wide range of behavioral experiences; thus, it may be enduringly maintained although in fact unjustified. In a concluding section the general analysis is illustrated by some reflections on the problem of trust in government. (shrink)

A particular problem of traditional Rational Choice Theory is that it cannot explain equilibrium selection in simple coordination games. In this paper we analyze and discuss the solution concept for common coordination problems as incorporated in the theory of Team Reasoning (TR). Special consideration is given to TR’s concept of opportunistic choice and to the resulting restrictions in using private information. We report results from a laboratory experiment in which teams were given a chance to coordinate on a particular pattern (...) of behavior in a sequence of HiLo games. A modification of the stage game offered opportunities to improve on the team goal through changing this accustomed pattern of behavior. Our observations throw considerable doubt on the idea of opportunistic team reasoning as a guide to coordination. Contrary to what TR would predict, individuals tend to stick to accustomed behavioral patterns. Moreover, we find that individual decisions are at least partly determined by private information not accessible to all members of a team. Alternative theories of choice, in particular cognitive hierarchy theory may be more suitable to explain the observed pattern of behavior. (shrink)

A basic conviction in moral non-cognitivism is: only hypothetical norms may be justified. Hartmut Kliemt argues for a moderate variant: there are only hypothetical justifications of norms whether the norms are hypothetical or categorical in kind. In this paper the con- cept of ‘hypothetical justification’ is analyzed. It is argued that hypothetical justifications are not of the kind that we should look for in normative ethics.

Faith in the sense of trust in God is discussed as a somewhat extreme case of trust. Trust in general is understood as an emotional attitude and determined by the way a trusting person perceives the world and the person trusted. Interpersonal trust as the most common form of trust is characterized by connectedness - the trusted person is perceived as acting according to norms, values or goals shared by the trusting person - and by a participant attitude in the (...) sense of Strawson. Trust in God differs essentially from ordinary interpersonal trust, as the asymmetrical relationship between God and a faithful person does not allow for sharing a normative basis of conduct in the strict sense of „sharing“. Therefore, trust in God is ‚categorical‘ in character: the faithful person acknowledges God’s will as the ultimate and binding standard of normative value. Whatever happens, the faithful person perceives it as an expression of God’s will, and, thus, as ‚good‘. (shrink)

Faced by the challenge of religious plurality, most philosophers of religion view pluralism and exclusivism as the most accepted and fully developed positions. The third alternative, the model of inclusivism, held especially within the Catholic tradition, has not received adequate attention in the debates in philosophy of religion, perhaps as it is based solely on theological grounds. In this essay I offer a philosophical defense of the position of religious inclusivism and give reasons why this position represents the most appropriate (...) position in the face of conflicting religious truth claims. (shrink)

Esta obra comprende quince ensayos de Karl Löwith publicados entre 1932 y 1970 en los que el filósofo alemán va desgranando su postura respecto a los núcleos esenciales de la filosofía de nuestro siglo. Inmerso en su época, logró, sin embargo, la distancia necesaria para cuestionar sus fundamentos: el nihilismo, el historicismo y el decisionismo.

Charlotte Witt's finely crafted book offers an original and powerful account of social role normativity––the normativity of norms associated with social ro.

Charlotte Witt covers a remarkable amount of ground in this concise and elegantly written book. Coming in at under 150 pages, she artfully weaves together Aristotle’s theory of functions with contemporary work on cultural transmission and apprenticeship, ideas about self-creation with theories of aspiration and transformative experience, and reflections on the relationships among social norms and games with thoughts about social roles and the nature of hierarchy. At the heart of it is an elaboration and defense of a thoroughly externalist (...) account of social normativity. Witt takes skilled experts, especially artisans like chefs and carpenters, as paradigm cases for theorizing about social normativity. She uses them to argue that the ultimate source of many normative obligations is found not in the acquiescence, attitudes, or any other features internal to those on whom those obligations fall. Rather, the demands are rooted in the world itself, and flow from specific circumstances, especially from the constraints those circumstances impose on different actors in virtue of the tasks they need to perform. The result is a view that depicts social normativity not just as external to individuals but also unavoidably role specific; what is right for a chef is not necessarily right for a carpenter, and what makes for a good nurse might make for a poor drill sergeant. Witt’s presentation of this package of ideas is both careful and austere, and it makes for a wonderfully thought provoking read. Social Goodness: On the Ontology of Social Norms will reward the careful attention of anyone interested in social ontology, especially the metaphysical foundations of normativity, the nature of social norms, and the relationship between social roles and the self. (shrink)

We argue that work on norms provides a way to move beyond debates between proponents of individualist and structuralist approaches to bias, oppression, and injustice. We briefly map out the geography of that debate before presenting Charlotte Witt’s view, showing how her position, and the normative ascriptivism at its heart, seamlessly connects individuals to the social reality they inhabit. We then describe recent empirical work on the psychology of norms and locate the notions of informal institutions and soft structures with (...) respect to it. Finally, we argue that the empirical resources enrich Witt’s ascriptivism, and that the resulting picture shows theorists need not, indeed should not, choose between either the individualist or structuralist camp. (shrink)

This paper discusses Shoemaker's (1984) account of personal identity over time and the problems person essentialism raises for psychological continuity theories of personal identity at large, as detailed by Olson and Witt (2020).

Die Philosophie Ludwig Wittgensteins eignet sich in besonderer Weise als Diskus-sionsforum aktueller philosophischer Fragen. Dabei sei nicht nur an den mittlerweile in sprach- und sozialwissenschaftlichen Belangen ausgiebig zitierten Witt-genstein der Philosophischen Untersuchungen gedacht, sondern auch an jenen des Tractatus logico-philosophicus (Traktat), wo – was zu zeigen ist – eine Theorie der Sprache als selbstreferentielles System grundgelegt wird, die z.T Züge des sog. Radikalen Konstruktivismus aufweist und (mit Blick auf die Philosophischen Un-tersuchungen) das postmoderne Problembewußtsein der „Heterogenität der Sprachspiele“ ankündigt. Der (...) Traktat zeigt, daß das „Projekt der Moderne“, Sprache und Wirklichkeit durch Rekurs auf ein universales Sprachsystem zu legitimieren, scheitert, von innen her scheitern muß Als unterstellt universales ist dieses Sprachsystem gegen äußere Einwände immun, es hätte die Allmacht zu definieren, was sinn- und wertvoll ist. Es verwickelt sich jedoch in interne Widersprüche, wenn es dies tut, d.h. wenn es das eigene System als universales zu explizieren und legitimieren versucht. Die Alternative, die der Traktat hinterläßt, ist: entweder zu schweigen oder die Annahme des universalen Sprachsystems fallen zu lassen. Im folgenden wird die argumentative Entwicklung nachgezeichnet vom Traktat bis zu den Philosophischen Untersuchungen, wo diese Annahme aufgegeben und eine neuartige Legitimationspraxis entworfen wird. (shrink)

I argue that nonresident aliens, in places that are clearly not U.S. territory, should benefit from constitutional rights. This is a matter of mutuality of obligation. The U.S. claims the authority to hold all people accountable for respecting certain laws, such as the law of war as defined in the Military Commissions Act. Accordingly, it must accord them basic legal rights in return. At the same time, I argue, contra Benjamin Wittes, that this would not lead to absurdly opening the (...) courthouse doors, nor does it require abandoning principle to keep the flood of litigation reasonably contained. Not all harms inflicted by the U.S. government can give rise to a lawsuit, and that the distinction between those who should have a right to sue and those who should not can be drawn in a principled way. (shrink)

The topic I address in this paper is whether the independence of Church and State brought about by the Lutheran Reformation tantamounted to the secularisation of the latter. Taking into account two recent essays by Harold Berman and John Witte on the Lutheran contribution to the Western legal tradition, I argue that Luther’s criticism of the catholic doctrine of Papal power came hand in hand with a theologization of the foundations of the authority of the State, which is difficult (...) to deem «secular». (shrink)

In this paper I respond to Bernd Krehoff’s article ‘Legitimate Political Authority and Sovereignty: Why States Cannot Be the Whole Story’. I criticize Krehoff’s use of Raz’s theory of authority to evaluate the legitimacy of our political institutions. Krehoff argues that states cannot (always) claim exclusive authority and therefore cannot possess exclusive legitimacy. Although I agree with his conclusion, I argue that the questions of legitimacy and (Razian) authority are distinct and that we need to focus more on the (...) former in order to really support and defend Krehoff’s conclusions. (shrink)

A comprehensible model is proposed aimed at an analysis of the reasons for theory change in science. According to the model the origins of scientific revolutions lie not in a clash of fundamental theories with facts, but of “old” fundamental theories with each other, leading to contradictions that can only be eliminated in a more general theory. The model is illustrated with reference to physics in the early 20th century, the three “old” theories in this case being Maxwellian electrodynamics, statistical (...) mechanics and thermodynamics. Modern example, referring to general relativity and quantum field theory fusion, is highlighted. Key words: Popper, Kuhn, Lakatos, Feyerabend, Stepin, Bransky,Mamchur, mature theory, structure, Einstein, Lorentz, , Boltzmann, Planck, Hawking, De Witt. (shrink)

Die Breslauer Sprechbühnen wiesen in der Zeit des Nationalsozialismus Tendenzen auf, die für das gesamte Theaterleben Deutschlands charakteristisch waren. Die politische Instrumentalisierung der dramatischen Kunst, wie des ganzen literarischen Lebens, resultierte aus dem zentralen, von dem Reichsministerium für Volksaufklärung und Propaganda postulierten Programm, das den Theatern außcrästhetische Propaganda- und F.rziehungsaufgabcn zuschrieb. Die Hauptfrage - nach der Spielplangestaltung - traf auch für die wichtigsten Verfasser der damaligen Literatur zu, zu denen sicher der eng mit der schlesischen Provinz verbundene Gerhart Hauptmann gehörte. (...) Seine Stellung nach dem Jahre 1933 war keineswegs eideutig und sie bestätigte nur die komplizierten Verhältnisse zwischen ihm und dem Regime, das aus Propagandagründen sein Schaffen selektiv akzeptierte. In den ersten Jahren nach der Machtergreifung spielten deutsche Theater nur wenige Stückre Hauptmanns, in Breslau sogar keine. Erst 1935 brachte das Lobetheater die Aufführung der Komödie Der Biberpelz. Zwei Jahre später (anläßlich Hauptmanns 75. Geburtstages) spielte man im Breslauer Schauspielhaus, das seit 1936 die einzige Sprechbühne war, das Drama Michael Kramer. In Anwesenheit des Dichters fand hier auch die Uraufführung des Filmes Der Biberpelz statt. 1938 gastierte mit einem eigenen Ensemble der Staatsschauspieler Paul Wegener mit der Inszenierung von Kollege Crampton in Breslau. Erst zwei Jahre später (Jan. 1940) nahm das Theater in Breslau Hauptmanns Werk wieder in das Repertoire auf. Die Aufführung des Schauspiels Elga, dessen Motive aus Grillparzers Drama entnommen wurden, verursachte heftige Proteste mancher Regime-Ideologen (einschließlich Alfred Rosenbergs) wegen der polnischen Thematik des Dramas. Im Jahre 1941 inszenierte das Breslauer Schauspielhaus das Stück Der Bogen des Odysseus (die erste Aufführung war am Osternsonntag), im März 1942 die Tragödie Rose Bernd. Eine besondere Bedeutung kommt dem 80. Jubiläum des Dichters (Nov. 1942) zu. Die zentralen Feierlichkeiten dazu wurden von der Theaterabteilung des Goebbelschen Propagandaministeriums nach Breslau verlegt. Nach zahlreichen Kontroversen und Abstimmungen beschloß man im Schauspielhaus 4 Dramen zu spielen: Michael Kramer, Die Tochter der Kathedrale, Und Pippa tanzt und Der Biberpelz. Hauptmann verlieh man auch den Schliesischen Literaturpreis. Außerdem wurde er zum Ersten Ehrenbürger der Friedrich-Wilhelm-Universität ernannt. Das Deutsche Institut der Breslauer Universität veröffentlichte aus diesem Anlaß ein dem Jubilar gewidmetes Gedenkblatt, das verschiedene Aspekte seines Schaffens zum Thema hatte. Auch das Reichspropagandaamt Schlesien bereitete eine Broschüre vor, die das Interesse der Partei betonen sollte. Die Krönung des Jubiläums war die Gesamtausgabe von Hauptmanns Werken, deren erstes Exemplar dem Dichter überreicht wurde. Unter den zahlreichen Wünschen, die Gerhart Hauptmann zu seinem Geburtstage bekam, befanden sich auch Telegrammme von Hitler, Goebbels und Schlösser. Das letzte in Breslau inszenierte Drama Hauptmanns war Imphigenie in Delphi, dessen Erstaufführung am 5. Dez. 1943 im Schauspielhaus stattfand. (shrink)

This introduction summarizes the contributions made by authors Ian Cornelius, Bernd Frohmann, Ronald E. Day, Jonathan Furner, John M. Budd, Don Fallis, Birger Hjørland, Torkild Thellefsen, Elin K. Jakob, Jack Mills, Elaine Svenonius, Stephen Paling, Hope A. Olson, Amanda Spink and Charles Cole, and Søren Brier, to an inaugural review of the Philosophy of Information from perspectives in Library and Information Science/Studies. Philosopher Luciano Floridi provides an Afterword with respect to the application of this new school of thought as (...) of 2004. -/- [A decennial issue was published in 2015, also in Library Trends, and a third issue on the topic is planned for 2024.] -/- . (shrink)