Conscience

• What are the two versions of the summary revision notes for the Conscience topic in OCR Ethics?

  A* – A grade summary notes and B – C grade summary notes
• What is Aquinas' theory of the conscience based on?

  • It involves his theory of natural law ethics.
  • It claims that God designed human nature to follow his moral law.
• What does the term 'telos' refer to in Aquinas' theory?

  Telos refers to the purpose or natural end of a thing, orientating its behavior towards its good.
• How does Aquinas believe human beings are designed to follow God's natural moral law?


  God has designed human nature to have reason, which allows us to know and follow his natural moral law.
• What are the two powers of reason according to Aquinas?


  Synderesis and conscientia
• What is the function of synderesis in Aquinas' theory?


  Synderesis allows us to know the primary precepts.
• What does conscientia enable us to do?


  Conscientia allows us to apply the primary precepts to moral actions and determine what we should do.
• What is the 'synderesis rule'?

  We have the tendency to do good and avoid evil.
• How does guilt relate to Aquinas' theory of conscience?


  Guilt arises when our reason knows an action is bad, causing us to feel guilty for doing it.
• What is 'invincible ignorance' according to Aquinas?


  Invincible ignorance is ignorance that could not have been prevented, and thus is not our fault.
• What is 'vincible ignorance' according to Aquinas?


  Vincible ignorance is ignorance that could have been prevented, and thus is our fault.
• What is the counter argument to Aquinas' concept of telos?


  • Telos is considered unscientific.
  • The universe is composed of atoms and energy without purpose.
  • Evolution can explain human behavior without the need for telos.
• Who argued that the concept of telos is unscientific?

  Francis Bacon
• What conclusion did physicist Sean Carroll reach regarding purpose in the universe?


  He concluded that purpose is not built into the architecture of the universe.
• How does evolution explain moral behaviors according to the study material?

  • Evolution generates instincts like empathy in herd species.
  • Moral behaviors are not intrinsically from God but are evolutionarily advantageous.
• What is the evaluation of the critique against Aquinas' theory of telos?


  • Science has immense explanatory power.
  • It shows no reason to believe telos exists.
  • Ockham’s razor supports simpler explanations over supernatural ones.
• What did Popper say about Freud's theories?


  Popper said Freud's theories were 'unfalsifiable' and not real science.
• What are the three parts of the human mind according to Freud?

  The Id, the Ego, and the Super-ego
• How does Freud explain the interaction of the Id, Ego, and Super-ego in relation to conscience?

  The conscience is the interaction between the Id's desires, the Ego's awareness, and the Super-ego's moral rules.
• What are the stages of Freud's theory of psycho-sexual development?


  1. Oral stage
  2. Anal stage
  3. Phallic stage
  4. Latency stage
  5. Mature genital stage
• What happens during the oral stage of Freud's psycho-sexual development?

  Babies interact with the world through putting things in their mouth.
• What is the focus of the anal stage in Freud's theory?


  Children must learn to control their toilet habits.
• What develops during the phallic stage according to Freud?

  The Oedipus/Electra complex develops.
• What occurs during the latency stage of Freud's psycho-sexual development?


  Gender roles are learned, and sexual desire develops and is learned to be controlled.
• What characterizes the mature genital stage in Freud's theory?


  A person has a fully developed conscience where the ego controls the Id with reference to the super-ego.
• What are the criticisms of Freud's scientific approach?


  • Freud did not conduct real experiments.
  • He studied a small, non-representative sample size.
  • His theories were deemed 'unfalsifiable' by Popper.
• What is the defense of Freud's general ideas?


  • Piaget defended Freud's central thesis.
  • Conscience is influenced by the way we raise children.
• What is a strength of Freud's approach compared to Aquinas' regarding moral differences?

  • Freud's approach accounts for cross-cultural moral differences.
  • Aquinas' theory assumes universal moral agreement based on reason.
• What does Fletcher argue is a weakness of Aquinas' approach?

  Fletcher argues that Aquinas' approach does not account for cross-cultural moral differences.
• What is the implication of different cultures having different moral views according to the study material?


  It suggests that culture and social conditioning are better explanations for moral behavior than telos.
• What is Aquinas' response to the argument of cross-cultural moral differences?

  • Aquinas would argue that there is a core set of moral views shared across cultures.
  • He believes moral disagreement may stem from sinful and corrupt cultures.
• What are the alternative explanations for core moral views found in all cultures?

  • Richard Dawkins argues moral sense comes from evolution.
  • Empathy is programmed into us as evolutionarily advantageous.
  • Societal practicality requires certain moral codes for survival.
• What does the study material conclude about Aquinas' supernatural explanation of moral agreement?


  Aquinas' supernatural explanation is deemed an unnecessary hypothesis.
• How does Freud's scientific approach compare to Aquinas' theological approach?


  • Freud's approach is simpler and better explains our moral compass.
  • Aquinas' approach relies on the idea of natural law from God.