Altruism and Moral Psychology

This interdisciplinary conference will explore the psychological underpinnings of altruism and moral norms, and the implications of these psychological systems for ethical theory. The conference will address such questions as:

• What is altruism? What is the psychological basis for altruistic behavior?

• How do we represent moral norms? What is the structure of the psychological systems involved in the acquisition, processing, complying with, and enforcing moral norms?

• To what extent is moral psychology culturally universal? To what extent is it culturally variable?

• How are moral norms culturally transmitted? What can we learn about moral norms from the nature of the cutlural transmission?

• How does empirical work on moral psychology interact with normative theories in ethics and meta-ethical theory?

The conference took place 17-18 June 2006 at the Humanities Research Institute (34 Gell Street, Sheffield S3 7QW) at the University of Sheffield.

Speakers

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John Doris (Philosophy, Washington University, St. Louis)
How (Not) to Build a Person 

Simon Gächter (Economics, University of Nottingham)
Measuring Norms of Cooperation in Different Societies

Nicola Knight (Culture and Cognition, University of Michigan / CPNSS, LSE)
The Psychology of Normative Judgement and Explanation 

Aimee Plourde (Archaeology, University College London)
The Role of Prestige and Prestige Goods in the Emergence of Agrandizing Behavior: Some Insight into How Moral Norms Change over Time 

Peter Richerson (Environmental Science and Policy, UC Davis)
Darwin's Theory of Moral Evolution in Modern Garb 

Stephen Stich (Philosophy, Rutgers University)
Is the Moral / Conventional Distinction a Myth? 

David Sloan Wilson (Biology, SUNY Binghamton)
The Ecology of Altruism in Everyday Life 

Tom Walker (Centre for Professional Ethics,Keele)
Two Ways to Build an Altruist