Rationalist moral theories ignore how standards actually become conduct

Evidence

Most of the traditional moral theories tell only half the story in the regulation of moral behavior. They focus almost entirely on the cognitive aspect of morality and invest moral thought with overruling power. For example, proponents of rationalism usually have little to say about the mechanisms by which moral standards are converted to moral conduct. This is because rationalists assume that people do what they believe they are obliged to do. According to deontological theory, for example, moral conduct is governed by duty to adopted moral principles regardless of circumstances and behavioral consequences. Given the extensive moral disengagement richly documented in this volume, individuals are not as intractably duty-bound to their moral principles as claimed. It is not uncommon for individuals to use various psychosocial means to circumvent them. — Albert Bandura, Moral Disengagement, 194 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Duty-based moral theories neglect the mechanisms translating principles into conduct — Albert Bandura, Moral Disengagement: How People Do Harm…, 194; Virtue ethics describes moral character but fails to explain how character drives conduct — Albert Bandura, Moral Disengagement: How People Do Harm…, 201; Self-regard invested in standards, not the standards themselves, drives moral conduct. — Albert Bandura, Moral Disengagement: How People Do Harm…, 221

Broader Connections

• Duty-based moral theories neglect the mechanisms translating principles into conduct #corroborates (0.92) — Albert Bandura, Moral Disengagement, 194