acts/omissions doctrine

acts/omissions doctrine
The doctrine that it makes an ethical difference whether an agent actively intervenes to bring about a result, or omits to act in circumstances in which it is foreseen that as a result of the omission the same result occurs. Thus suppose I wish you dead, if I act to bring about your death I am a murderer, but if I happily discover you in danger of death, and fail to act to save you, I am not acting, and therefore according to the doctrine not a murderer. Critics reply that omissions can be as deliberate and immoral as commissions: if I am responsible for your food and fail to feed you, my omission is surely a murder. The question is whether the difference, if there is one, between acting and omitting to act can be described or defined in a way that bears general moral weight. See also double effect, trolley problem.

Philosophy dictionary. . 2011.

Игры ⚽ Нужен реферат?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • act/omissions doctrine — acts/omissions doctrine …   Philosophy dictionary

  • omissions — See acts/omissions doctrine …   Philosophy dictionary

  • Acts of the Apostles — • The fifth book of the New Testament Catholic Encyclopedia. Kevin Knight. 2006. Acts of the Apostles     Acts of the Apostles     † …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • continuous treatment doctrine — Under this doctrine, the time in which to bring a medical malpractice action is stayed when the course of treatment which includes wrongful acts or omissions has run continuously and is related to the same original condition or complaint. Lomber… …   Black's law dictionary

  • continuous treatment doctrine — Under this doctrine, the time in which to bring a medical malpractice action is stayed when the course of treatment which includes wrongful acts or omissions has run continuously and is related to the same original condition or complaint. Lomber… …   Black's law dictionary

  • trolley problem — Problem in ethics posed by the English philosopher Philippa Foot in her ‘The Problem of Abortion and the Doctrine of the Double Effect’ (Oxford Review, 1967). A runaway train or trolley comes to a branch in the track. One person is working on one …   Philosophy dictionary

  • deceit — The intentional attempt to mislead people. It gives rise to questions of definition (separating it from such neighbours as exaggeration, irony, parody) and to questions of justification. Many moral traditions separate the deliberate lie from the… …   Philosophy dictionary

  • euthanasia, active/passive — Euthanasia is the action of directly causing the quick and painless death of a person, or omitting to prevent it when intervention was within the agent s powers. It is usually understood that euthanasia is performed only with the intention of… …   Philosophy dictionary

  • immunity — im·mu·ni·ty /i myü nə tē/ n pl ties [Latin immunitas, from immunis exempt from public service, exempt, from in non + munis (from munia services)] 1: exemption from a duty or liability that is granted by law to a person or class of persons a… …   Law dictionary

  • ethics — /eth iks/, n.pl. 1. (used with a sing. or pl. v.) a system of moral principles: the ethics of a culture. 2. the rules of conduct recognized in respect to a particular class of human actions or a particular group, culture, etc.: medical ethics;… …   Universalium

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”