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Conscience - Coggle Diagram

- - - - Conscience as a behaviour developed through Social Interaction. This is developed further by the works of American Psycologist Lawrence Kohlberg whose work on child development followed on from his fascination with Children’s ways of reasoning in their reactions to moral dilemmas. : : :
        
        Kholberg defined six stages of moral development from birth in three levels
        
        The conventional level begins with the development of good-inter-personal relationships and concludes with the decision to obey society’s rules and thus avoid guilt
        
        The post-conventional level begins with a utilitarian recognition that where the needs of individuals and of society conflict, individuals needs must give way in order to benefit society as a whole. The Final stage is the level of individual conscience. The conscience directs that moral choices must be considered and universalisable, to go against the conscience would therefore lead to feelings of guilt
        
        Pre-conventional level begins with the punishment and obedience stage, at which our understanding of right and wrong is that right is what we are rewarded for and wrong is what we are punished for
      - Conscience as an aspect of the super-ego-as presented by Freud
        
        Freud distinguished three key parts of the brain
        
        The ego is the rational self-it mediates between the desires of the id and what the world lets us have
        
        The super-ego is the controlling,restraining self, it develops in a person around the ages of 3-5, and it controls those impulses that can be damaging to society and acts as an inner-parent, as it is where much of our parents moral commands are stored.
        
        Therefore for Freud only in its judging and threatening actions is the superego identified as conscience. So conscience appears to be a functional part of the superego-the part that judges and threatened with punishment.
        
        This means that the Conscience is simply an expression of our unconscience application of rules that is effected by our childhood. Therefore it does nor provide an alternative source of moral authority, as well as this it cannot be considered to be an expression of God, or Nature, as it is merely left over expressions from our childhood training.
        
        This view highlights the importance of one’s upbringing-for example for a religious person the idea of God is likely to give the biggest guilt-trip of all those who break God’s rules, particularly in those who have been brought up in a religious faith since their childhood.
        
        The id is the unconscious and instinctive part of the personality at the level if its basic physical and emotional needs.
      - Conscience as sanctions or social conditioning
        
        The idea of Consciernce as sanctions or social conditioning is brought forward by French sociologist Emile Durkheim who brings together God and the Conscience into a social explanation of human behaviour
        
        Durkheim argued that conscience is social conditioning-sanctions that the group brings to bear on the individual. This means that for Durkheim God is society, and does not exist, instead he is a useful idea. God serves as a projection of society’s powers and a belief in God gives individuals a moral obligation to obey society’s demands.
        
        Conscience is therefore a perception of loyalty to the group, for example having a guilty conscience about the food you eat is your fear of society judging you for your weight. Therefore if someone has no conscience is simply to say that they are socially maladjusted
        
        Durkheim also put forward the idea of Collective conscience which is the totality of beliefs and sentiments common to the average citizen in the same society. Therefore actions can be bad as they conflict with the wishes of society.
        
        The idea of the authoritarian and the humanistic conscience is presented by German psychoanalyst. According to Fromm,guilt,shame,conscience and a sense of moral repsonbility may arise out of a fear of being rejected by society, because society is based on obedience to rules, and conformity to norms. In many societies the highest possible virtue is obedience, whereas the lowest virtue is disobedience. This means that citizens are most concerned is they have disobeyed a command, not by the moral issue of an act they have committed. This means that they have an authoritarian conscience.
        
        Fromm also points to the idea of a Humanistic conscience. The humanistic conscience, which is the intuitive knowledge of what is human and inhuman. This would mean freeing oneself from the conforms of society, and embracing the full potential of people.
    - - For Augustine the Conscience serves as the innate voice of God put into humans minds by God so it amounts to an innate knowledge of God’s moral laws. This follows St Paul’s arguments in Romans 2:15-where he describes it as a “A witness to the requirement of the law”
        
        Prussian Theolgioan Schleimacher argued that conscience has become part of what God does, guiding people from within.
        
        This view that Conscience is the voice of God speaking to the individual causes several problems
        
        The Idea that God is behind everything can make ethical decision making redundant
        
        Following on from that most people today would accept that being morally good requires us to make free moral decisions. Decisions that are made for us cannot be free. If Conscience is the voice of God speaking to us, we cannot, therefor, be morally free.
        
        The Amount of evil in the world seems to suggest either that God is selective in choosing who to talk to, or else a lot of people remarkably good at ignoring the voice of Good.
        
        Throughout the history of the Christian Church, Christians have disagreed about moral principles and all parties in these disagreements have appealed to the God-given conscience. How is it, then that they have been given different answers
      - Conscience as the God-given faculty of reason
        
        This view is expressed by Thomas aquinas who advocated for the idea of Syndoresis-which is the idea that Hunman’s operate under the idea that Good is to be done, and Evil is to be avoided.
        
        Therefore for Aquinas what is innate for humans is not the voice of God telling them what to do, it is instead the God-given faculty of reason. Practical reason arrives at and understands the primary precepts of Natrual Law-Conscience then applies these through secondary precepts to particular situations
        
        Aquinas does acknowledge that the conscience can be mistaken-partly because the moral agent may be ignorant of the moral law, secondly because the moral agent may not be informed about the facts of the case. However even so the Conscience should always be followed, as what the Conscience dictates is true to the Individual, and the truth comes from God. Therefore to go against your conscience is to go against God.
        
        Although this view provides a realistic view of Human nature-Aquinas ignores the fact that large numbers of People-appear to act irrationally because they are blinded by their own desires.
      - Conscience as intuitive-reflective-and autonomous
        
        This view is presented by English theologian Joseph Butler-For Butler the Conscicne is in human nature and acts as a reflective principle placed within us by God
        
        Butler’s analysis of the Conscicne is based on the two governing principles of human behaviour-Prudence-(The ability to govern one’s self)-Benevolence-(Love of others). For Butler Conscience acts as an Autonomous Self-Directing Judge, that works Intuitively.
        
        Butler argues that since this is a god-given faculty, it must be followed because it is therefore in our condition of being-it is our duty to walk in that path, and follow this guide.
        
        Finally when a person acts morally according to Buitler, they have found the right balance between self-love, and benevolence. Moral conflicts occur when there is a conflict between our emotions and desires.
        
        Conscience as agape-love making decisions-situationally :
        
        Fletcher argues that Conscience is choosing what Agape demands in the present situation-it is this calculation which is the conscience is situation ethics.