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Document Details : Title: Philosophical Prerequisites for a Discussion of the Neurobiology of Virtue Author(s): MULLINS, Andy Journal: Ethical Perspectives Volume: 23 Issue: 4 Date: 2016 Pages: 689-708 DOI: 10.2143/EP.23.4.3188787 Abstract : The results of studies identifying neural regions active in moral activity are increasingly available. Yet a successful investigation into the neural bases of moral character requires distinct philosophical foundations: a philosophy of mind having an appropriate metaphysical basis, and a moral psychology including a reasoned account of embodied rationality and emotion. The virtue based understanding of character development as proposed by Aristotle and Aquinas offers a most promising basis for the identification of the neurobiology of virtue. It appears to satisfy these philosophical prerequisites and the insights offered by the Aristotelian/Thomistic account for the distinctions between the virtues appear to be of great assistance in the task. |
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