Ethics 125 (2):449-476 (2015)
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Abstract |
Many economists and philosophers assume that status quo bias is necessarily irrational. I argue that, in some cases, status quo bias is fully rational. I discuss the rationality of status quo bias on both subjective and objective theories of the rationality of preferences. I argue that subjective theories cannot plausibly condemn this bias as irrational. I then discuss one kind of objective theory, which holds that a conservative bias toward existing things of value is rational. This account can fruitfully explain some compelling aspects of common sense morality, and it may justify status quo bias.
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Keywords | cognitive biases rationality conservatism value |
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Reprint years | 2015 |
DOI | 10.1086/678482 |
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References found in this work BETA
New Work for a Theory of Universals.David Lewis - 1983 - Australasian Journal of Philosophy 61 (4):343-377.
Rethinking the Good: Moral Ideals and the Nature of Practical Reasoning.Larry S. Temkin - 2012 - Oxford University Press.
View all 20 references / Add more references
Citations of this work BETA
Contextual Injustice.Jonathan Jenkins Ichikawa - 2020 - Kennedy Institute of Ethics Journal 30 (1):1–30.
Withholding and Withdrawing Life-Sustaining Treatment: Ethically Equivalent?Lars Øystein Ursin - 2019 - American Journal of Bioethics 19 (3):10-20.
View all 20 citations / Add more citations
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