![]() ![]() In a series of studies using over 5,000 participants, we investigated the relationship between manipulations of behavior, control, and intent. We wanted to test how observers might make fine-tuned judgments about moral culpability on issues like these, from high-profile cases like Whitman’s to more mundane situations that crop up in ordinary workplaces. And yet surely it matters that a large tumor was impinging on key decision-making centers of his brain. He even brought deodorant and vitamins with him to the top of the clock tower. After all, he methodically planned his killing spree, purchasing weapons, ammo, and other supplies after killing his wife and mother. Whitman clearly caused harm, and it wasn’t an accident. A simple rule governs many cases: it is wrong to cause harm if you do so intentionally.īut the human capacity for moral judgment is complex, and we felt that something about this rule must be incomplete. The answer to this question depends on moral psychology, the ways in which ordinary people, like jurors, make decisions about right and wrong, good and evil, and crime and punishment. What kind of defense might you mount that could sway a jury toward leniency, given such heinous actions? What if Whitman had survived to face trial for his crimes? Imagine, for a moment, that you are his defense attorney and that a medical examination revealed your client’s subcortical tumor. After his spree, an autopsy revealed a tumor pressing on regions of Whitman’s brain thought to regulate emotional reactions and urges. Whitman in fact sought medical attention to no avail. In the months and weeks leading up to the event, he reported feeling strong headaches and increasingly violent urges. Whitman’s case is not so simple, however. If anyone ever deserved moral condemnation, surely Whitman fits the bill. He then continued his killing spree, leaving 13 people dead and 32 wounded before police fatally wounded him. The next morning, he purchased guns, ammunition, and other supplies, and drove to and ascended a nearby clock tower at the University of Texas at Austin. In 1966, Charles Whitman murdered his wife and mother in the middle of the night.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |