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220Meaningful work: rethinking professional ethicsOxford University Press. 2000.As commonly understood, professional ethics consists of shared duties and episodic dilemmas--the responsibilities incumbent on all members of specific professions joined together with the dilemmas that arise when these responsibilities conflict. Martin challenges this "consensus paradigm" as he rethinks professional ethics to include personal commitments and ideals, of which many are not mandatory. Using specific examples from a wide range of professions, including medicine, law, high school tea…Read more
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181Personal meaning and ethics in engineeringScience and Engineering Ethics 8 (4): 545-560. 2002.The study of engineering ethics tends to emphasize professional codes of ethics and, to lesser degrees, business ethics and technology studies. These are all important vantage points, but they neglect personal moral commitments, as well as personal aesthetic, religious, and other values that are not mandatory for all members of engineering. This paper illustrates how personal moral commitments motivate, guide, and give meaning to the work of engineers, contributing to both self-fulfillment and p…Read more
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136Happiness and virtue in positive psychologyJournal for the Theory of Social Behaviour 37 (1). 2007.Positive psychologists aspire to study the moral virtues, as well as positive emotions, while retaining scientific objectivity. Within this framework, Martin Seligman, a founder of positive psychology, offers an empirically-based argument for an ancient and venerable theme: happiness can be increased by exercising the virtues. Seligman's project is promising, but it needs to pay greater attention to several methodological matters: greater care in defining happiness, so as to avoid smuggling in v…Read more
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99Personality Disorders and Moral ResponsibilityPhilosophy, Psychiatry, and Psychology 17 (2): 127-129. 2010.In “Personality Disorders: Moral or Medical Kinds—or Both?” Peter Zachar and Nancy Nyquist Potter (2010) reject any general dichotomy between morality and mental health, and specifically between character vices and personality disorders. In doing so, they provide a nuanced and illuminating discussion that connects Aristotelian virtue ethics to a multidimensional understanding of personality disorders. I share their conviction that dissolving morality–health dichotomies is the starting point for …Read more
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85Moral CreativityInternational Journal of Applied Philosophy 20 (1): 55-66. 2006.Moral creativity consists in identifying, interpreting, and implementing moral values in ways that bring about new and morally valuable results, often in response to an unprecedented situation. It does not mean inventing values subjectively, as Sartre and Nietzsche suggested. Moral creativity plays a significant role in meeting role responsibilities, exercising leadership, developing social policies, and living authentically in light of moral ideals. Kenneth R. Feinberg’s service in compensating…Read more
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74Meaningful Work and Professional EthicsProfessional Ethics, a Multidisciplinary Journal 10 (1): 89-100. 2002.
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72Moral creativity in science and engineeringScience and Engineering Ethics 12 (3): 421-433. 2006.Creativity in science and engineering has moral significance and deserves attention within professional ethics, in at least three areas. First, much scientific and technological creativity constitutes moral creativity because it generates moral benefits, is motivated by moral concern, and manifests virtues such as beneficence, courage, and perseverance. Second, creativity contributes to the meaning that scientists and engineers derive from their work, thereby connecting with virtues such as auth…Read more
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70Happiness and the Good LifeOup Usa. 2012.What is happiness? How is it related to morality and virtue? Does living with illusion promote or diminish happiness? Is it better to pursue happiness with a partner than alone? Philosopher Mike W. Martin addresses these and other questions as he connects the meaning of happiness with the philosophical notion of "the good life." Defining happiness as loving one's life and valuing it in ways manifested by ample enjoyment and a deep sense of meaning, Martin explores the ways in which happiness in…Read more
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67Responsibility for Health and Blaming VictimsJournal of Medical Humanities 22 (2): 95-114. 2001.If we are responsible for taking care of our health, are we blameworthy when we become sick because we failed to meet that responsibility? Or is it immoral to blame the victim of sickness? A moral perspective that is sensitive to therapeutic concerns will downplay blame, but banishing all blame is neither feasible nor desirable. We need to understand the ambiguities surrounding moral responsibility in four contexts: (1) preventing sickness, (2) assigning financial liabilities for health care cos…Read more
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61Personal Ideals in Professional EthicsProfessional Ethics, a Multidisciplinary Journal 5 (1): 3-27. 1996.
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59Of Mottos and MoralsInternational Journal of Applied Philosophy 25 (1): 49-60. 2011.At their best, mottos help us cope by crystallizing attitudes, eliciting resolve, and guiding conduct. Mottos have moral significance when they allude to the virtues and reflect the character of individuals and groups. As such, they function in the moral space between abstract ethical theory and contextual moral judgment. I discuss personal mottos such as those of Isak Dinesen (“I will answer”) and group mottos such as found in social movements (“Think globally, act locally”), professions (“Abov…Read more
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55Love's ConstancyPhilosophy 68 (263): 63-77. 1993.‘Marital faithfulness’ refers to faithful love for a spouse or lover to whom one is committed, rather than the narrower idea of sexual fidelity. The distinction is clearly marked in traditional wedding vows. A commitment to love faithfully is central: ‘to have and to hold from this day forward, for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death us do part… and thereto I plight [pledge] thee my troth [faithfulness]’. Sexual fidelity is promi…Read more
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55Morality and mental health are now inseparably linked in our view of character. Alcoholics are sick, yet they are punished for drunk driving. Drug addicts are criminals, but their punishment can be court ordered therapy. The line between character flaws and personality disorders has become fuzzy, with even the seven deadly sins seen as mental disorders. In addition to pathologizing wrong-doing, we also psychologize virtue; self-respect becomes self-esteem, integrity becomes psychological integra…Read more
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53Self-deceiving intentionsBehavioral and Brain Sciences 20 (1): 122-123. 1997.Contrary to Mele's suggestion, not all garden-variety self-deception reduces to bias-generated false beliefs (usually held contrary to the evidence). Many cases center around self-deceiving intentions to avoid painful topics, escape unpleasant truths, seek comfortable attitudes, and evade self-acknowledgment. These intentions do not imply paradoxical projects or contradictory belief states.
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52Paradoxes of moral motivationJournal of Value Inquiry 39 (3-4): 299-308. 2005.In suggesting that “philanthropy is almost the only virtuewhich is sufficiently appreciated by mankind,” Thoreau did not wish to denigrate charity, but he took offense when even minor Christian leaders were ranked above Newton, Shakespeare, and other creative individuals “who by their lives and works are a blessing to mankind.”1 Such individuals might be motivated primarily by caring for nonmoral goods, such as scientific truth, aesthetic appreciation, or creative achievement. Yet, paradoxically…Read more
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48Clinical ethics protocols in the clinical ethics committees of MadridJournal of Medical Ethics 40 (3): 205-208. 2014.Introduction Currently, The nature and scope of Clinical Ethics Protocols in Madrid are not well understood.Objectives The main objective is to describe the features of ‘guideline/recommendation’ type CEPs that have been or are being developed by existing Clinical Ethics Committees in Madrid. Secondary objectives include characterisation of those CECs that have been the most prolific in reference to CEP creation and implementation and identification of any trends in future CEP development.Method…Read more
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47Depression: Illness, insight, and identityPhilosophy, Psychiatry, and Psychology 6 (4): 271-286. 1999.
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45Love's ConstancyPhilosophy 68 (263). 1993.‘Marital faithfulness’ refers to faithful love for a spouse or lover to whom one is committed, rather than the narrower idea of sexual fidelity. The distinction is clearly marked in traditional wedding vows. A commitment to love faithfully is central: ‘to have and to hold from this day forward, for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death us do part… and thereto I plight [pledge] thee my troth [faithfulness]’. Sexual fidelity is promi…Read more
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45Compassion with Justice: Harari’s Assault on Human RightsSouthern Journal of Philosophy 58 (2): 264-278. 2020.Yuval Noah Harari contends that human rights are an outdated myth. He calls for replacing them with a new global ethic to meet crises as varied as environmental destruction, disruptive technologies, and extreme gaps between rich and poor. Toward that end, he outlines an ethics that exalts compassion and elides justice, an ethics that animates his trilogy: Sapiens, Homo Deus, and 21 Lessons for the 21st Century. I draw together the key elements in his personal ethics, tracing them to a combinatio…Read more
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42Happiness, Virtue, and Truth in Cohen’s Logic-Based Therapy (review)International Journal of Applied Philosophy 21 (1): 129-133. 2007.
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41On the Evolution of DepressionPhilosophy, Psychiatry, and Psychology 9 (3): 255-259. 2002.In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:Philosophy, Psychiatry, & Psychology 9.3 (2002) 255-259 [Access article in PDF] On the Evolution of Depression Mike W. Martin Keywords: Depression, morality, mental disorders, psychobiology, evolutionary psychiatry. In "Depression as a Mind-Body Problem," Walter Glannon outlines a psychosocial-physiological explanation of depression as a psychological response to chronic stress—today, especially social stress—in which cortisol imbala…Read more
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41Advocating ValuesTeaching Philosophy 20 (1): 19-34. 1997.With reference to the “Campus Wars” debates, this paper argues that within the classroom, professional responsibilities justify professors advocating for personal commitments which are pertinent to their discipline. In fact, given a professor’s commitment to pursuing truth in the classroom, this advocacy is both inevitable and desirable. The question to ask, then, is what separates appropriate from inappropriate forms of influence on students. The author draws on the American Association of Univ…Read more
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40Malady and menopauseJournal of Medicine and Philosophy 10 (4): 329-338. 1985.Culver and Gert define ‘malady’ in their book Philosophy in Medicine. It is shown that this definition is sexist in its implication in that it either indirectly contributes to women's oppression or indirectly supports a policy that discriminates against women. This is because, on Culver and Gert's definition of ‘malady’, menopause, menstruation, and pregnancy become maladies. It is also argued that malady claims are normative in a way not recognized by Culver and Gert. Keywords: malady and/or di…Read more
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39Provoking Thoughts on Professionalism (review)International Journal of Applied Philosophy 16 (2): 279-283. 2002.In this book, Michael Davis, one of the most insightful writers on professional ethics, substantially revises and integrates fifteen of his previously published articles, making them available to a wider audience. Several professions are emphasized: law, engineering, and police work (including international law enforcement). Yet the topics discussed have relevance to all areas of professional ethics: defining professions, the moral authority of professional codes, intelligently interpreting code…Read more
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38Psychotherapy as Cultivating CharacterPhilosophy, Psychiatry, and Psychology 19 (1): 37-39. 2012.
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