What if the problem was reframed such that nobody ever found out about the decision and thereby that their estimates of risk remained unchanged?
I presented a reason why intuitions treat the scenarios differently, and why the intuitions are correct in doing so. That reason is consistent with the problem as stated. Assumption of risk most certainly is a factor, and a justifiable one.
It is certainly possible that there is some underlying utilitarian rationale being used. Reframing the problem like I suggest above might provide something of a test of the reason you provided, if imperfect (can we really ignore intuitions on command?).
What if the problem was reframed such that nobody ever found out about the decision and thereby that their estimates of risk remained unchanged?
Then it’s wildly and substantively different from moral decisions people actually make, and are wired to be prepared for making. A world in which you can divert information flows like that differs in many ways that are hard to immediately appreciate.
It is certainly possible that there is some underlying utilitarian rationale being used.
The reasoning I gave wasn’t necessarily utilitarian—it also invokes deontological “you should adhere to existing social norms about pushing people off trolleys”. My point was that it still makes utilitarian sense.
What if the problem was reframed such that nobody ever found out about the decision and thereby that their estimates of risk remained unchanged?
It is certainly possible that there is some underlying utilitarian rationale being used. Reframing the problem like I suggest above might provide something of a test of the reason you provided, if imperfect (can we really ignore intuitions on command?).
Then it’s wildly and substantively different from moral decisions people actually make, and are wired to be prepared for making. A world in which you can divert information flows like that differs in many ways that are hard to immediately appreciate.
The reasoning I gave wasn’t necessarily utilitarian—it also invokes deontological “you should adhere to existing social norms about pushing people off trolleys”. My point was that it still makes utilitarian sense.