This paper explores "the role of technology in moral revolutions, understood as processes of radical group-level moral change." Drawing on a series of case studies, it identifies five patterns of such phenomena: redefining 'action spaces' and altering payoffs for decision-makers, destabilizing entrenched norms, creating 'moral niches', and enabling empowerment and repression. These can be described through the 'affordances' of the technology; "Affordances can... be understood as relational properties that make, for certain subjects in certain circumstances, certain actions likely." So, for example, better pistols led to a decline in duelling, the pill reduced the risks of intercourse, artificial pork made vegetarianism more palatable, and the plough influenced gender norms in agriculture. It would be interesting to explore whether similar patterns characterize changes in ethical norms in education. Image: Jeroen Hopster, Centre for Ethics and Technology.
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