Research on fundamental questions of social ethics

Research on fundamental questions in the field of ethics and specifically social ethics is a central component of the department’s research and teaching activities, as well as the basis and prerequisite for research in the field of applied ethics. Research on fundamental questions includes, on the one hand, the reception of current debates and theories of philosophical and theological (social) ethics and, on the other hand, the interdisciplinary examination of developments in the disciplines relevant to social ethics (e.g., social, political, and economic sciences).

Political Ethics

As a discipline that deals with the question of how society or a political order can be shaped well and justly, (Christian) social ethics has many intersections with political ethics. Political-ethical research at the department focuses on questions of democracy and human rights, as well as on theories of justice and concepts of power and governance. Furthermore, basic social rights are discussed against the background of the social principles of personhood, solidarity and subsidiarity, which are central to Christian social ethics.. Last but not least, research focuses on ecological issues and questions of sustainability, which are becoming increasingly important due to climate change (cf. Spieß 2022 241ff.). 

Spieß, Christian (2022), Politik, in: Marianne Heimbach-Stein, Michelle Becka, Johannes J. Frühbauer, Gerhard Kruip (Hg.): Christliche Sozialethik. Grundlagen – Kontexte – Themen. Ein Lehr- und Studienbuch: Verlag Friedrich Pustet Regensburg, 241-260).  

Peace Ethics

Even though the boundaries between political ethics and peace ethics are often fluid, there is a particularly intensive examination of peace, war and violence within Christian social ethics. So-called "Christian peace ethics" is a historically developed sub-discipline of social ethics with a long tradition in the Church's Social Teaching. Central questions are the legitimacy of violence, war and conflict and the conditions for peace in a global world. Christian peace ethics is characterised by a pacifist concern, which is reflected in today's guiding paradigm of just peace (cf. Frühbauer 2022. 485ff.). 

Frühbauer, Johannes J. (2022), Frieden, in: Marianne Heimbach-Stein, Michelle Becka, Johannes J. Frühbauer, Gerhard Kruip (Hg.): Christliche Sozialethik. Grundlagen – Kontexte – Themen. Ein Lehr- und Studienbuch: Verlag Friedrich Pustet Regensburg, 485-497).  

Media Ethics

The ethics of public communication, also called media ethics, deals with the question of good and right actions in the field of media and public communication. An ethical discussion of media and public communication addresses values and principles that are important in media work, but also asks how actors who are active in this field should act. Also central in this regard is the question of how organisations and institutions in the field of media and public communication ought to be organized in order to be ethically responsible and just. (cf. Filipovic 2023).

Filipović, Alexander (2023 - in preparation): Medien und öffentliche Kommunikation aus ethischer Perspektive. In: Klaus-Dieter Altmeppen, Elisabeth Klaus und Ulrike Röttger (Hg.): Kommunikationswissenschaft. Eine Einführung in die kommunikativen und medialen Grundlagen der Gesellschaft: Springer VS)  

Technology and Society

 Technology is by no means a new subject of (social) ethics. However, the ethical consideration of questions of technology and digitality has become increasingly important in recent decades due to the diverse technological developments. This is reflected, among other things, in the fact that ethical questions of so-called "artificial intelligence (AI)" have become an integral part of public and political debates and that research on this topic is developing rapidly. The engagement with technology and society in the field of social ethics joins these discourses and formulates normative orientations (cf. Riedl 2022, 280; 287f). 

Riedl, Anna Maria (2022), Technik, in: Marianne Heimbach-Stein, Michelle Becka, Johannes J. Frühbauer, Gerhard Kruip (Hg.): Christliche Sozialethik. Grundlagen – Kontexte – Themen. Ein Lehr- und Studienbuch: Verlag Friedrich Pustet Regensburg, 280-299).  

Business Ethics

Economic ethics is the ethical study of economic structures and systems. Economic issues are crucial to questions of justice. Economic ethics is therefore an important field of research in social ethics. Social-ethical research on the economy focuses on considerations of the just organization of the market economy, e.g., on the basis of the principle of the common good or under the keyword "eco-social market economy". In addition, current challenges such as climate change or demographic change and their economic effects play an important role (cf. Kruip 2022, 261ff.). 

Kruip, Gehard (2022), Wirtschaft, in: Marianne Heimbach-Stein, Michelle Becka, Johannes J. Frühbauer, Gerhard Kruip (Hg.): Christliche Sozialethik. Grundlagen – Kontexte – Themen. Ein Lehr- und Studienbuch: Verlag Friedrich Pustet Regensburg, 261-279).