Instrumentalist Theories of Moral Responsibility
Manuel Vargas Vargas
Abstract
Abstract In both the historical and contemporary literature on moral responsibility, there are accounts of responsibility that appeal to instrumentalist considerations in accounting for, variously, the nature, structure, and justification of moral responsibility. On the face of it, instrumentalist approaches can seem ill-suited for delivering an adequate theory of responsibility. For example, if one thinks that the hallmark of moral responsibility is its retrospective or “backward-looking” focus, that it involves some notion of desert, or that it somehow invokes or justifies retributive attitudes, instrumentalist theories of responsibility can seem to be nonstarters. Even so, instrumentalist (or “consequentialist”) approaches to responsibility have a storied pedigree within analytic philosophy. In recent years, the approach has enjoyed renewed attention and rehabilitation. This chapter provides an overview of instrumentalist theories of responsibility, including their history, recent developments, and ongoing disputes.