Category: Ethics and Morals

Call: “The Identities of Action”

Posted on by Alexander Max Bauer

The Society for Philosophy of Emotion and the Journal of Philosophy of Emotion are organizing a book symposium on Joseph Ulatowski’s “The Identities of Action – How the Normative Valence of Consequences Matters for Act Evaluation.” They are looking for commentators as well as for a session chair and guest editor.

Expressions of interest are possible until August 28, 2026. The call reads:

Abstract

Individuating action depends upon how people comprehend value judgements about the consequences of an action to distinguish – or not to distinguish – between them. The question “what is action?” cannot be fully addressed until it is established whether two action descriptions – whether in law, business, insurance policies, or ordinary conversation – refer to the same or different actions. This book approaches the problem of action individuation by arguing for a variantist account, where the moral valence of the consequences of an action plays a foundational role in distinguishing between actions. Actions with bad consequences are associated with the originating act from which the action arises; actions with positive consequences are separate from their originating act. When we consider whether a bad or good consequence is identical to an originating action, the normative valence of the consequences of the action matter. Drawing from an empirical assessment that tests non-philosophers’ intuitions about individuating actions, along with real-world examples, Joseph Ulatowski explores the practical and philosophical significance of how we distinguish between actions.

Author Bio

Joseph Ulatowski is Senior Lecturer in Philosophy and Assistant Vice-Chancellor of Sustainability at the University of Waikato, Aotearoa New Zealand. Besides Identities of Action, he is the author of Commonsense Pluralism about Truth – An Empirical Defence, co-editor of two forthcoming anthologies: Lynch and His Critics and Experimental Philosophy and Corpus Analysis, as well as special issues of the Asian Journal of Philosophy on cross-cultural analyses of the nature of truth, Synthese on Paul Horwich’s minimalism about truth, and an Australasian Philosophical Review with a lead article on the value of truth in a post-truth era by Gila Sher. His work largely focuses on the nature and value of truth, action theory, and the history of philosophy in Poland.

Overview

The Society for Philosophy of Emotion and the Journal of Philosophy of Emotion (JPE) are organizing a book symposium on Professor Ulatowski book, The Identities of Action: How the Normative Valence of Consequences Matters for Act Evaluation. We are looking for commentators and session chair/guest editor for the SPE’s 2027 Central APA (in-person) affiliated group session, and for a subsequent publication in the Journal of Philosophy of Emotion, including a JPE podcast edition. (No additional work beyond seeing your commentary through to publication with the JPE will be required for the podcast edition.) If you are interested in engaging in a critical discussion of Professor Ulatowski’s book, with the aim of moving forward the discourse on relevant topics highlighted by his book as they relate to the philosophy of emotion, or chairing the APA affiliated group session and guest editing this book symposium, please complete the APA Affiliated Group Session and JPE Book Symposium Interest Form. Because the JPE requires the use of Google workspace tools, you will be required to log-in with a Google account to access the form. If you do not use your Gmail account on a regular basis, we recommend you set your Gmail to forward your emails to the email that you regularly use so you do not miss any correspondence from us. If you are interested in participating as a commentator or session chair/guest editor, please complete the form, which includes uploading a copy of your CV, by August 28, 2026. We will contact you by September 4, 2026, with a decision regarding your expressed interest and any further details.

Society for Philosophy of Emotion

Accepted commentators will be invited to present their commentaries during the in-person book symposium, as a part of a Society for Philosophy of Emotion (SPE)-American Philosophical Association (APA) affiliated group session at the 2027 Central APA, which will be an in-person conference. Commentaries for this book symposium are due to the author six (6) weeks before the SPE-APA session date, and author replies are due (3) weeks before the session date, in accordance with the APA meeting participation guidelines and prior to the due date for the JPE book symposium. Commentators would also be required to register for the 2027 Central APA conference, and be a member of the SPE at the time of their participation (which includes a one-time JPE submission fee waiver). An annual SPE membership is $35, with a discounted rate of $10 for graduate students and underemployed scholars.

Guest editors would be invited to contribute an editorial introduction, including highlighting the significance of the discussions in the book symposium to the relevant scholarly discourses. Information on guest editor responsibilities can be found on the JPE’s Join the Team page. The session chair/guest editor would also be required to register for the 2027 Central APA conference, but they will receive a free one year SPE membership (which includes a one-time JPE submission fee waiver).

Please note that commentators and guest editors who agree to participate in this in-person book symposium will not be eligible for any funding assistance from the APA since only those who are presenting in an APA main program event are eligible for such funding. However, participants can also submit a paper or volunteer to comment on a paper for an APA main program event and apply for APA funding if they are accepted, since APA main program participants are allowed to also participate in affiliated group sessions without any restrictions. Organizers will also be informed to avoid any scheduling conflicts.

Journal of Philosophy of Emotion

Commentaries for the JPE will be due one month after the Society for Philosophy of Emotion (SPE)-American Philosophical Association (APA) affiliated group session for this book symposium. We encourage a diversity of scholars of all ranks who are interested in participating as a commentator to respond to this CFP, provided that they are willing and able to commit to fulfilling the expectations set by the JPE’s submission guidelines and the JPE’s double-anonymous peer review process. Please refer to past issues of the JPE for examples, and all submissions must adhere to the JPE’s style guideline (which includes a Google Doc manuscript template), and note that authors are responsible for providing all necessary DOIs and appropriately formatting their references. All contributors are also responsible for copyediting their own submissions and providing any requested citation information, although the JPE will also conduct a preliminary review and copyedit check of all submissions prior to sending them to peer review. No submission will be sent to peer review without the appropriate formatting, in accordance with the JPE style guidelines. The JPE also requires a submission fee of $35 or you can use your SPE one-time JPE submission fee waiver.

Selection Criteria and Peer Refereeing

Commentators will be selected not only based on their qualifications, but also based on their cooperative compliance and the consideration for the value of diversity and inclusiveness among equally qualified commentators. Potential contributors are also welcome to let us know in their letter of interest in refereeing this book symposium if for some reason they were not invited to contribute a commentary, but would still like to contribute to the book symposium, or if they would rather referee the book symposium. All referees may also choose to be publicly acknowledged in a subsequent winter issue of the JPE. Referee’s will also receive a free membership to the Society for Philosophy of Emotion, which includes a one time author submission fee waiver for the JPE, for the year of their membership.

Job: “Political Anger and Democracy” (Jerusalem, Israel, and Heidelberg, Germany)

Posted on by Alexander Max Bauer

The Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Heidelberg University are jointly offering a two-year postdoctoral fellowship in the research project “Political Anger and Democracy – A Philosophical-Empirical Study,” led by Oded Na’aman and Nora Heinzelmann. The post-holder will spend the first year in Jerusalem and the second in Heidelberg.

Applications are possible until August 15, 2026. The announcement reads:

The Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Heidelberg University invite applications for a two-year post-doctoral fellowship, starting 1 October, 2026, or as soon as possible thereafter. The post-holder will spend the first year at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the second year at Heidelberg University. Remote work is not possible. Suitable candidates will have a specialization in philosophy of emotion and political philosophy, as well as experience in using empirical methods. That said, we encourage candidates to apply even if they only roughly meet these requirements.

The post is associated with, and made available through, a research grant from the German-Israeli Foundation for Scientific Research and Development (GIF), “Political Anger and Democracy: A Philosophical-Empirical Study” (Principal Investigators: Oded Na’aman, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and Nora Heinzelmann, Heidelberg University).

A short description of the research project: With populist movements rising worldwide, democratic erosion has accelerated. Yet while research links inequality, anger, polarization, and democratic decline, the relationship between different types of anger and democracy remains poorly understood. Superficially similar expressions of political anger may have opposite democratic implications: some defend democratic accountability, others undermine legitimate authority. The project develops a normative-empirical matrix that systematically distinguishes between types of political anger and their implications for democratic stability. It integrates philosophical theories of anger with experimental methods from moral psychology: through qualitative interviews, pilot studies, and large-scale validation in both Germany and Israel, the project develops novel measurements of what different expressions of anger are about – their “fitting objects” – and examines how specific anger types relate to democratic attitudes across political contexts. The aim is to provide tools for distinguishing anger that strengthens democracy from anger that undermines it.

The fellowship carries an average yearly salary of approximately 62,000 EUR before tax.

To be eligible, applicants must have received their PhD no more than five years before the start of the position, that is, on or after 1 October, 2021. Candidates who have not yet completed their PhD may apply, provided the degree is conferred before the position begins.

Applications should include a cover letter that explains the relevance of the candidate’s background to the project, a CV, a list of publications, the names and contact details of three referees (whom we may contact for letters of recommendation later in the process), and a sample of written work (a chapter from a monograph or doctoral dissertation or a recent journal article).

All materials should be sent to lisa.wiebalck@uni-heidelberg.de as one pdf. Informal inquiries should be sent to oded.naaman@mail.huji.ac.il. The deadline for receiving applications is August 15, 2026.

Heidelberg University stands for equal opportunities and diversity. Persons with severe disabilities will be given preference if they are equally qualified. Information on job advertisements and the collection of personal data is available at www.uni-heidelberg.de/en/job-market.

Job: “Collective Reflective Equilibrium for Science Translation” (Singapore)

Posted on by Alexander Max Bauer

The Dean-Med-Centre for Biomedical Ethics at the National University of Singapore is looking for a research fellow specialized in quantitative methods.

The job announcement reads:

Job Description

The Centre for Biomedical Ethics (CBmE) at the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, invites applications for a Research Fellow (Quantitative Research) position for CREST-SG (Collective Reflective Equilibrium for Science Translation – Singapore). The role is based in Singapore.

CREST-SG is a major national programme focused on empirically grounded, policy-relevant bioethics research across Healthy Longevity, Precision Medicine, Pandemics, and Artificial Intelligence, supported by a cross-cutting legal stream. The programme is led by Prof Julian Savulescu and Dr Sumytra Menon, working with Co-PIs A/P Michael Dunn, A/P Brian Earp, and Asst Prof Owen Schaefer. The successful applicant will report to A/P Brian Earp.

We are seeking an experienced and motivated postdoctoral researcher with expertise in quantitative research and ethical analysis to contribute to research, publications, and policy/practice-oriented outputs, while also supporting programme activities. This is an excellent opportunity for motivated postdoctoral researchers who are able to work independently, manage multiple workstreams, and thrive in an interdisciplinary environment.

Key responsibilities

  • Design, conduct, and analyse quantitative and mixed-methods research, including surveys and questionnaire-based studies
  • Integrate primary quantitative research data with practical ethical analysis
  • Lead the drafting of literature reviews, study materials, analysis, manuscripts, and reports
  • Prepare applications for research ethics review, amendments, and progress reporting, as required
  • Manage own research and administrative activities and coordinate multiple aspects of the work to meet internal deadlines
  • Support the organisation of workshops and meetings, including liaison with the programme administrator on logistics, communications, and event planning

Qualifications

  • PhD specialising in bioethics, or a discipline related to bioethics (e.g., philosophy, sociology, psychology); applicants holding a professional degree in medicine or law must also possess a PhD, together with formal training and demonstrated research experience in bioethics, from a reputable university
  • Strong track record in quantitative research
  • Ability to integrate empirical work with ethical, legal, or policy analysis
  • Peer-reviewed academic publications as sole or first author, relative to career stage
  • Excellent written and oral communication skills in English
  • Strong organisation and project management skills
  • Ability to work both collaboratively and independently

Contract

  • Full-time appointment commencing 1 Oct 2026
  • Initial appointment of 2 years, with the possibility of extension subject to satisfactory performance and funding availability up to 4.5 years

Application

Please submit

  • Cover letter
  • Curriculum vitae with contact details of three referees
  • One writing sample
  • Current and expected salary

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until the position is filled.

Talk: “Moral Language and Moore’s Paradox” (Pascale Willemsen and Lucien Baumgartner)

Posted on by Alexander Max Bauer

On June 11 from 16:00–18:00 (UTC+1), Pascale Willemsen and Lucien Baumgartner will talk about “Moral Language and Moore’s Paradox – Challenging Moral Expressivism.” The talk can be accessed via Zoom (Meeting ID: 651 0778 6432, Code: 235823). The abstract reads:

Moore’s Paradox – e.g., “It’s raining but I don’t think it’s raining” – is widely considered infelicitous despite being logically consistent. In this paper, we extend Moore’s Paradox to moral discourse and test whether moral statements like “Murder is wrong but I don’t disapprove of it” elicit similar intuitions. Rooted in moral expressivism, the Parity Thesis predicts that moral assertions express non-cognitive attitudes (e.g., approval/disapproval) in a manner analogous to how descriptive statements express beliefs. In a pre-registered study with 1200 participants, we empirically test this thesis using a mixed design that manipulates moral term type (thick vs thin), evaluative polarity (positive vs negative), perspective (first vs third person), and attitude (belief vs disapproval). The results of our main study and one qualitative follow-up study suggest that while moral statements resemble Moorean Paradoxes in important ways, participants find it largely acceptable to call an action wrong without disapproving of it. As the infelicity of such statements is a core ingredient of Moorean Paradoxes and, as we suggest, the Parity Thesis, we conclude that moral language does not express approval and disapproval like declarative language expresses beliefs.

Job: “Valence Asymmetries” (Barcelona, Spain)

Posted on by Alexander Max Bauer

The Universitat Pompeu Fabra in Barcelona, Spain, is hiring two postdocs to work on the research project “Valence Asymmetries.”

Applications are possible until May 29, 2026. The job announcement reads:

There is an open call for applications, with a deadline set at 29 May 2026, for two postdoctoral researchers.

The successful candidates will conduct tasks that are transversal to the different work packages of the project. Their research will seek to understand how emotion and affect impact and underlie cognitive processes such as belief formation, decision making, conceptual representation, as well as language production and interpretation. They will work in very close collaboration with Prof. Isidora Stojanovic (project PI) and the entire team.

This is a full-time research position, without any teaching requirements, with a gross annual salary of 31.196,40 €, in a dynamic interdisciplinary team, funded by Prof. Stojanovic’s ERC Advanced grant VALENCE ASYMMETRIES GA N. 101142133.

For further details and in order to apply, consult this offer through Interfolio. The official call, specifying all legal requirement, in Catalan, can be consulted at the Deparment’s website.

Talk: “Autonomous Systems, Moral Responsibility and Control Architectures” (Markus Kneer)

Posted on by Alexander Max Bauer

On March 20, from 17:00–19:00 (UTC+1), the Permanent Seminar in Analytic Philosophy (PSAP) of Università Roma Tre will host a talk by Markus Kneer about “Autonomous Systems, Moral Responsibility and Control Architectures.” The hybrid session can be accessed via Teams. The abstract reads:

Matthias (2004) and Sparrow (2007) have argued that the use of self-learning systems can engender “responsibility gaps” – situations in which nobody is morally responsible for a potential harm. In this talk, I will present empirical evidence as to whether laypeople are sensitive to such alleged “responsibility gaps” or whether their retributive dispositions might get in the way (see Danaher, 2016). I will also present new data concerning the question whether we can avoid such situations by imposing tight control architectures to ensure meaningful human control (see e.g. “human-in-the-loop v. on-the-loop,” Docherty, 2012; “tracking & tracing,” Santoni de Sio & van den Hoven, 2018).

Call: “Toronto Workshop on Moral Psychology and Moral Theory”

Posted on by Alexander Max Bauer

Organized by Andrew Sepielli, the “Toronto Workshop on Moral Psychology and Moral Theory” will take place at the University of Toronto from November 7 to 8, 2026.

Submissions for contributions can be submitted until July 1, 2026. The call reads:

The workshop aims to bring together philosophers, psychologists, and legal scholars working on questions about the relationship between empirical research on moral cognition and the foundations of moral theory. The goal is to foster interdisciplinary discussion about how empirical work in fields such as psychology, neuroscience, and evolutionary theory bears on moral judgment and the evaluation of moral beliefs.

Invited speakers include:

  • Paul Bloom (Psychology, University of Toronto / Yale University)
  • Joshua Knobe (Philosophy and Psychology, Yale University)
  • Liane Young (Psychology, Boston College)
  • Roseanna Sommers (Law and Psychology, University of Michigan)
  • Brendan de Kenessey (Philosophy, University of Toronto)

We invite submissions addressing topics at the intersection of empirical research and moral theory. Relevant topics include, but are not limited to:

  • experimental philosophy
  • the psychology of moral cognition
  • causal cognition and moral judgment
  • the neuroscience of moral judgment
  • evolutionary approaches to morality
  • empirical work bearing on normative ethics or metaethics
  • methodological questions about the role of empirical research in moral theory
  • debunking arguments and related challenges to moral belief

Five contributed papers will be selected. Contributed talks will consist of a 45-minute presentation followed by 45 minutes of discussion. The workshop is designed to be discussion-focused, with substantial time devoted to questions and conversation about each paper.

We welcome submissions from scholars in philosophy, psychology, law, and related disciplines. Submissions from early-career scholars are especially encouraged.

Submission Guidelines:

Please submit an abstract of 750–1000 words, along with a brief CV, to: torontomoralpsych@gmail.com 

Submissions should not be anonymized.

Important Dates:

Submission deadline: July 1, 2026

Notification of decisions: August 1, 2026

Limited support for travel and accommodation may be available.

Questions about the workshop may be directed to the conference organizer, Andrew Sepielli (Philosophy, University of Toronto), at: torontomoralpsych@gmail.com

Call: “Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Linguistic Justice”

Posted on by Alexander Max Bauer

On September 8, 2026, the satellite workshop “Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Linguistic Justice” will accompany the 6th European Experimental Philosophy Conference at the University of Cagliari, Italy.

Proposals for talks can be submitted until May 1, 2026. The call reads:

The Conference will be accompanied by a Satellite Workshop on “Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Linguistic Justice” (IPLJ), to be held on 8 September 2026. The IPLJ Workshop will be held in collaboration with the Linguistic Justice Society (LJS). The IPLJ Workshop welcomes experimental and empirically informed contributions on linguistic justice broadly construed, to include linguistic diversity, accent bias and related topics. For the Workshop, we welcome only contributions in the form of talks. There will be no fees for those wishing to take part in the IPLJ Satellite Workshop, which will also be online-accessible.

Deadline: May 1st, 2026

https://openreview.net/group?id=EXPhi/2026/Conference/Workshop/IPLJ

Decisions expected by June 1st, 2026

Submitting authors will have or create a profile on OpenReview. Whereas new profiles with an institutional email will be activated automatically, new profiles created without an institutional email will go through a moderation process that can take up to two weeks. Abstracts for talks should be anonymized for review and not exceed 500 words. References and figure captions do not count towards the word limit. Please make sure all materials for review are anonymized.