The Axiomatic Approach to Population Ethics

Charles Blackorby, Walter Bossert and David Donaldson

Politics, Philosophy & Economics, 2003, vol. 2, issue 3, 342-381

Abstract: This article examines several families of population principles in the light of a set of axioms. In addition to the critical-level utilitarian, number-sensitive critical-level utilitarian, and number-dampened utilitarian families and their generalized counterparts, we consider the restricted number-dampened family and introduce two new ones: the restricted critical-level and restricted number-dependent critical-level families. Subsets of the restricted families have non-negative critical levels, avoid the `repugnant conclusion' and satisfy the axiom priority for lives worth living, but violate an important independence condition.

Date: 2003
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Related works:
Working Paper: The Axiomatic Approach to Population Ethics (2001)
Working Paper: The Axiomatic Approach to Population Ethics (2001)
Working Paper: The Axiomatic Approach to Population Ethics (2001)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:pophec:v:2:y:2003:i:3:p:342-381

DOI: 10.1177/1470594X030023004

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