Open research questions in Philosophical Ethics and Theory
422 gap statements mined from Philosophical Ethics and Theory papers in our 7.9M-paper local library, which holds 7,639 papers on the topic — drawn mostly from each paper's own stated research gap, future-work, challenge and limitation notes, and its abstract. The ones listed below are a selection still marked open; each names the study that raised it, with a DOI link where the paper has one.
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What the literature leaves open
The gap is related to the exclusion of women from full citizenship, justified by alleged biological conditions rooted in the origins of civilization. The paper aims to fill this gap by providing a more nuanced understanding of Kant's theory of citizenship.
Kant’s Sexism Reconsidered: A Critical Account of Kant’s Theory of Citizenship in the Context of Theodor von Hippel’s and Amalia Holst’s Theories of Women’s Duties · 2026 · DOIThe existing accounts of moral claim-rights do not fully explain the relational features of claim-rights. The paper seeks to fill this gap by defending the compound relational account.
The gap is the need for an alternative approach to moral uncertainty that avoids the problems of decision-theoretic models. Current approaches often rely on the assumption that all moral norms are sensitive to moral-epistemic circumstances. The paper identifies the need for a framework that incorporates procedural norms sensitive to moral-epistemic circumstances and substantive norms that aren't.
The gap in the literature is the underdiscussed relationship between core discussions in metaethics, moral psychology, and virtue theory. There is a lack of exploration of the conceptual connections that shape one's view of the moral virtue of non-believers.
The history of the thesis of the guise of the good between Kant and Anscombe is not well understood.
The existing literature has not explored the possibility that Kant's claim is an analytic truth. The paper identifies a gap in the existing literature, which has typically understood this claim as a substantive thesis.
This paper argues for a claim that has not been explored at length elsewhere: that AR is an analytic truth, so it does not imply phenomenalism and can be affirmed by a moderate realist reader.
The paper identifies a gap in the understanding of Climacus' concept of subjective truth, which has often been interpreted as dramatically upholding the rift between Christian faith and common-sense reason. The paper argues that prior readings of Climacus' position have ultimately fallen short of rationally vindicating his case for high christology.
The paper suggests that future research should explore the implications of the structural constraint on normative authority. It implies that we need to develop new approaches to moral judgment that take into account the distinction between commitment-generation and authority-conferral.
It argues that existing accounts of conscience are insufficient and that a new approach is needed.
The need to balance moral maximalism and realist minimalism. The challenge of situating Kant's laws in their historical context.
The need for a reinterpretation of Kant's cosmopolitan right of hospitality. The lack of clarity on the reciprocal duties of host and guest. The need to illuminate the connection to commerce and cosmopolitan education.
The lack of clarity in the concept of dignity. The need to develop a better understanding of the value of human life.
Further research could explore the implications of the cluelessness argument for moral theory. Further research could also consider other possible responses to the cluelessness argument.
The cluelessness argument poses a challenge for consequentialists that has not been fully addressed. The paper identifies a gap in the literature regarding the consideration of closed scenarios.
If we are correct, then not only have we demonstrated a notable and hitherto unforeseen upshot of the position that we can morally wrong others by the beliefs that we form about them – namely, that NU beliefs risk doxastic wronging – but we have also demonstrated why, as a result, it remains to be seen whether NU beliefs or belief in a morally perfect God are epistemically justifiable.
The paper argues that defensive debunking arguments have been overlooked in the literature.
It notes that Kant's remarks on provisionality are far from unequivocal.
It notes that modern industrial conditions have made the integration of work and home more difficult. The author suggests that the concept of home is underdeveloped in eudaimonistic virtue ethics.
Examining procedural oughts and their implications for moral responsibilities, - Developing alternative varieties of uncertaintism that address concerns…
Further exploration of the roles that central concepts in moral psychology play in the structure of metaethical theories. Investigation of the connections between moral virtue, motivation, and integration in non-believers.
The paper identifies a gap in our understanding of moral judgment and normative authority. It argues that prior approaches fail to make sense of the distinction between endorsement and correctness.
The gap between the empirical and transcendentalist approaches to rationality, - The lack of consideration of the moral perspective on concentration…
Further exploration of the concept of admirable disagreement and its implications for moral knowledge. Investigation of the role of personal ideals in shaping our moral values and knowledge.
The paper identifies a gap in understanding Spaemann's concept of (mistaken) conscience. It aims to demonstrate the shift in Spaemann's thinking on the concept of (mistaken) conscience.
Most-cited papers in Philosophical Ethics and Theory
- The Norm of Reciprocity: A Preliminary Statement · American Sociological Review · 1960 · 8,205 citations
- The dimensions of perfectionism · Cognitive Therapy and Research · 1990 · 3,126 citations
- A Note on the Pure Theory of Consumer's Behaviour · Economica · 1938 · 1,411 citations
- Modern Moral Philosophy · Philosophy · 1958 · 1,382 citations
- Well-Being, Agency and Freedom: The Dewey Lectures 1984 · The Journal of Philosophy · 1985 · 1,096 citations
- Alternate Possibilities and Moral Responsibility · The Journal of Philosophy · 1969 · 1,054 citations
- 8. On A Distinction Between Hypothetical Constructs And Intervening Variables · Psychological Review · 1948 · 671 citations
- Constructivist and Ecological Rationality in Economics · American Economic Review · 2003 · 595 citations
- Logics of Identity, Contradiction, and Attraction in Change · Academy of Management Review · 1994 · 592 citations
- A Darwinian Dilemma for Realist Theories of Value · Philosophical Studies · 2005 · 540 citations
Most recent work
- Nursing After Virtue: Revisiting the Work of Derek Sellman · Nursing Philosophy · 2026
- Understanding Virtuous Person‐Centred Nursing Care: A Neo‐Aristotelean Perspective · Nursing Philosophy · 2026
- Rethinking critical pedagogy in times of polycrisis: towards a generative praxis of entanglement, complicity and hope · Pedagogy Culture and Society · 2026
- Conditions of Describability: A Dependency Audit of Relation, Distinction, Identity, Comparison, and Equivalence · Open MIND · 2026
- Voluntariness or validity? A reply to Smith and Mackie · Journal of Medical Ethics · 2026
- On the normative status of future-bias · Synthese · 2026
- Hans Jonas’s Ethics of Responsibility and Ethics of Social Consequences · Philosophia · 2026
- Adam Smith’s Theory of Moral Development, Human Nature and Commerce · Philosophies · 2026
- John Rawls and Liberal Guilt · Polity · 2026
- Commensuration as moral image: liberal modernity’s equivalence machine · Distinktion Journal of Social Theory · 2026
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