Promises to Unidentified Individuals
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RIS BIB ENDNOTEPromises to Unidentified Individuals
Publication date: 19.12.2018
Principia, 2018, Volume 65, pp. 91-111
https://doi.org/10.4467/20843887PI.18.004.9887Authors
Promises to Unidentified Individuals
Is it possible to make a binding promise to an unidentified individual, i.e. an individual whose identity is unknown to a promisor? The answer to this question seems to be negative, regardless of the philosophical theory of promises one decides to adopt. Particular autonomy theories consider promises to be one of the tools for enhancing morally valuable relationships through recognizing another party's particular personality, which enables individuals to live a better life. The generic autonomy theories consider promises to be a tool facilitating cooperation between strangers. The utilitarian theories consider the practice of promising to be a tool for increasing social welfare. The premises of each of these theories seem to rule out the possibility of promises to unidentified individuals. Accordingly, reflections on this topic may some shed light on some problems related to the issue of the identifiability effect, which is widely discussed in the psychological literature.
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Information: Principia, 2018, Volume 65, pp. 91-111
Article type: Original article
Titles:
Promises to Unidentified Individuals
Department of Law European, University Institute in Florence
Published at: 19.12.2018
Article status: Open
Licence: CC BY-NC-ND
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