Cognitive Scaffold

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MENTAL MODEL · M5694

Demandingness Objection

Demandingness Objection
CultureHigh supportEthics
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Updated 2026-08-05

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INTRODUCTION

English translation pending.

CORE DEFINITION

A criticism of act consequentialism and classical utilitarianism, pressed by philosophers including Bernard Williams and critics of Peter Singer's conclusions. If morality requires maximizing overall welfare, then spending money on a coffee is wrong whenever donating it would produce more good, which makes ordinary life continuously immoral. The core claim is that a standard exceeding human capacity is self-defeating. The qualification is that the objection does not refute consequentialism outright, since such theories can add an account of permissible self-concern.

SCAFFOLDING EFFECT

psychology

Reduce cognitive load

- Use Demandingness Test: Before setting a norm, check whether ordinary people could actually live by it. - Use Ideal Versus Feasible: Separate the aspirational standard from the version that can be widely practiced. - Use Margin Setting: Preserve room for personal life and reasonable self-concern inside the rule.

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A standard that no one can meet continuously is violated by everyone, and once violation is universal the norm loses both its guidance and its motivating force. People who cannot comply either abandon the standard or perform compliance they do not believe, which produces hypocrisy rather than better conduct. A feasible standard, though lower, actually shapes behavior, so demandingness beyond capacity undermines the very improvement the norm was meant to produce.

MINIMUM ACTION

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Source support: Explicit

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    en.wikipedia.orghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demandingness_objectionZH · Explicit
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