The ethics of care
- Theory
The ethics of care puts relationships, dependency and concrete attention to each person's needs at the centre.
What it is
The ethics of care emerged in the 1980s as a critique of theories focused only on rules, rights and impartiality. Carol Gilligan (In a Different Voice, 1982) challenged Lawrence Kohlberg's model of moral development, which had rated women as less developed, and described a moral «voice» based on responsibility and relationships. Nel Noddings (Caring, 1984) described care as attention to the needs of the other within a concrete relationship. Later, Virginia Held and Joan Tronto carried care into social and political life, and Eva Kittay showed that dependency is a normal part of human life and that carers also become vulnerable. The ethics of care does not replace the principles: it adds attention to context, to moral emotions and to those who give care. This page goes deeper than the summary in «Ethical theories in brief».
Core ideas
- Relationships: people are not isolated individuals; obligations also arise from concrete bonds.
- Dependency and vulnerability: illness, childhood, old age and disability are a normal part of life, not exceptions.
- Attention to context: the right response depends on the person's situation, history and needs.
- Moral emotions: compassion and empathy guide judgement rather than getting in its way.
- Justice in care: the work of caring must be shared and supported, not always fall on the same people.
Ethics of justice versus ethics of care
| Aspect | Ethics of justice and rights | Ethics of care |
|---|---|---|
| Question | Which rule or right applies? | What does this person need, and who answers? |
| Person | Autonomous, independent individual | Person in relationship, sometimes dependent |
| Method | Impartial, universal | Attentive to context and relationship |
| Emotions | Kept apart from judgement | Guide moral judgement |
In clinical practice
- In palliative care, deciding with the patient and family according to their bonds and history is applying the ethics of care.
- Relational autonomy recognises that many patients decide together with their family while still being the ones who decide.
- Supporting the family carer (information, respite, resources) is part of the care plan, not an extra.
- Taking the time needed to listen to a frightened patient is a demand of care, as well as good clinical practice.
Criticisms and limits
- It can become partial: it favours those close by and forgets duties to strangers.
- Risk of exploitation: idealising care can load the work onto women and carers without support or pay.
- Limited guidance: without general rules, it sometimes offers little direction in hard cases.
- From disability studies comes the criticism that it focuses on the carer rather than on the control of the person receiving care.
- Defenders reply that care complements justice and rights; it does not replace them.
Test yourself
Think of the answer, then tap the question to see it.
Which theory of moral development did Carol Gilligan respond to?
Lawrence Kohlberg's, which had placed women at less developed stages; Gilligan described a morality of responsibility and relationships.
What central question does the ethics of care ask?
What this concrete person needs and who answers for them, within the context of their relationships.
What did Eva Kittay contribute to the ethics of care?
She showed that dependency is a normal part of human life and that carers also become vulnerable and need support.
What is a frequent criticism of the ethics of care?
That it can favour those close by and neglect impartiality, or load the work of caring onto the same people without support.
Elsewhere in DurgiPedia
Connections
Educational content on ethics and health law; not legal advice. Laws and case law change: each page links the official text and says when it was last checked. For a real case, read the text in force and ask a lawyer or the medical ethics tribunal.
Sources: Feminist Ethics (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2025); Bioethics and Moral Reasoning (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2026).
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Representative model, for educational purposes only.