Philosophy Charts

Mermaid Charts

Data

• ENGAGEMENT

  • 23% of adults often think about or researched the ethical aspects of a choice in their life. (Another 31% do so sometimes.)

    <aside> ⚠️ Problem: A mere 54% of US adults have considered the ethical aspects of some choice in their life, and only on occasion. Approximately half the country rarely or never considered the ethical aspects of their choices.

    </aside>

  • The youngest adults, ages 18 to 29, are somewhat more likely to engage ethical questions than older Americans, and Americans with a college degree are more likely to do so than those with a high school diploma or less.

• PERCEPTIONS
  • While 77% of Americans have a favorable impression of the term “philosophy”, **less than a third have a very favorable view (29%). The latter share is smaller than for every other humanities discipline—and identical to the share for statistics.
  • 37% of Black Americans have a very favorable impression of philosophy, compared to 24% of Asian Americans and 27% of White Americans.
  • Americans in the lowest income quartile are somewhat more likely to have a very favorable view of philosophy than those in the highest quartile.
  • Self-identified political liberals are substantially more likely than conservatives to have a very favorable impression of philosophy. While 41% of liberals have such a favorable impression of the term, only 17% of conservatives are similarly disposed.
• IN CHILDHOOD AND EDUCATION
  • Given a range of humanities and nonhumanities subjects to choose from (and allowed to select more than one), 25% of Americans wish they had taken more philosophy courses.
  • Women are no more likely to wish they had studied more philosophy than men, but Black and Hispanic Americans are somewhat more likely than White Americans to wish they had taken more classes in the subject.
  • Americans identifying as politically liberal are twice as likely as conservatives to wish they had studied more philosophy.
  • 29% of Americans recall their parents often discussing ethical issues, though that is smaller than the share who remembered their parents rarely or never engaging in those conversations (36%).
  • 87% of Americans feel that teaching ethics to K–12 students is important. An identical share feel it is important that children be taught logic.
  • Though a large majority of every age group consider the teaching of ethics important, older Americans are more likely than the youngest adults to see the value of teaching the subject to children.
  • Approximately three-quarters of Americans believe ethics ought to be taught both in school and outside (in the home, church, or community).
  • A third of those who believe ethics ought to be taught in school feel that elementary school is too early for children to begin learning the subject. The share for logic is 39%.

Source: American Academy of Arts and Sciences*. “The Humanities in American Life: Insights for Philosophy”*(2019).

[Link]

Ideas

1. Argument Mapping Tool
   • Visualize arguments and counterarguments
   • Track logical flow and identify fallacies
   • Collaborative feature for group discussions
2. Ethical Dilemma Simulator
   • Present users with complex moral scenarios
   • Allow users to make decisions and see the outcomes
   • Compare decisions with philosophical frameworks (e.g., utilitarianism, deontology)
3. Philosophy Quiz and Learning Modules
   • Interactive quizzes on various philosophical topics
   • Personalized learning paths based on quiz results
   • Gamified elements to enhance engagement
4. Philosophical Journaling
   • Daily prompts based on philosophical questions
   • Space for users to reflect and record their thoughts
   • Option to share entries with a community for feedback
5. Hypothesis Tracker
   • Log hypotheses and beliefs
   • Track changes over time and reasons for shifts
   • Compare personal beliefs with historical philosophies
6. Debate Platform
   • Facilitate structured debates on philosophical topics
   • Include timers, rebuttals, and audience voting
   • Archive debates for future reference and learning
7. Philosophical Text Annotations
   • Annotate and highlight key philosophical texts
   • Share annotations with others
   • Collaborative reading sessions with discussion threads
8. Philosophy Podcast and Video Library
   • Curated collection of philosophy-related podcasts and videos
   • Categorized by themes and philosophers
   • Integrated discussion forum for each media item
9. Virtual Philosophical Salon
   • Host live discussions and events with guest philosophers
   • Virtual "rooms" for smaller group discussions
   • Interactive Q&A sessions