The Journal of Applied Philosophy has awarded its 2022 Greatest Essay Prize to Scott Altman (USC).
Professor Altman received the prize for his article, “Selling Silence: The Morality of Sexual Harassment NDAs“. Right here’s its summary:
This text argues in opposition to implementing sexual harassment nondisclosure agreements (NDAs). Though NDAs guard privateness, facilitate settlement, and compensate victims, in addition they assist repeat perpetrators keep away from detection and punishment, endangering future victims and undermining efforts to fight sexual harassment. Advocates argue that victims don’t have any obligation to stop these harms, given the dangers and trauma of reporting. I provide three responses. First, though most victims don’t have any obligation to talk, some victims would possibly come to have such an obligation. The state shouldn’t assist them decide to violating a future obligation. Second, some initially reticent victims might later need to disclose. The state shouldn’t implement guarantees to not do supererogatory acts. Third, NDAs make victims complicit with the perpetrator’s future harassment and wrongful efforts to keep away from social punishment. If perpetrators refuse to compensate victims adequately with out NDAs, we must always enhance sufferer compensation reasonably than implement NDAs. Accused harassers would possibly declare they want NDAs to protect in opposition to wrongful or extreme social punishment. For responsible perpetrators, NDAs resemble felony expungement statutes. Nevertheless, arguments for expungement don’t apply to NDAs. Though falsely accused individuals have legit privateness pursuits, NDAs are an excessively broad technique to shield this curiosity.
The prize of £1,000 is awarded to the writer of the very best paper revealed within the journal that 12 months, as judged by journal’s editors.
A listing of earlier winners of the prize is here.
