Theoretical and Applied Economics
No. 1 / 2026 (646), Spring
Human ethics vs. algorithmic ethics: the limits of automating moral decision-making
Bucharest University of Economic Studies, Romania
Abstract. This article investigates the constraints associated with the automation of moral decision-making by comparing ethical frameworks of humans and algorithms. It posits that mor-al judgments necessitate interpretation, accountability, and societal justification, elements that cannot be entirely formalized through computational means. Through conceptual analysis and empirical studies in various sectors, including healthcare, autonomous transportation, criminal justice, content moderation, and recruitment, the research highlights the inherent limitations of moral automation. It introduces a Hybrid Ethical Decision Model (HEDM) that differentiates epistemic support from normative authority while incorporating human oversight. The article concludes that the governance of artificial intelligence should focus on the enhancement of human moral agency rather than its substitution.
Contents
From paradox to opportunity: designing a hybrid REIT Model for Romania's emerging capital market
Human development inequality within and between selected SAARC countries using Mean Log Deviation MLD
The influence of renewable energy consumption and trade openness on carbon emissions in South Africa: an augmented autoregressive distributed lag method application
The hidden side of VAT: modeling compliance and inferring collection shortfalls in Romania
The dynamic nexus between oil price fluctuations, exchange rate volatility, and economic growth: empirical evidence from Algeria
Does unemployment influence out-of-pocket health expenditures in sub-Saharan Africa countries? Evidence from the defactored instrumental variables method
From transposition to distortion: how OECD corporate governance principles were misapplied in Romanian state-owned enterprise legislation
Information transmission in the foreign exchange market: evidence from India
The evolution of green energy utilization in Romania
On the equivalence and nonequivalence of import subsidies and export subsidies
AI-simulated reciprocity and the narrowing of decision options within human attachment psychological architecture
Shockwaves abroad and the vulnerability of monetary policy: Morocco’s Central Bank response to geopolitical shocks and commodity price volatility
Impact of growth and tax on pollution in the presence of corruption
Heterogeneous effect of financial inclusion on economic complexity in developing countries
Human ethics vs. algorithmic ethics: the limits of automating moral decision-making
Migrants remittances and economic growth in Morocco: A VAR model analysis
Determinants of inflation in Romania: A VAR approach
Effect of information and communication technologies on life expectancy and under-five mortality in WAEMU countries
Application of PHH and PHE model to Investigative FDI inflows effects on CO2 emissions in developing countries (OECD & BRICS)
Internal vs external migration: comparative patterns within the EU