“少数服从多数”的证成及其限度——程序价值角度的研究

The Justification and Limitation of “the Minority Obeying the Majority”——A Research Basing on Procedural Values

在现代社会,"少数服从多数"作为一种集体决策观念被许多人所接受,但人们对于"少数为什么应该服从多数"的理由却缺乏足够的反思。这种反思,即对多数决的证成的缺乏可能会使得人们认为多数决具有内在正义性、普遍适用性,从而误用、滥用多数决。结果价值角度的证成面临着不能充分尊重个体独立性的问题,程序价值角度的证成已成为目前研究的主要方向。但目前的研究对于少数服从多数为何能够实现"公正对待"、"平等尊重"、"自治概率最大化和强迫概率最小化"以及"消除专断性"等程序价值的阐释还存在诸多缺点,即原则与直觉之间没有做到很好的平衡和融贯;也没有在这些阐释的基础上分析多数决具有正当性的条件。在对上述阐释进一步完善的基础上的分析表明,只有在人们依据理由而不是偏见进行投票,"多数"与"少数"不固定等条件下,"少数服从多数"才能够实现上述程序价值,才可能具有正当性。多数决在一定条件下能够被证成,但并不具有内在正义性和普遍适用性。

In Modern Society, "the minority obeying the majority" is accepted by many people as a notion of group decision. However, people don’t think much about "why the minority should obey the majority". To answer this question, we should explore how "the minority obeying the majority" can be justified. The justifications basing on consequential values perspective face the problem of lacking respect for individual’s independence. It has become a main direction to justify "the minority obeying the majority" with procedural values. Only the minority obey the majority will realize values like "impartiality", "equal respect","autonomy maximization and coercion minimization","removing arbitrary power". These values are reasons for minority to obey the majority. Further analyses show that "the minority obeying the majority" will realize these values only when some conditions are met, such as people’s voting with reasons and not with prejudice, "majority"and "minority" mustn’t be fixed, and so on. Without these conditions, the minority may not have reasons to obey the majority.The analysis of these conditions will help to avoid majority rule abusing and promote the procedural legitimacy of group decisions.