I'm an Associate Professor of Philosophy at the University of Miami. I received my PhD from Princeton University in 2012.
My primary research interests lie in ethical theory, where I'm especially interested in the defense and development of consequentialism. (I share many of the concerns that non-consequentialists have about crude versions of the view. Much of my research aims to show how consequentialists can accommodate important non-consequentialist insights without abandoning the core of their view.)
I have significant research and teaching interests in applied ethics (especially pandemic policy and effective altruism) and metaethics (exploring non-naturalist normative realism and intuitionist moral epistemology). I also enjoy thinking — and blogging — about topics in metaphysics and epistemology, from peer disagreement to p-zombies.
See here for an overview of major themes from my research, much of which can be united under the meta-theme of how we can do moral philosophy better.
I am the author of Parfit's Ethics, published by Cambridge University Press, and numerous articles in journals including Noûs, Philosophy and Phenomenological Research, and the Australasian Journal of Philosophy. I co-authored (with Peter Singer) an op-ed on pandemic ethics for the Washington Post, and serve as lead editor for the open-access textbook, An Introduction to Utilitarianism.
My wife, Helen Yetter-Chappell, works in philosophy of mind and metaphysics, also at the University of Miami. (Check out her book on Idealism!)
How to alphabetize my name in citations
With apologies for any confusion this may cause, Helen and I differ in how we alphabetize for professional purposes. When citing our papers, please alphabetize our names as follows:
Chappell, Richard Yetter.
Yetter-Chappell, Helen.
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