---
title: "Kant's Categorical Imperative: Ethics for GS4"
description: "Kant's Categorical Imperative is a key moral principle that guides ethical actions, essential for Model UN students and policy researchers."
url: "https://modeldiplomat.com/learn/glossary/kant-categorical-imperative"
---

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Model Diplomat Research Team · Last reviewed June 22, 2026

TL;DR

- The Categorical Imperative is Kant's supreme moral principle commanding actions that one can will as universal law, binding unconditionally on all rational beings.
- How does the Categorical Imperative differ from a hypothetical imperative?
- What are the main formulations of the Categorical Imperative?
- Why is the Categorical Imperative relevant to civil services ethics?
- What is the most common objection to the Categorical Imperative?

[Civil Service & Diplomatic Exams](https://modeldiplomat.com/learn/civil-services/glossary)Updated June 22, 2026

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In its first ruling on the 2005 Aviation Security Act, Germany's Federal Constitutional Court in 2006 struck down a provision permitting the shoot-down of hijacked passenger planes, holding that treating onboard innocents as mere means violated their inviolable human dignity.

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