According to neural naturalism, moral objectivity does not rest on theological prescriptions, a
priori truths, moral universal grammar, or reflective equilibrium. The basis for morality is that people
have objective vital needs without which they would be harmed in their ability to function as human
beings. Actions have consequences that affect the needs of people; an action is right to the extent that
it furthers those needs, and wrong to the extent that it damages them. Moral judgments are inherently
emotional in that we feel approval toward what we take to be right and disapproval toward what we
take to be wrong. Like emotional experience in general, moral judgments have an element of cognitive
appraisal that should include assessment of the consequences of an action for the needs of the people
involved. The assessment is not just a cold calculation of costs and benefits, but should include an
element of caring about those who are affected. Such caring enlists the physiological aspects of
emotions and the functioning of mirror neurons.