The study by Koenigs et al. investigates the role of the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (VMPC) in moral judgment, focusing on utilitarian moral dilemmas. Six patients with bilateral VMPC damage were compared to neurologically normal (NC) and brain-damaged control (BDC) subjects. The VMPC patients showed an abnormally high rate of utilitarian responses in high-conflict personal moral dilemmas, where the decision involved sacrificing one person's life to save others, but their judgments were normal in other types of moral dilemmas. This suggests that the VMPC is critical for making moral judgments involving emotionally salient actions, particularly those that evoke strong social emotions. The findings support the idea that emotions play a necessary role in generating moral judgments, specifically in resolving conflicts where social emotions are pivotal. The study also highlights the importance of understanding the specific contexts in which emotional processes influence moral judgment.The study by Koenigs et al. investigates the role of the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (VMPC) in moral judgment, focusing on utilitarian moral dilemmas. Six patients with bilateral VMPC damage were compared to neurologically normal (NC) and brain-damaged control (BDC) subjects. The VMPC patients showed an abnormally high rate of utilitarian responses in high-conflict personal moral dilemmas, where the decision involved sacrificing one person's life to save others, but their judgments were normal in other types of moral dilemmas. This suggests that the VMPC is critical for making moral judgments involving emotionally salient actions, particularly those that evoke strong social emotions. The findings support the idea that emotions play a necessary role in generating moral judgments, specifically in resolving conflicts where social emotions are pivotal. The study also highlights the importance of understanding the specific contexts in which emotional processes influence moral judgment.