Ethics

Ethics or moral philosophy is the branch of philosophy that involves systematizing, defending, and
recommending concepts of right and wrong conduct.[1] The term ethics derives from the Ancient
Greek word ethikos, which is derived from the word ethos (habit, "custom"). The branch of
philosophy axiology comprises the sub-branches of ethics and aesthetics, each concerned with values.[2]

As a branch of philosophy, ethics investigates the questions "What is the best way for people to live?" and
"What actions are right or wrong in particular circumstances?" In practice, ethics seeks to resolve
questions of human morality, by defining concepts such as good and evil, right
and wrong, virtue and vice, justice and crime. As a field of intellectual enquiry, moral philosophy also is
related to the fields of moral psychology, descriptive ethics, and value theory.

Three major areas of study within ethics recognised today are:[1]

1. Meta-ethics, concerning the theoretical meaning and reference of moral propositions, and how
their truth values (if any) can be determined
2. Normative ethics, concerning the practical means of determining a moral course of action
3. Applied ethics, concerning what a person is obligated (or permitted) to do in a specific situation
or a particular domain of action[1]

Business ethics (also corporate ethics) is a form of applied ethics or professional ethics that examines
ethical principles and moral or ethical problems that arise in a business environment. It applies to all
aspects of business conduct and is relevant to the conduct of individuals and entire organizations.
Applied Ethics is the branch of ethics which consists of the analysis of specific, controversial moral issues
such as abortion, animal rights, or euthanasia. In recent years applied ethical issues have been subdivided
into convenient groups such as medical ethics, business ethics, environmental ethics, and sexual ethics.

Values
Introduction

In ethics, value denotes something's degree of importance, with the aim of determining what action of
life is best to do or live (deontology), or to describe the significance of different actions (axiology). It may
be described as treating actions themselves as abstract objects, putting value to them. It deals with right
conduct and good life, in the sense that a highly, or at least relatively highly, valuable action may be
regarded as ethically "good" (adjective sense), and an action of low, or at least relatively low, value may
be regarded as "bad".

What makes an action valuable may in turn depend on the ethic values of the objects it increases,
decreases or alters. An object with "ethic value" may be termed an "ethic or philosophic good"
Values can be defined as those things that are important to or valued by someone. That someone can be
an individual or, collectively, an organization. One place where values are important is in relation to vision.

Values are the embodiment of what an organization stands for, and should be the basis for the behavior
of its members. However, what if members of the organization do not share and have not internalized the
organization's values? Obviously, a disconnect between individual and organizational values will be
dysfunctional. Additionally, an organization may publish one set of values, perhaps in an effort to push
forward a positive image, while the values that really guide organizational behavior are very different.
When there is a disconnect between stated and operating values, it may be difficult to determine what
is "acceptable."

The same thing works at the level of the society. The principles by which the society functions do not
necessarily conform to the principles stated. Those in power may covertly allow the use of force to
suppress debate in order to remain in power.

VALUES PROVIDE THE BASIS FOR JUDGMENTS ABOUT WHAT IS IMPORTANT FOR THE SELF TO SUCCEED
IN LIFE

TO BEHAVE ETHICALLY IS TO BEHAVE IN A MANNER THAT IS CONSISTENT WITH WHAT IS GENERALLY

CONSIDERED TO BE RIGHT OR MORAL. ETHICAL BEHAVIOR IS THE BEDROCK OF MUTUAL TRUST

So how do values relate to ethics, and what do we mean by ethics? One of the keys is in the phrase we
quoted above from the DA pamphlet: "Values are what we, as a profession, judge to be right." Individually
or organizationally, values determine what is right and what is wrong, and doing what is right or wrong
is what we mean by ethics. To behave ethically is to behave in a manner consistent with what is right
or moral. What does "generally considered to be right" mean? That is a critical question, and part of the
difficulty in deciding whether or not behavior is ethical is in determining what is right or wrong.

Ethical values - A recent duty-based theory is that by British philosopher W.D. Ross, which
emphasizes prima facie duties. Ross argues that our duties are "part of the fundamental nature of the
universe." He believes reflects our actual moral convictions:

Fidelity: the duty to keep promises

Reparation: the duty to compensate others when we harm them
Gratitude: the duty to thank those who help us
Justice: the duty to recognize merit
Beneficence: the duty to improve the conditions of others
Self-improvement: the duty to improve our virtue and intelligence
Non-maleficence: the duty to not injure others
Truthfullness
Fairness
Respect for Autonomy

Ethical Norms
Norms are informal guidelines about what is considered normal (what is correct or incorrect) social
behavior in a particular group or social unit. Norms are expectation of proper behavior not the
requirement of that behavior. Norms are the ways an individual expects all the people to act in a given
situation. They are inconsistent and universal. Norms are not published, may not be obeyed and cannot
be enforced except by sanctions of a group who use penalties as disapproval or exclusion.

Norms are concepts (sentences) of practical import, oriented to effecting an action, rather than
conceptual abstractions that describe, explain, and express. Common normative sentences include
commands, permissions, and prohibitions; common normative abstract concepts include sincerity,
justification, and honesty. Norms form the basis of collective expectations that members of a community
have from each other, and play a key part in social control and social order by exerting a pressure on the
individual to conform.
 Ethical Principles and Standards
Four fundamental ethical principles (a very simple introduction)

The Principle of Respect for autonomy

Autonomy is Latin for "self-rule" We have an obligation to respect the autonomy of other
persons, which is to respect the decisions made by other people concerning their own lives. This
is also called the principle of human dignity. It gives us a negative duty not to interfere with the
decisions of competent adults, and a positive duty to empower others for whom were
responsible.
Corollary principles: honesty in our dealings with others & obligation to keep promises.

The Principle of Beneficence

We have an obligation to bring about good in all our actions.
Corollary principle? We must take positive steps to prevent harm. However, adopting this
corollary principle frequently places us in direct conflict with respecting the autonomy of other
persons.

The Principle of non-maleficence

(It is not "non-malfeasance," which is a technical legal term, & it is not "nonmalevolence," which
means that one did not intend to harm.)
We have an obligation not to harm others: "First, do no harm."
Corollary principle: Where harm cannot be avoided, we are obligated to minimize the harm we
do.
Corollary principle: Don't increase the risk of harm to others.
Corollary principle: It is wrong to waste resources that could be used for good.
Combining beneficence and non-maleficence: Each action must produce more good than harm.
 The Principle of justice
We have an obligation to provide others with whatever they are owed or deserve. In public life,
we have an obligation to treat all people equally, fairly, and impartially.
Corollary principle: Impose no unfair burdens.
Combining beneficence and justice: We are obligated to work for the benefit of those who are
unfairly treated.

The five general principles

Principle A: Beneficence and Nonmaleficence

Principle B: Fidelity and Responsibility

Principle C: Integrity

Principle D: Justice

Principle E: Respect for Peoples Rights and Dignity

Ethical standards
Principles that when followed, promote values such as trust, good behavior, fairness, and/or kindness.
There is not one consistent set of standards that all companies follow, but each company has the right to
develop the standards that are meaningful for their organization.

Normative Principles in Applied Ethics

Arriving at a short list of representative normative principles is itself a challenging task. The principles
selected must not be too narrowly focused, such as a version of act-egoism that might focus only on an
action's short-term benefit. The following principles are the ones most commonly appealed to in applied
ethical discussions:

Personal benefit: acknowledge the extent to which an action produces beneficial consequences
for the individual in question.
Social benefit: acknowledge the extent to which an action produces beneficial consequences for
society.
Principle of benevolence: help those in need.
Principle of paternalism: assist others in pursuing their best interests when they cannot do so
themselves.
Principle of harm: do not harm others.
Principle of honesty: do not deceive others.
Principle of lawfulness: do not violate the law.
Principle of autonomy: acknowledge a person's freedom over his/her actions or physical body.
Principle of justice: acknowledge a person's right to due process, fair compensation for harm
done, and fair distribution of benefits.
Rights: acknowledge a person's rights to life, information, privacy, free expression, and safety.

The above principles represent a spectrum of traditional normative principles and are derived from both
consequentialist and duty-based approaches. The first two principles, personal benefit and social benefit,
are consequentialist since they appeal to the consequences of an action as it affects the individual or
society. The remaining principles are duty-based. The principles of benevolence, paternalism, harm,
honesty, and lawfulness are based on duties we have toward others. The principles of autonomy, justice,
and the various rights are based on moral rights.

Ethics and Morality

Morality (from the Latin moralitas "manner, character, proper behavior") is the differentiation of
intentions, decisions, and actions between those that are distinguished as proper and those that are
improper: In other words, it is the disjunction between right and wrong.[1] Morality can be a body of
standards or principles derived from a code of conduct from a particular philosophy, religion, or culture,
or it can derive from a standard that a person believes should be universal.[2] Morality may also be
specifically synonymous with "goodness" or "rightness."

Moral philosophy includes moral ontology, or the origin of morals, as well as moral epistemology, or
knowledge about morals. Different systems of expressing morality have been proposed, including
deontological ethical systems which adhere to a set of established rules, and normative ethical systems
which consider the merits of actions themselves. An example of normative ethical philosophy is the
Golden Rule, which states that: "One should treat others as one would like others to treat oneself."[3]

Immorality is the active opposition to morality (i.e. opposition to that which is good or right), while
amorality is variously defined as an unawareness of, indifference toward, or disbelief in any set of moral
standards or principles.

WILLBERN'S LEVEL OF PUBLIC MORALITY

ETHIC OF COMPROMISE AND SOCIAL INTEGRATION

ETHIC OF PUBLIC POLICY DETERMINATION
ETHIC OF DEMOCRATIC RESPONSIBILITY
SERVICE ORIENTATION AND PROCEDURAL FAIRNESS
CONFLICT OF INTEREST
BASIC HONESTY AND CONFORMITY TO LAW
 Ethics versus Morals comparison chart

Ethics Morals

What are they? The rules of conduct recognized in respect to a
particular class of human actions or a particular
group or culture.
Principles or habits with respect to
right or wrong conduct. While morals
also prescribe dos and don'ts, morality
is ultimately a personal compass of
right and wrong.

Where do they Social system - External Individual - Internal

come from?

Why we do it? Because society says it is the right thing to do. Because we believe in something
being right or wrong.

Flexibility Ethics are dependent on others for definition. Usually consistent, although can
They tend to be consistent within a certain change if an individuals beliefs
context, but can vary between contexts. change.

The "Gray" A person strictly following Ethical Principles may A Moral Person although perhaps
not have any Morals at all. Likewise, one could bound by a higher covenant, may
violate Ethical Principles within a given system of choose to follow a code of ethics as it
rules in order to maintain Moral integrity. would apply to a system. "Make it fit"

Origin Greek word "ethos" meaning"character" Latin word "mos" meaning "custom"

Acceptability Ethics are governed by professional and legal Morality transcends cultural norms
guidelines within a particular time and place

Theory of Moral Development - Lawrence Kohlberg

Kohlberg's Theory of Moral Judgment. Lawrence Kohlberg developed a theory describing the
development or moral judgment based on concepts of objectivity, justice, and fairness. His research
originally was focused on boys aged ten to sixteen, and was later refined and revised. His theory illustrates
the development of moral judgment proceeding through three levels, each with two stages.
History of the Theory

How did Kohlberg come up with the theory of moral development? All his ideas started from the research
he performed with very young children as his subjects. He found out that children are faced with different
moral issues, and their judgments on whether they are to act positively or negatively over each dilemma
are heavily influenced by several factors. In each scenario that Kohlberg related to the children, he was
not really asking whether or not the person in the situation is morally right or wrong, but he wanted to
find out the reasons why these children think that the character is morally right or not.

Levels and Stages of Moral Development

Level 1: Preconventional Morality

The first level of morality, preconventional morality, can be further divided into two stages: obedience
and punishment, and individualism and exchange.

Stage 1: Punishment- Obedience Orientation

Related to Skinners Operational Conditioning, this stage includes the use of punishment so that the
person refrains from doing the action and continues to obey the rules. For example, we follow the law
because we do not want to go to jail.

Stage 2: Instrumental Relativist Orientation

In this stage, the person is said to judge the morality of an action based on how it satisfies the individual
needs of the doer. For instance, a person steals money from another person because he needs that money
to buy food for his hungry children. In Kohlbergs theory, the children tend to say that this action is morally
right because of the serious need of the doer.

Level 2: Conventional Morality

The second level of morality involves the stages 3 and 4 of moral development. Conventional morality
includes the society and societal roles in judging the morality of an action.

Stage 3: Good Boy-Nice Girl Orientation

In this stage, a person judges an action based on the societal roles and social expectations before him.
This is also known as the interpersonal relationships phase. For example, a child gives away her lunch
to a street peasant because she thinks doing so means being nice.
Stage 4: Law and Order Orientation

This stage includes respecting the authorities and following the rules, as well as doing a persons duty. The
society is the main consideration of a person at this stage. For instance, a policeman refuses the money
offered to him under the table and arrests the offender because he believes this is his duty as an officer
of peace and order.

Level 3: Postconventional Morality

The post-conventional morality includes stage 5 and stage 6. This is mainly concerned with the universal
principles that relation to the action done.

Stage 5 : Social Contract Orientation

In this stage, the person is look at various opinions and values of different people before coming up with
the decision on the morality of the action.

Stage 6 : Universal Ethical Principles Orientation

The final stage of moral reasoning, this orientation is when a person considers universally accepted ethical
principles. The judgment may become innate and may even violate the laws and rules as the person
becomes attached to his own principles of justice.

Kohlberg Stages of Moral Development

Approximate Age Range Stage Substages
1) Avoid punishment
Birth to 9 Preconventional
2) Gain Reward
3) Gain Approval & Avoid
Age 9 to 20 Conventional Disapproval
4) Duty & Guilt

5) Agreed upon rights

Age 20+ maybe never Postconventional
6) Personal moral standards
 Theory of Moral Development - Carol Gilligan

Carol Gilligan was born on November 28, 1936, in New York City. She has received her doctorate degree
in social psychology from Harvard University in 1964m and began teaching at Harvard in 1967. Then in
1970 she became a research assistant for the great theorist of moral development, Lawrence Kohlberg.
Eventually Gilligan became independent and began to criticize some of Kohlbergs work. Her opinions
were presented in her famous book, " In a different Voice: Psychological Theory and Womens
Development " which was published in 1982. She felt that Kohlberg only studied privileged, white men
and boys. Gilligan said that this caused a biased opinion against women. She felt that , in Kohlberg ' s
stage theory of moral development, the male view of individual rights and rules was considered a higher
stage than women's point of view of development in terms of its caring effect on human relationships.
Gilligans goal is was to prove that women are not moral midgets, she was going against many
psychological opinions. Another famous theorist, Freud thought women's moral sense was stunted
because they stayed attached to their mothers. Another great theorist, Erik Erickson, thought the tasks of
development were separation from mother and the family, If women did not succeed in this scale, then
they were obviously lacking. Therefore Gilligan's goal was a good cause.

Her theory is divided into three stages of moral development beginning from " selfish, to social or
conventional morality, and finally to post conventional or principled morality. Women must learn to deal
to their own interests and to the interests of others. She thinks that women hesitate to judge because
they see the complexities of relationships.

Pre Conventional
-Person only cares for themselves in order to ensure survival

-This is how everyone is as children

In this transitional phase, the person 's attitude is considered selfish, and the person sees the connection
between themselves and others.

Conventional
-Responsibility

-More care shown for other people.

-Gilligan says this is shown in the role of Mother & Wife

-Situation sometimes carries on to ignoring needs of self.

In this transitional phase, tensions between responsibility of caring for others and caring for self are faced.

Post Conventional
-Aceeptance of the principle of care for self and others is shown.

-Some people never reach this level.

Is She Wrong?
There has been some criticism of Gilligan's work and by Christina Hoff Sommers, PhD. She says that
Gilligan does not have data for her research. She says Gilligan used unreliable evidence, that researchers
have not been able to duplicate her work, and that the samples used were too small. She feels strongly
that promoting an anti-male agenda hurts both males and females. Gilligan says that her work has been
published in articles and journals and Sommers points are inaccurate.

Gilligans Theory and Society

Gilligan's ideas are against the struggle of women against our society's idea of their gender-determined
" role. According to Gilligan, women can gain personal independence after they forget about the idea that
their proper role is to overcome their interests to the interests of their husbands, children, or other people
they care about. Gilligan says that in our society women really like to help others, however they should
care just as much about themselves as the do about others.

Gilligan's Theory and Education

Carol Gilligan's theory helps both men and women in seeing each other in a different perspective. In terms
of education everyone should focus on it and everyone's need for education is important. A person should
not put the needs of others in front of their own, especially in the case of education

Gilligan's Theory and the Workplace

A person could undergo this process of "the ethic of care" when entering a new job. The conventional
stage is shown when the job is just acquired, and a good impression is trying to be made. This is followed
by the conventional stage, which can be seen after developing relationships with colleagues. This might
be followed by the post conventional stage when care for oneself and another colleague might be equal.
(Not everyone reaches the post conventional stage)
Factors influencing Business Ethics
Business leaders today are well aware of the ethical issues and hence they
want to improve the ethical standards of the business. Self-regulation is, of
course, better and produce impressive results. Besides, there are also a
number of factors, which significantly influence the managers to take ethical
decisions. Some of them are:

Image: Factors influencing business ethics

1. Personal Code of Ethics: A mans personal code of ethics that is what one
considers moral is the foremost responsible factor influencing his behavior.
2. Legislation: It is already stated that the Government will intervene and enact
laws only when the businessmen become too unethical and selfish and totally
ignore their responsibility to the society. No society can tolerate such
misbehavior continuously. It will certainly exert pressure on the Government
and the Government consequently has no other alternative to prohibit such
unhealthy behavior of the businessmen.
3. Government Rules and Regulations: Laws support Government regulations
regarding the working conditions, product safety, statutory warning etc. These
provide some guidelines to the business managers in determining what are
acceptable or recognized standards and practices.
4. Ethical Code of the Company: When a company grows larger, its standard of
ethical conduct tends to rise. Any unethical behavior or conduct on the part of
the company shall endanger its established reputation, public image and
goodwill. Hence, most companies are very cautious in this respect. They issue
specific guidelines to their subordinates regarding the dealings of the
company.
5. Social Pressures: Social forces and pressures have considerable influence on
ethics in business. If a company supplies sub-standard products and get
involved in unethical conducts, the consumers will become indifferent towards
the company. Such refusals shall exert a pressure on the company to act
honestly and adhere strictly to the business ethics. Sometimes, the society itself
may turn against a company.
6. Ethical Climate of the Industry: Modern industry today is working in a more and
more competitive atmosphere. Hence only those firms, which strictly adhere
to the ethical code, can retain its position unaffected in its line of business.
When other firms, in the same industry are strictly adhering to the ethical
standards, the firm in question should also perform up to the level of others.
If the companys performance is below than other companies, in the same
industry, it cannot survive in the field in the long run.

Factor Rank Today Rank in 10 Years

Corporate scandals 1 4

Marketplace competition 2 2

Demands by investors 3 5

Pressure from customers 4 3

Globalization