lOMoARcPSD|11798610
Lesson 2 - ETHICS
Ethics (Bicol University)
StuDocu is not sponsored or endorsed by any college or university
Downloaded by Quency TAN (janelm027@gmail.com)
lOMoARcPSD|11798610
THREE LEVELS OF MORAL DILEMMA
The ethical standards of an organization
have a major influence on how it conducts
its functions. A positive approach to
maintaining ethical standards can lead to
positive outcomes in an organization.
However, moral and ethical shortcomings
also exist even in the most successful
organizations. These can be classified at
three levels:



Individual dilemma – Organizations
and businesses are run by people.
Therefore, the ethical standards of
these individuals are an important
consideration.
- Because individuals can have
different set of ethical standards,
this can lead to tensions putting
them in a situation called moral
dilemma.
- Factors such as peer pressure,
personal financial position and
socio-economic status may
influence an individual’s ethical
standards.
Organizational dilemma – At a
company, corporate or organizational
level, ethical standards are embedded
in the policies and procedures of the
organization, and form an important
foundation on which the organization
is built.
- There can be a gap between the
company/organization policy on
ethical standards and the conduct
of those leaders in-charge of
running the organization, which
can present an ethical challenge
for some employees.
Structural dilemma – Factors such
as political pressures, economic
conditions, societal attitudes to
certain businesses, and even business
regulation can influence a system’s
operating standards and policies.
Leaders must be aware of how these
pressure affect operations,
relationships, and how they may
impact people locally, nationally or
internationally.
MORAL VS. NON-MORAL STANDARDS
Morality – standards that a person or a
group has about what is right and wrong, or
good and evil.
Moral Standards - those concerned with or
relating to human behavior, especially the
distinction between good and bad (or right
and wrong) behavior.
-
-
involve the rules people have about
the kinds of actions they believe are
morally right and wrong, as well as
the values they place on the kinds of
objects they believe are morally good
and morally bad.
Some ethicists equate moral
standards with moral
values and moral principles.
Non-moral Standards - refer to rules that
are
unrelated to moral or ethical considerations.
-
-
-
Either these standards are not
necessarily linked to morality or by
nature lack ethical sense.
Basic examples of non-moral
standards include rules of etiquette,
fashion standards, rules in games, and
various house rules.
Technically, religious rules, some
traditions, and legal statutes (i.e. laws
and ordinances) are non-moral
principles, though they can be
ethically relevant depending on some
factors and contexts.
The following six (6) characteristics of
moral standards further differentiate them
from non-moral standards:
a. Moral standards involve serious wrongs
or significant benefits.
- Moral standards deal with matters
which can seriously impact, that is,
injure or benefit human beings.
- For instance, following or violating
some basketball rules may matter in
basketball games but does not
necessarily affect one’s life or
wellbeing.
b. Moral standards ought to be preferred to
other values.
- Moral standards have overriding
character or hegemonic authority.
- If a moral standard states that a
person has the moral obligation to do
something, then he/she is supposed to
do that even if it conflicts with other
non-moral standards, and even with
self-interest.
c. Moral standards are not established by
authority figures.
Dianna Rose O. Belen, RN, LPT
2018-2019
GE 8 ETHICS
Downloaded by Quency TAN (janelm027@gmail.com)
2nd Sem
lOMoARcPSD|11798610
-
-
Moral standards are not invented,
formed, or generated by authoritative
bodies or persons such as nations’
legislative bodies.
Ideally instead, these values ought to
be considered in the process of
making laws.
FREEDOM: FOUNDATION OF
MORALITY
By: Alex Salter
What is the role of human freedom in
morality?
-
d. Moral standards have the trait of
universalizability.
- Simply put, it means that everyone
should live up to moral standards.
- To be more accurate, however, it
entails that moral principles must
apply to all who are in the relevantly
similar situation.
- If one judges that act A is morally
right for a certain person P, then it is
morally right for anybody relevantly
similar to P.
e. Moral standards are based on impartial
considerations.
- Moral standard does not evaluate
standards on the basis of the interests
of a certain person or group, but one
that goes beyond personal interests to
a universal standpoint in which each
person’s interests are impartially
counted as equal.
-
Personal Morality
-
The personal aspect of morality—
which might more properly be called
ethics—is about the cultivation of
virtue: the development of character
traits so that choosing the good
becomes a matter of habit.
-
An efficient and well-run ship is like a
virtuous person: both have
regularized the internal practices
necessary to be a good example of
what it is. There is one crucial
difference, however: a ship’s crew is
run hierarchically, under the
command of a captain. But a person,
in order to be truly virtuous, must
be free to cultivate the virtues, or not.
-
There is no virtue in being temperate
when you are being forced not to
indulge. There is no virtue in being
charitable when someone is forcing
you to give up what is yours. Virtue
can be guided by cultural traditions
and social institutions, but it cannot
be coerced. A virtuous man must also
be a free man.
-
Thus, freedom is essential to a
genuinely good human life at all the
levels of morality.
Impartiality is usually depicted as
being free of bias or prejudice.
Impartiality in morality requires that
we give equal and/or adequate
consideration to the interests of all
concerned parties.
f. Moral standards are associated with
special emotions and vocabulary.
- Prescriptivity indicates the practical
or action-guiding nature of moral
standards.
- These moral standards are generally
put forth as injunction or imperatives
(such as, ‘Do not kill,’ ‘Do no
unnecessary harm,’ and ‘Love your
neighbor’).
- These principles are proposed for use,
to advise, and to influence to action.
- Retroactively, this feature is used to
evaluate behavior, to assign praise
and blame, and to produce feelings of
satisfaction or of guilt.
Every ship must be well run on its
own, but each must also coordinate
with all the others so that they avoid
collisions and stay in formation.
Finally, the fleet must be set on a
destination, which constitutes the
purpose of their journey. This is a
helpful way to think about morality
regarding self, others, and our
ultimate end.
If a person violates a moral standard by
telling a lie even to fulfill a special purpose,
it is not surprising if he/she starts feeling
guilty or being ashamed of his behavior
afterwards.
On the contrary, no much guilt is felt if one
goes against the current fashion trend (e.g.
refusing to wear tattered jeans).
Dianna Rose O. Belen, RN, LPT
2018-2019
GE 8 ETHICS
Downloaded by Quency TAN (janelm027@gmail.com)
2nd Sem