1 Moral and Non-moral standards

• Ethics


  Examines the rational justification for our moral judgments; it studies what is morally right or wrong, just or unjust
• Ethics


  Reflects on human beings and their interaction with nature and with other humans, on freedom, on responsibility and on justice
• Business ethics


  The implementation of policies and procedures regarding topics such as fraud, bribery, discrimination, and corporate governance
• Moral standards


  Norms that individuals or groups have about the kinds of actions believed to be morally right or wrong, as well as the values placed on what we believed to be morally good or morally bad
• Moral standards


  Promote what is "the good" like the welfare and well-being of humans as well as animals and the environment, and prescribe what humans should do in terms of rights and obligations
• Moral standards


  The sum of combined norms and values
• Norms


  General rules about our actions or behaviors
• Characteristics of moral standards


  • They deal with matters we think can seriously injure or benefit humans, animals, and the environment
  • They are not established or changed by the decisions of authoritative individuals or bodies
  • They are overriding, that is, they take precedence over other standards and considerations, especially of self-interest
  • They are based on impartial considerations, hence they are fair and just
  • They are associated with special emotions (such as guilt and shame) and vocabulary (such as right, wrong, good, and bad)
• Non-moral standards


  Standards by which we judge what is good or bad and right or wrong in a non-moral way, such as etiquette, law, and aesthetics
• Non-moral standards are matters of taste or preference, and a scrupulous observance of these types of standards does not make one a moral person
• Violation of non-moral standards does not pose any threat to human well-being
• Etiquette


  The set of norms of personal behaviour in polite society, usually occurring in the form of an ethical code of the expected and accepted social behaviours that accord with the conventions and norms observed and practised by a society, a social class, or a social group
• Law


  A rule made by a government that states how people may and may not behave in society and in business, and that often orders particular punishments if they do not obey, or a system of such rule
• Aesthetic


  A set of principles concerned with the nature and appreciation of beauty, especially in art, and the branch of philosophy that deals with the principles of beauty and artistic taste
• Religion


  The belief in and worship of a superhuman power or powers, especially a God or gods, and a particular system of faith and worship
• Dilemma


  A situation in which a difficult choice has to be made between two or more alternatives, especially equally undesirable ones, or a difficult situation or problem
• Dilemma


  • Stealing from the rich to feed the poor
  • The classic "lifeboat dilemma", where there are only 10 spaces in the lifeboat, but there are 11 passengers on the sinking ship
• Levels of dilemma


  • Personal Dilemmas
  • Organizational Dilemmas
  • Structural Dilemmas
• Personal Dilemma


  A moral dilemma is a situation wherein a person is required to make a difficult choice, where any choice they make may have repercussions, but they must make a choice
• Characteristics of a personal moral dilemma

  • A person is expected to do two or more actions, but it is not possible to do them at the same time
  • There is an appropriate and an inappropriate choice, but it is difficult to know which is the best choice
  • Someone can get hurt, making the choice even harder to make
  • What is at stake is sometimes a legal issue
• Organizational Dilemmas


  Ethical cases encountered and resolved by social organizations, including moral dilemmas in business, medical field, and public sector
• Organizational Dilemmas


  • A hospital that believes that human life should not be deliberately shortened and that unpreventable pain should not be tolerated encounters a conflict in resolving whether to withdraw life support from a dying patient
  • Administrative bodies in business are confronted with situations in which several courses of action are possible but none of them provide a totally successful outcome to those affected by the decision or actions taken
  • Public officials may encounter moral dilemmas in favoring family, friends, or campaign contributors over other constituents, or in dealing with conflicting public duties
• Structural Dilemmas


  Moral dilemmas pertaining to cases involving network of institutions and operative theoretical paradigms, usually encompassing multi-sectoral institutions and organizations
• Structural Dilemmas


  • The prices of medicine in the Philippines which are higher compared to other countries, where factors affecting medicine prices include the cost of research, presence of competition in the market, government regulations, and patent protection
• Types of Dilemmas


  • Classic Dilemma
  • Ethical Dilemmas
  • Moral Dilemmas
• Classic Dilemma


  A choice between two or more alternatives, in which the outcomes are equally undesirable, or equally favorable, and the dilemma does not typically involve a moral or ethical crisis
• Ethical Dilemma


  Arises when a person is forced to decide between two morally sound options, but they may conflict with the established boundaries of a business, a governmental agency, or the law
• Types of Ethical Dilemma

  • Absolute or pure ethical dilemma
  • Approximate dilemma
• Moral Dilemma


  A situation in which a person is torn between right and wrong, involving a conflict with the very core of a person's principles and values
• Moral Dilemmas


  • A person has to choose between meeting a friend as promised or helping a relative involved in an accident
  • A person has to decide whether to tell a friend that their best friend's boyfriend is cheating
• Kohlberg's Theory of Moral Development

  Proposes that there are three levels of moral development, with each level split into two stages, and that people move through these stages in a fixed order, with moral understanding linked to cognitive development
• Levels of Moral Development

  • Preconventional Morality
  • Conventional Morality
  • Postconventional Morality
• Stages of Preconventional Morality

  • Obedience and punishment
  • Individualism and exchange
• Obedience and punishment stage

  People see rules as fixed and absolute, and obeying the rules is important because it is a way to avoid punishment
• Individualism and exchange stage

  People account for individual points of view and judge actions based on how they serve individual needs, and reciprocity is possible but only if it serves one's own interests
• Stages of Conventional Morality

  • Developing good interpersonal relationships
  • Maintaining social order
• Developing good interpersonal relationships stage


  There is an emphasis on conformity, being "nice," and consideration of how choices influence relationships
• Maintaining social order stage


  The focus is on maintaining law and order by following the rules, doing one's duty, and respecting authority
• Stages of Postconventional Morality

  • Social contract and individual rights
  • Universal principles
• Social contract and individual rights stage

  People begin to account for the differing values, opinions, and beliefs of other people, and see rules of law as important for maintaining a society, but that members of the society should agree upon these standards