ETHICS

• Values


  Something the individual or community believes has a worth that merits when pursued, promoted, or privileged
• Values can be a thing (money, food, art), a state of mind (peace, security, certainty), or a behavior that results from those things or states of mind (protecting innocents, telling the truth, being creative)
• Desire


  Wanting a thing without much reflection on it, may come from an instinct, urge, or physical need
• Value


  Arises after reflection on whether or not the thing I desire is good
• Values are the subject of ethical investigation
• Morals and morality


  Result from rationality, while values might arise from social contexts, emotional dispositions, or rationality
• Universal values


  A collection of fundamental ideas or ideals that people from many countries, societies, and eras of history have in common
• Universal values often serve as the foundation for moral and ethical judgments, helping individuals differentiate between right and wrong, good and bad
• Universal values surpass cultural, religious, and geographical boundaries, reflecting a common understanding of human rights, dignity, and the inherent worth of all individuals
• The specific interpretations and applications of universal values may vary among different cultural contexts, but the underlying principles tend to remain consistent
• Universal


  Belonging or relating to the universe, the set of all things created and what is common to all its kind
• Plato's values


  • Temperance, courage, and wisdom
• Plato believes that universal values exist apart from the concrete world
• Being a good captain


  Ensuring a ship does not crash, its goods and people arrive safely at port, and it remains seaworthy
• Universal values are about what it means to be a good human being
• Aristotle's view on values

  • People need to be knowledgeable in the virtues
  • Individuals might desire many things that will make them happy, but all of them need to be enjoyed in moderation to become significantly valued
  • Only by using our rationality for thinking and creating a community in which thinking is encouraged, and in which education is valued, can universal values flourish
• Aristotle emphasizes that universal values exist embodied in the concrete individual as common or essential characteristics
• Jesus Christ's universal values

  • Love
  • Patience
  • Kindness
  • Goodwill
  • Compassion
  • Forgiveness
• St. Thomas Aquinas' universal values

  • Goodness
  • Truth
  • Justice
  • Prudence
• Importance of universal values for humans


  • Provide common ground for diverse societies and cultures
  • Serve as ethical guidelines to distinguish right from wrong
  • Form the basis for human rights frameworks
  • Enable resilience and adaptability in the face of change and adversity
• Importance of universal values for human survival

  • Contribute to social cohesion and cooperation
  • Enable conflict resolution and peacekeeping
  • Promote environmental stewardship
  • Contribute to cultural resilience and identity
• Moral character


  Understanding one's values and beliefs, a lifelong journey of conscious effort, self-reflection, and commitment to ethical principles
• Aristotle's view on moral character

  • Excellence of thought and excellence of character
  • Moral virtue or moral excellence emphasizes the combination of qualities that make an individual ethically good
  • Moral character is an evaluation of an individual's stable moral qualities
  • Moral character is a state concerned with choice that is determined by reason
• Moral character (Pervin)


  A disposition to express behavior in consistent patterns of functions across a range of situations
• Individuals with strong moral character demonstrate consistency in their ethical choices and actions across different situations and contexts
• Moral character


  A state, not a feeling, capacity, or tendency, but the firm condition one is in an ideal state of their beliefs and values
• Moral character


  A disposition to express behavior in consistent patterns of functions across a range of situations
• Individuals with strong moral character


  • Demonstrate consistency in their ethical choices and actions across different situations and contexts
  • Their behavior reflects a stable set of moral principles that guide their actions consistently over time
  • Exhibit similar patterns of ethical behavior whether faced with personal dilemmas, social interactions, professional settings, or moral challenges
• Moral development


  The process of learning to distinguish between right and wrong or good and bad to develop moral character

  
• Aspects of moral development in children

  • Emotions
  • Knowledge
  • Action
• Emotions


  The feelings and values that shape and develop the moral standards of an individual
• Emotions that contribute to moral development

  • Empathy
  • Guilt
  • Shame
  • Compassion
• Knowledge


  Learning the moral code of one's community and making judgments about whether something is good or bad, right or wrong
• Action


  How one decides on the appropriate actions to take in controlling negative impulses, responding based on rules and requests, obeying parents and other authorities, or behaving in a caring, helpful manner, depending on the situation
• Moral actions that reflect a growing understanding of right and wrong

  • Sharing toys
  • Apologizing after making a mistake
  • Standing up against bullying
• Tips to develop moral character

  • Define your core values
  • Practice the habits
  • Find people with character
  • Take some risks
  • Commit to self-improvement
• Kohlberg's Stages of Moral development is crucial to human growth and behavior, influencing how individuals perceive, judge, and respond to ethical dilemmas and social interactions

  
• Preconventional morality


  Moral decisions are based on fear of punishment and obedience to authority figures
• Preconventional morality


  • Getting candy for behaving
  • Getting scolded for misbehaving
• Instrumental orientation


  Right behavior is defined by whatever the individual believes to be in their best interest, focused on receiving rewards or satisfying personal needs