Claire

• Ethics


  A set of moral principles or values that govern the actions and decisions of an individual or group
• While personal ethics vary from individual to individual, most people within a society are able to agree about what is considered ethical and unethical behavior
• A society passes laws that define what its citizens consider to be the more extreme forms of unethical behavior
• Examples of prescribed sets of moral principles or values

  • Laws and regulations
  • Church doctrine
  • Code of business ethics for professional groups such as CPAs
  • Codes of conduct within individual organizations
• Characteristics and values associated with ethical behavior

  • Integrity
  • Honesty
  • Trustworthiness and Promise Keeping
  • Loyalty (Fidelity) and Confidentiality
  • Fairness and Openness
  • Caring for Others
  • Respect for Others
  • Responsible Citizenship
  • Pursuit of Excellence
  • Accountability
• Integrity


  Be principled, honorable, upright courageous and act on convictions; do not be two-faced or unscrupulous, or adopt an end justifies the means philosophy that ignores principle
• Honesty


  Be truthful, sincere, forthright, straightforward, frank, candid do not cheat, steal, lie, deceive or act deviously
• Trustworthiness and Promise Keeping

  Be worthy of trust, keep promises, full commitments, abide by the spirit as well as the letter of an agreement; do not interpret agreements in an unreasonably technical or legalistic manner in order to rationalize non-compliance or create excuses and justification for breaking commitments
• Loyalty (Fidelity) and Confidentiality


  Be faithful and loyal to family, friends, employers, client and country, do not use or disclose information learned in confidence; in a professional context safeguard the influences and conflicts of interest
• Fairness and Openness


  Be fair and open-minded, be willing to admit error and, where appropriate, change positions and beliefs, demonstrate a commitment to justice, the equal treatment of individuals, and tolerance for acceptance of diversity; do overreach or take advantage of another's mistakes or diversities
• Caring for Others


  Be caring, kind, and compassionate share, be giving, be of service to others help those in need and avoid harming others
• Respect for Others


  Demonstrate respect for human dignity, privacy, and the right to self-determination of all people; be courteous, prompt, and decent; provide others with the information they need to make informed decisions about their own lives; do not patronize, embarrass, or demean
• Responsible Citizenship


  Obey just laws; if all law unjust, openly protest it; exercise all democratic rights and privileged responsibly by participation (voting and expressing informed views), social consciousness, and public service; when in a position of leadership or authority, openly respect and honor democratic processes of decision making, avoid unnecessary secrecy or concealment of information, and assure that others have all the information they need to make intelligent choices and exercise their rights
• Pursuit of Excellence


  Pursue excellence in all matters; in meeting your personal and professional responsibilities, be diligent, reliable, industrious and committed; perform all tasks to the best of your ability, develop and maintain a high degree of competence, be well informed and well prepared, do not be content with mediocrity do not "win at any cost"
• Accountability


  Be accountable, accept responsibility for decisions, for the foreseeable consequences of actions and inactions, and for setting an example of others. Parents, teachers, employers, many professionals and public officials have a special obligation to lead by example, to safeguard and advance the integrity and reputation of their families, companies, professions and the government itself, an ethically sensitive individual avoids even the appearance of impropriety, and takes whatever actions are necessary to correct or prevent inappropriate conduct of others
• Ethical behavior is necessary for a society to function in an orderly manner
• Ethics is the glue that holds a society together
• If people consistently lied, it would be almost impossible for effective communication to occur
• Reasons why people act unethically

  • The person's ethical standards are different from those of society as a whole
  • The person chooses to act selfishly
• Extreme examples of people whose behavior violates almost everyone's ethical standards are drug dealers, bank robbers, and larcenists
• Most people who commit such acts feel no remorse when they are apprehended, because their ethical standards differ from those of society as a whole
• A considerable portion of unethical behavior results from selfish behavior
• The Pork Barrel Scam and the other political scandals resulted from the desire for political power and wealth
• Cheating on tax returns and expense reports is motivated by financial greed
• Performing below one's competence and cheating on tests are typically due to laziness
• Profession


  Certain types of activities that have been recognized as professions, such as medicine, law, engineering, architecture, theology, and public accounting
• Common characteristics of recognized professions

  • A responsibility to serve the public
  • A complex body of knowledge
  • Standards of admission to the profession
  • A need for public confidence
• Careless work or lack of integrity of a professional may lead the public to a negative view toward the entire profession
• All professionals must have public confidence to be successful
• Consequently, the members of the different professions act in unison by deriving their respective code of conduct
• General principles of professional conduct

  • Ethical commitment
  • Ethical awareness
  • Ethical competency
  • Service to Others
  • Integrity and Objectivity
  • Professional Competence
  • Solidarity and Teamwork
  • Social and Civic Responsibility
  • Global Competitiveness
  • Equality of All Professions
• Ethics


  A set of moral principles or values that govern the actions and decisions of an individual or group
• While personal ethics vary from individual to individual, most people within a society are able to agree about what is considered ethical and unethical behavior
• A society passes laws that define what its citizens consider to be the more extreme forms of unethical behavior
• Examples of prescribed sets of moral principles or values

  • Laws and regulations
  • Church doctrine
  • Code of business ethics for professional groups such as CPAs
  • Codes of conduct within individual organizations
• Characteristics and values associated with ethical behavior

  • Integrity
  • Honesty
  • Trustworthiness and Promise Keeping
  • Loyalty (Fidelity) and Confidentiality
  • Fairness and Openness
  • Caring for Others
  • Respect for Others
  • Responsible Citizenship
  • Pursuit of Excellence
  • Accountability
• Integrity


  Be principled, honorable, upright courageous and act on convictions; do not be two-faced or unscrupulous, or adopt an end justifies the means philosophy that ignores principle
• Honesty


  Be truthful, sincere, forthright, straightforward, frank, candid do not cheat, steal, lie, deceive or act deviously
• Trustworthiness and Promise Keeping

  Be worthy of trust, keep promises, full commitments, abide by the spirit as well as the letter of an agreement; do not interpret agreements in an unreasonably technical or legalistic manner in order to rationalize non-compliance or create excuses and justification for breaking commitments
• Loyalty (Fidelity) and Confidentiality


  Be faithful and loyal to family, friends, employers, client and country, do not use or disclose information learned in confidence; in a professional context safeguard the influences and conflicts of interest