GEC 8

• Ethics


  A branch of Philosophy which deals with Moral Standards. It investigates about the rightness or wrongness of Human behavior or the goodness or badness of personality traits or character and it deals with ideas, with topic such as moral standards or norms of morality, conscience moral values and virtues.
• Moral


  The adjective describing a human act as either ethically right or wrong or qualifying a person's personality and character as either good or bad.
• Nature of Ethics

  • Scientific Nature: Ethics is a normative science which determines norms, moral values in a person and an individual's character. It is a systematic explanation of what is right and what is wrong.
  • Not Art: Ethics is not an art as art deals with the acquisition of skill to produce objects, while morality deals with motive, intention, purpose and choice which are considered right or wrong in the light of goodness.
  • Variable Nature: Ethics is not static. It is not always the same. Human beings change and the morality and ethical perspective in them also changes.
  • Exclusively for Human Beings: Ethics can only be applied to human beings as we are the ones who have the capacity for moral judgement. We cannot expect ethical behavior from animals, as they are not as intelligent as human beings are so ethics is exclusively for human beings.
• Objectives of Ethics


  • Objectivity
  • Impartiality
  • Accuracy
  • Public Accountability
  • Fairness
  • Truthfulness
• Objectives of Ethics


  To study and assess human behavior. To establish principles and moral standards of behavior. Ethics is not compulsory in a person's life and it is not forced upon anyone but being ethical is one step forward towards being a good person.
• Scopes of Ethics

  • Meta-Ethics
  • Normative Ethics
  • Applied Ethics
• Meta-Ethics


  Comprises the area of situational ethics and deals with logical questions like 'What do we mean by 'freedom' and 'determinism' etc. It delves into the nature of ethical properties, attitudes and judgements.
• Normative Ethics


  Deals with standards or norms by which we can judge human actions to be right or wrong. It deals with the criteria of what is morally right or wrong.
• Applied Ethics


  The problem-solving branch of moral philosophy. It uses the insights derived from Meta-ethics and the general principles and rules of normative ethics in addressing specific ethical issues and cases in a professional, disciplinary or practical field.
• Key areas of Applied Ethics


  • Decision Ethics
  • Professional Ethics
  • Clinical Ethics
  • Business Ethics
  • Organizational Ethics
  • Social Ethics
• Ethics talk about how to awaken our conscience. We are becoming more aware of our duties and responsibilities towards other beings where we are at.
• 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 normally promote "the good", that is, the welfare and well-being of humans as well as animals and the environment.
• Characteristics of Moral Standards


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


  Social rules, demands of etiquette and good manners. They are guide of action which should be followed as expected by society. Sometimes they may not be followed or some people may not follow them. Changes are made regarding good manners or etiquette. In sociology, non-moral standards or rules are called folkways.
• Examples of Non-moral Standards


  • Rules of good manners and right conduct
  • Etiquette
  • Rules of behavior set by parents, teachers
  • Standards of grammar or language
  • Standards of art
  • Standards of sports set by authorities
• Moral standards


  Associated with special emotions (such as guilt and shame) and vocabulary (such as right, wrong, good, and bad)
• Non-moral standards


  Social rules, demands of etiquette and good manners. They are guides of action which should be followed as expected by society. Sometimes they may not be followed or some people may not follow them. Changes are made regarding good manners or etiquette. In sociology, they are called folkways. Non-moral actions are those where moral categories cannot be applied.
• Non-moral standards


  • Rules of good manners and right conduct
  • Etiquette
  • Rules of behavior set by parents, teachers
  • Standards of grammar or language
  • Standards of art
  • Standards of sports set by authorities
  • Do not eat with your mouth open
  • Observe the rules of grammar
  • Do not wear socks that don't match
• Non-moral standards in the Activity phase


  • No talking while your mouth is full
  • Wear your face masks
  • Always wash your hands with soap
  • Stay at home
• Indicator of moral vs non-moral standard

  Non-compliance with moral standards causes guilt, while non-compliance with non-moral standards may only cause shame or embarrassment
• 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. They are matters of taste or preference and their observance does not make one a moral person. Violation of non-moral standards does not pose any threat to human well-being.
• Non-moral standards are those that do not threaten, put risk, or create chaos in the society or life of other beings. Just like choosing between egg and hotdog for breakfast.
• Moral standard


  Says "Do not harm innocent people" or "Don't steal"
• Non-moral standard


  Says "Don't text while driving" or "Don't talk while the mouth is full"
• Dilemma


  A situation where a person is forced to choose between two or more conflicting options, neither of which is acceptable
• If a person is in a difficult situation but is not forced to choose between two or more options, then that person is not in a dilemma. The least that can be said is that the person is just experiencing a problematic or distressful situation.
• Moral dilemma


  Situations where persons, who are called "moral agents" in ethics, are forced to choose between two or more conflicting options, neither of which resolves the situation in a morally acceptable situation
• Conditions for a situation to be considered a moral dilemma


  • The person or agent is obliged to make a decision about the best course of action

  1. There must be different courses of action to choose from
  2. No matter what course of action is taken, some moral principles are always compromised
• Types of moral dilemmas


  • Epistemic and ontological dilemmas
  • Self-imposed and world-imposed dilemmas
  • Obligation dilemmas and prohibition dilemmas
  • Single agent and multi-person dilemmas
• Epistemic moral dilemmas


  Situations where two or more moral requirements conflict and the moral agent hardly knows which one takes precedence
• Levels of moral dilemmas


  • Individual
  • Organizational
  • Social
• Organizational moral dilemma


  A puzzle posed by the dual necessities of a social organization and member's self-interest, such as between personal interest and organizational welfare or between group interest and organizational well-being