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Begc Module 01 PDF
Begc Module 01 PDF
Governance (BE&CG)
As per the Syllabus of
MBA Semester 01
Gujarat Technological University
Module 01
Introduction to Business Ethics:
Nature of Ethics
Greek
word Ethics
ethikos
Latin word
ethicus
What Does
The Term
Ethics Actually
Mean ....?
Definition of Ethics
For Example: We should
Moral principles that govern
always speak truth, Respect
a person's behaviour or the
our Elders, Honesty is the
conducting of an activity
best policy.
Ethics are moral guidelines which govern
good behaviour
Behaving
Ethically
Doing what is
MORALLY
RIGHT
What is Business Ethics?
Nature of
Ethics is a Ethics is a
Science of Business Normative
Values Science
Ethics
Ethics is
Different
from
Morality
Ethics Deals With Humans
Ethics deals with humans and is concerned with a
particular sphere of nature that deals with certain
judgments that we make about human conduct. It
also talks about systematic explanation of
rightness or wrongness in a man’s life.
Ethics is a normative science
Ethics and morality {term moral comes from the Latin moralis, meaning
customs or manners} are often used interchangeably. In earlier times, the
scholars used to call ethics a ‘science of morals’. However, this was fallen to
disuse. Ethics does not teach how to lead a moral life. Ethics merely help us to
justify the right and good which leads us to achieve our goals. Morality deals
with purpose, motive, intention and choice which are considered right or
wrong in the light of customs and manners.
Another difference between the two is that – the term ‘ethics’ is usually applied
to persons while ‘morality’ to acts and behaviour..
Ethics is a science of values
Deontological
Ethics of virtue
ethics
Subjectivism
This concept emphasizes that the ethical choice
of the individual decides the rightness or
wrongness of his behaviour.
Relativism
According to this concept, no principle is universally applicable and so it
would be inaccurate to measure the behaviour of one society with another’s
principles or standards. Relativism overlooks the fact that there may be
enough evidence to believe that an ethical practice is based on false belief,
illogical reasoning, and so on.
Consequentialism
Consequentialism is based on two ideas: the concept of value and the
maximization of value. If, for example, honesty is considered a value,
an act is considered ethical only if it maximizes this value. An act,
which does not maximize the said value, is not ethically permissible.
Deontological ethics
This concept stresses that ethical values can be developed from the concepts of
reason as all rational individuals possess the ability to reason. We may, for
example, end up causing pain unknowingly while trying to create happiness.
Therefore, the ethical value of an action cannot be determined by its
consequences. Instead, it is in the motive that lies behind the particular action..
Ethics by Virtue
This concept emphasizes those traits that give the individual a
sense of satisfaction from ethical point of view. Virtuous acts
like courage, honesty, tolerance and generosity are done as a
way of living and not by chance.
Whistle Blowing
Whistle blowing refers to the attempt of an employee to disclose what he or she
believes to be illegal behaviour in or by the organization. From one point of view,
this seems to deceive the principle of honesty in business ethics, as it is taken for
granted that the employees of an organization need to be loyal to its workings.
However, when loyalty to one’s organization in particular is perceived to be harming
one’s general loyalty to mankind, the act of whistle blowing is justified. Failure on
the part of the management of the organization to fulfil its social obligations calls
for whistle blowing. It is the responsibility of the whistle blower to be careful about
revealing the organization’s secrets and to consider the harm it may cause to his
colleagues and shareholders.
Ethical dilemmas in business
An organization’s ethical problems indicate a conflict
between its economic and social performance. This
results in a dilemma for managers. Since people
handle business, it is a crucial requirement to check
and ascertain ethical behaviour at a personal level.
This will confirm ethically correct responses from the
organization to the mutual actions of individuals.
Need of Ethics
Importance of Ethics in Business
Trust of
Image
Employees
Pride of
Costs Best
Company
Part of
Society
1. Image
(1) Prescriptivity
An action is morally
correct if the consequence
Teleological ethical
of the action are more
theories –thinking
favorable. It is also called
rationally about ends.
as Consequentialist
theories.
2.
Utilitarianism 1. Egoism -
–good for good for self
everyone
3. Altruism -
good for
everyone
except self
Consequentiality
Criticism of Egoism Theory
Ethical theory • Only thinks about own self interest
but not really a • every situation is viewed from the
Moral Theory perception of one’s own self interest
Benthams principle –
Jeremy Bentham is the
“Happiness is the only
person who was the
right and universally
founder of traditional
desirable end of human
utilitarianism theory.
action”
Types of Utilitarianism
Act Utilitarianism:
• Concerned with achieving the maximum good
• Work done for the benefit of greater population
• Does not always looks for individual, individuals sacrifice
that benefits majority of people.
Rule Utilitarianism:
• Possibility of conflicting rules
• If a person running late for the meeting coz he was helping
some group of people... There may be conflicts.
Egoism V/S Utilitarianism
Devtas
Rakhas (Demons)
Humans should be
It is opposite of morally correct, in
selfishness. this sense it is
opposite of egoism
Non – Consequentialist Theory
Right the
Avoid injury wrong that
Some
to others one has done
to others
Basic
Give thanks
Duties Act justly
Help others
Right Based Ethics
Rights are
divided in two
This theory is parts
After presenting people with various moral dilemmas, Kohlberg reviewed people’s
responses and placed them in different stages of moral reasoning.
Each level of morality contains two stages, which provide the basis for moral development
in various contexts.
Level 1: Preconventional
Throughout the preconvention level, a child’s sense of morality
is externally controlled. Children accept and believe the rules
of authority figures, such as parents and teachers. A child with
pre-conventional morality has not yet adopted or internalized
society’s conventions regarding what is right or wrong, but
instead focuses largely on external consequences that certain
actions may bring.
Stage 1: Obedience-and-
Punishment Orientation
Kohlberg has been criticized for his assertion that women seem
to be deficient in their moral reasoning abilities when compared
to men. Carol Gilligan (1982), a research assistant of Kohlberg,
criticized her former mentor’s theory because it was based so
narrowly on research using white, upper-class men and boys. She
argued that women are not deficient in their moral reasoning
and instead proposed that males and females reason differently:
girls and women focus more on staying connected and
maintaining interpersonal relationships.
Critiques of Kohlberg’s
Theory