R.G.

ALFONSO GOVBUSMAN 2ND SEM 2020-2021

GOVBUSMAN MODULE 4:

Chapter 5: INTRODUCTION TO ETHICS

Expected Learning Outcomes

After studying the chapter, you should be able to …

1. Define Ethics.
2. Enumerate and describe the basic characteristics and values associated with ethical behavior.
3. Appreciate why ethical behavior in personal, professional and business dealings is necessary.
4. Understand the reasons why people act unethically.
5. Give and explain the categories of ethical principles.
6. Give and describe the ethical principles related to:
a. Personal ethics
b. Professional ethics
c. Business ethics
7. Explain why professional ethics is important and why a code of conduct should be adopted.

INTRODUCTION TO ETHICS

Introduction

Ethics can be defined broadly as 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 at any point in time,
most people within a society are able to agree about what is considered ethical and unethical behavior.
In fact, a society passes laws that define what its citizens consider to be the more extreme forms of
unethical behavior.

Each of us has such a set of values, although we may or may not have considered them explicitly.
Philosophers, religious organizations, and other groups have defined various ways ideal sets of moral
principles or values. Examples of prescribed sets of moral principles or values at the implementation
level include laws and regulations, church doctrine, code of business ethics for professional groups such
as CPAs, and codes of conduct within individual organizations.

It is common for people to differ in their moral principles or values. Even if two people agree on the
ethical principles that determine ethical behavior, it is unlikely that they will agree on the relative
importance of each principle. These differences result from all of our life experiences. Parents,
teachers, friends and employers are known to influence our values, but so do television, team sports,
life successes and failures, and thousands of other experiences.

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CHARACTERISTICS AND VALUES ASSOCIATED WITH ETHICAL BEHAVIOR

Integrity

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

Honesty

Be truthful, sincere, forthright, straightforward, frank, and 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 not overreach or take advantage of another’s mistakes or diversities.

Caring for Others

Be caring, kind, 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 a law is 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

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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 for others.

WHY IS ETHICAL BEHAVIOR NECESSARY?

Ethical behavior is necessary for a society to function in an orderly manner. It can be argued that ethics
is the glue that holds a society together. The need for ethics in society is sufficiently important that
many commonly held ethical values are incorporated into laws. A considerable portion of the ethical
values of a society cannot be incorporated into laws because of the judgmental nature of certain values.
Looking at the honesty principle, it is practical to have laws that deal with cheating, stealing, lying, or
deceiving others. It is far more difficult to establish meaningful laws that deal with many aspects of
principles such as integrity, loyalty and pursuit of excellence. That does not imply that these principles
are less important for an orderly society. Business decisions influence employees, customers, suppliers,
and competitors, while company operations affect communities, governments and the environment.

WHY DO PEOPLE ACT UNETHICALLY?

There are two primary reasons why people act unethically:

1. The person’s ethical standards are different from those of society as a whole, or;
2. The person chooses to act selfishly.

In many instances, both reasons exist.

CATEGORIES OF ETHICAL PRINCIPLES

Principles of Personal Ethics include among others;

● Basic justice, fairness

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● Respect for the right of others

● Concern for the right of others
● Concern for the well-being on welfare of others
● Benevolence, trustworthiness, honesty
● Compliance with the law

Professional Ethics include among others;

● Integrity, impartiality, objectivity

● Professional competence
● Confidentiality
● Professional behavior
● Avoidance of potential or apparent conflict of interest

Business Ethics include among others;

● Fair competition
● Global as well as domestic justice
● Social responsibility
● Concern for environment

The Need for Professional Ethics

To understand the importance of a Code of Ethics to professionals, one must understand the nature of a
profession as opposed to other vocations. There is no universally accepted definition of what
constitutes a profession; yet, for generations, certain types of activities have been recognized as
professions while others have not.

All the recognized professions have several common characteristics. The most important of these
characteristics are:

1. A responsibility to serve the public

2. A complex body of knowledge
3. Standards of admission to the profession
4. A need for public confidence

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

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R.G. ALFONSO GOVBUSMAN 2ND SEM 2020-2021

1. Define “Ethics”.

2. Explain why ethical behavior is necessary.

3. What are some of the reasons why people act unethically?

4. Explain why ethical behavior is necessary in the practice of one’s profession.

COMMENTS / FEEDBACK

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