ETHICS module 1: what is ethics? Klace Ann Mae L. Fidel Lecturer 1Objeciives. 1. Discuss the definition, nature, and importance of ethics to an individual and society. 2. Explain the difference between moral standards and non-moral standards. 3. Enumerate the characteristics of moral standards to easily identify its dissimilarities to non-moral standards. 4. Explore how moral standards are formed.Scenario 1 As you answer a problem on an exam, you unintentionally notice that the student next to you has a contrasting answer compared to yours. You have decided to review your answer once more. After realizing that you made a mistake, you decided to modify your answer. ¢ Is this an act of academic integrity? * What did the student do wrong? ¢ How might this have been prevented?Scenario 2 A student is accused of plagiarism in a report. The professor discovers several paragraphs that are entirely copied from a journal article that is cited in the student's reference list, even though the majority of the report appears to be original. The student produces all of the notes he used to write his paper, confident that he did not plagiarize. Because the student failed to make a distinction between his own notes and the words of the article's author in his notes, it was discovered that the copying was the result of careless note taking. * Is this plagiarism? * Is this student accountable for a violation of academic integrity, or is this a cause of the students’ ‘poor study habits'?LO WHAT IS ETHICS?LO WHAT IS ETHICS? Ethics or Moral Philosophy the empirical study of moral decisions. * adiscipline concerned with what is morally good and evil, right and wrong * any scheme or philosophy of universal ideals or beliefs derived from the Greek word “ethos” which may mean tradition, habit, character, or attitude which has an equivalent meaning in Latin word ethos "moris" which means moralsLO WHAT IS ETHICS? Ethics is a systematic analysis of the nature of human actions. * concerned about the correctness and wrongness of the act. * an act is deemed to be right or wrong, based on the intent, circumstances, or character of the act itself. * involves critical thinking, as it explores and describes fundamental beliefs, standards, ideals, and traditions. * ahigher level of human disciplineDavid is a student in a school district where his mother is on the school board. Recently, three of classmates posted a website that openly attacks some of the teachers and students, using explicit and offensive language. It even goes as far as predicting which gay students will be the first to die of AIDS. Remarks about several teachers are scathing, suggesting that one fantasizes about having sex with young girls and that two married teachers are having an affair. The site includes disgusting graphics. Several weeks ago a friend of David confide to him that he was one of the three students who created the website and ask David to keep it a secret between them. He agreed, not thinking much about it at the time as David is close to him. Now, the school principal has obtained a program that allows him to identify each person who has visited the website. He is asking students to come forward with the names of the creators of the site, and if no one does, he is going to question each student who visited the site. David is one of those who did visit the site. He realizes he may be the only student who knows the names of the three kids who created the site. He can lie and say he doesn’t know, or he can break his promise not to tell. David has always thought of himself as an ethical person with a pretty clear sense of right and wrong. Right now, however, he feels that either choice will end in disaster. What should David do?As a branch of philosophy, ethics is divided into NORMATIVE AND META-ETHICS. ( A. NORMATIVE ETHICS DEFINITION examine whether or not a particular act should or should not be carried out; how we should behave seeks to set norms or standards that regulate right and wrong or good and bad conductChoose between the following three statements the one that you feel defines best ethics or morality in general. a) To be moral is to cultivate and display certain qualities such as modesty, truthfulness, patience, etc... b) To be moral is to take into consideration the consequences of one’s actions in terms of preference, satisfaction, happiness and benefits for other people. c) To be moral you should wish that your moral choices should stand the test of being made law for all, something that other people would agree with.a) To be moral is to cultivate and display certain qualities such as modesty, truthfulness, patience, etc... ° Virtue Theory It is the idea that to be moral is to develop certain characteristics that help us achieve the moral good. This leads to happiness or flourishing. Virtue ethics mainly deals with the honesty and morality of a person.b) To be moral is to take into consideration the consequences of one’s actions in terms of preference, satisfaction, happiness and benefits for other people. ¢ Utilitarianism It claimed that an action is good if it has positive or pleasurable consequences. It claims that the foundation of moral principles should be the greatest happiness for the greatest number of people. Utilitarianism is an ethical theory that determines right from wrong by focusing on outcomes.c) To be moral you should wish that your moral choices should stand the test of being made law for all, something that other people would agree with. * Deontological ethics Deontologists such as Immanuel Kant (1724 -1804) argue that to be moral is to follow one’s duty and only have good intentions when we perform an action. Deontology is an ethical theory that says actions are good or bad according to a clear set of rules. The study of the nature of duty and obligation.There are two fields of normative ethics: Moral Philosophy ¢ deals with moral ideas such as what human beings "must do or how human beings should be." * also deals with our moral obligation, the meaning of the act, or the purpose of the act Applied Ethics or Practical Ethics * application of ethics to real- world problems «a philosophy that discusses strong and basic moral issues linked to abortionThere are two fields of normative ethics: Applied Ethics or Practical Ethics ey CTU ES Boa eRe ol aac eo are ears DRO alc CuRm Cuca Coicu RRC Incomes Reet Rear ee eu eters a) OP ele OCC EI) Coen og Sd eae) Deter cael gay/lesbian marriage (or other rights) Pomerat asB. META-ETHICS * adiscipline that relies on meaning * refer to questions about the nature of moral statements, the purpose and significance of moral facts, and concerns about the interpretation and justification of moral statements Metaethics asks such questions as: “What is the meaning of ethical terms, such as ‘good’ and ‘right’ and ‘should'?" "What are the motives for acting ethically?" "What is the nature of moral reason? How is it different (if it is different) from other types of reasoning?" Meta-ethical discussions are the most abstract discussions in all of ethics.Security officer Ronald is known to be a kind and responsible person, in his work, most of his colleagues were fond of his optimistic attitude and his care towards others. But on the 15th of last month, he was fired from his job on the grounds that he was not able to report to work for the last 2 weeks, devastated by the situation Ronald plead to the management of the shopping mall to give him another chance at work as this is his only source of living. Despite Ronald's plea, the management chose to stick to what they have decided as they have rules and regulations to follow. Blinded by anger, desperation, and frustration, Ronald once again went back to the mall with firearms in his hand and declared hostage-taking. At the commencement of the incident, police officers and SWAT team have responded to the situation. In the middle of the negotiation, a police officer shoots Ronald who is about to harm the hostages in the shopping mall. Is the action of the police officer moral according to normative ethics? metaethics? practical ethics?According to metaethics: The act of the police officer is morally wrong because it not right to kill. Killing in itself (the term/ concept of the word) is intrinsically wrong. For normative ethics: It is the right thing to do in this particular situation, because not doing so will result in the death of so many people. Hence the action might be morally correct. Casuists may say: The police officer is just doing his best to fulfill his duty, that is to protect as many innocent lives as possible.As a branch of philosophy, ethics is divided into NORMATIVE AND META-ETHICS. NORMATIVE Do good at all times! ETHICS META-ETHICS | [=> | whatis good?IMPORTANCE OF ETHICS * through ethics people can determine the difference between right from wrong, good and bad * people can eliminate actions that do not conform to what is right * people will be very careful to the actions and decisions to make * people will not be disturbed of the internal and external factors of not doing the right thingIMPORTANCE OF ETHICS * establish good habits of characters of a person * come up to rational decisions in facing an ethical dilemma * it makes a person responsible in the family, school and society * a person becomes sensitive to the needs of others more than himself or herself1.2 THE DIFFERENCES OF MORAL AND NON MORAL STANDARDS AND CHARACTERISTICS OF MORAL STANDARDS MORAL STANDARDS the guidelines we have on the types of acts that we find to be morally permissible and morally unacceptable. * Promote the common good, that is, the welfare and well- being of human beings, animals, and the environment.Several characie! istics of morals siandards as mentioned by Velasquez (2012) . Moral standards entail serious harm or benefit Moral standards are not determined by authority figures Moral standards should be adopted over other values, including self-interest. Moral standards are focused on objective considerations. Moral standards are perceived to be universal. Moral standards are correlated with different feelings and vocabulary.Moral Siandards Respect is a rule that is dominant in every * Respect others’ property. culture and respecting others’ property is a natural rule that shows the goodness of people. Morality is about what is good and what is bad, * No cursing inside the house. therefore saying bad and foul words is morally wrong. It is @ moral standard because letting the wrong and unfair things dominate isa crime against humanity. Stand up for what you know is right and f: Respect for others is morally required, even a Donotdisrespect anyone. child is taught at a young age how to show respect to people. Animals can live without humans, and most of the Care for the abused animals. time humans endanger and abuse the animals. We do not have the right to hurt animals so caring for the abused is necessary and should be required.1.2 THE DIFF ER ENCES OF MORAL AND NON- MORAL STANDARDS AND CHARACTERISTICS OF MORAL STANDARDS NON-MORAL STANDARDS apply to laws which are not related to social or legal considerations Examples of non-moral standards are the following: * etiquette * statutes * code of professional ethicsEtiquette a decorum, propriety means reverence for the formal criteria governing conduct in a civilized society Statutes a written law passed by a legislative body as defined by Oxford English and Spanish Dictionary Professional Code of Ethics a set of guidelines intended to help practitioners differentiate between right and wrong to guide their decision-makingNon-moral Siandards. Always wear formal clothes in formal events. Always be active in organizational meetings, events, and webinars. No to body piercings and tattoos. Do not talk when your mouth is full. Do not drink alcoholic beverages. This is a non moral standard because it is related to fashion standards. Wearing non formal clothes to a formal event do not seriously harm any one. Choosing not to attend meetings and events will affect the organization but itdoes not do harm to anyone. The rule that says no one should be allowed to have body piercings and tattoos is non moral because having tattoos and piercings doesn't mean that a person wearing it is immoral, unethical, or criminal. Most people get irritated when someone is talking while chewing but it doesn't make a person irrespectful. In some culture this not an issue and It is simply an etiquette rule. Drinking alcoholic beverages will not make a person immoral as long as he or she will not harm other people under the influence of alcohol.Deiermine wheiher ii is moral or non-moral ones. 1.Smoking is dangerous to your/one's health. 2.Falling in line while taking a bus ride 3.Dress formally at a wedding party. 4.Being sexy is attractive, being fat is lousy. 5.White lies. 6.Cheating your school record. 7.Abortion.1S HOW MORAL STANDARDS ARE FORMED * Morals are shaped by the beliefs of an individual. * Values are the basis of the capacity of an individual to distinguish between right and wrong. * Morals build on this to form concrete, contextdriven rules that regulate the actions of an individual.There are various factors on how moral standards are influenced: (1) the moral values or principles that we conform with, in our rearing; (2) the character and manners that imbibed with us by means of birthright; (3) the religious values that our forefathers taught us; (4) the values we learned from school; (5) the moral conduct, ways and habits of those people around us; (6) the direct and implied cultural norms; (7) our life experiences; and (8) our critical thinking in these experiences.