PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT AND ETHICAL STANDARDS

INTRODUCTION TO ETHICS
DEFINITION OF ETHICS
 As a field of study, ethics is a branch of philosophy which studies principle of right or
wrong in human conduct.
 It comes from the Latin word “ethos” means customary, behavior, moral. The two words
Latin – ethicus and Greek ethikos have the same meaning is customary.
OTHER DEFINITION:
 Science of the morality of man.
 Study of human motivation and ultimately of human rational behavior.
 Morality.
Ethics as a term is also used to signify specific connotation such as:
1. The theory that explains the worth or propriety of an act on the basis of the values
inherent in such an act.
2. The analysis of statements or arguments used in support of a virtuous behavior or,
conversely, in denouncing an immoral one;
3. The inquiry into the nature of morality and the search for the morally good life; and
4. The characterization of an identifiable group that shares moral values or traits such as
“Christian ethics", "utilitarian ethics” or “unethical behavior”.
IMPORTANCE OF ETHICS
 Indispensable knowledge.
 Without moral perception, man is only an animal.
 Without morality, man is rational being is a failure.

 Moral integrity is the only true measure of what a man ought to be. The most successful
professional, is nothing unless he is too morally upright. Thus, the philosophers speak of
Ethics as the only “necessary knowledge”.
 Morality is the foundation of every human society. Every culture admits the importance
of morality as a standard of behavior. When moral foundations of nation are threatened,
society itself is threatened.
ETHICS AND LAW
 Morality has a wider implication than law, because law can either be moral or immoral.
Thus, what is legal is not necessarily moral; but what is moral is worth legalizing.
  Ethics is a personal commitment to uphold what is true and good. Ethics aims to develop
“right disposition and inner spirit” for accepting what is lawful.

Human Acts Acts of man

Actions performed by man, knowingly and Actions which happen in man
freely.
Deliberate or intentional actions or voluntary.
Instinctive and are not within the control of
the will.
Actions are the result of conscious knowledge Biological and physiological movements in
and are subject to the control of the will man such as, metabolism, respiration, fear,
anger, love, and jealousy.
Morality is the quality of human acts by which they are constituted as good, bad or
indifferent.
ESSENTIAL ATTRIBUTES OF HUMAN ACTS
1. It must be performed by a conscious agent who is aware what he is doing and of its
consequences.
2. It must be performed by an agent who is acting freely, that is, by his own volition and
powers. An action done under duress and against ones will is not entirely a free action.
3. It must be performed by an agent who decides willfully to perform the act. This
willfulness is the result to perform an act here and now, or in some future time.
KINDS OF HUMAN ACTS
1. ELICITED ACTS
Elicited acts are those performed by the will and are not bodily externalized. Under this
type of acts are:
a. Wish is the tendency of will towards something, whether this will be realizable or not.
b. Intention is the tendency of the will towards something attainable but without
necessarily committing oneself to attain it.
c. Consent is the acceptance of the will of those needed to carry out the intention.
d. Election is the selection of the will of those effective enough to carry out the intention.
e. Use is the command of the will to make use of those means elected to carry out the
intention.
f. Fruition is the employment of the will derived from the attainment of the thing he had
desired earlier.
2. COMMANDED ACTS
 Commanded acts are those done either by man’s mental or bodily, powers under the
command of the will. These acts are:
a. Internal Actions – Examples: conscious reasoning, recalling something,
encouraging oneself, and controlling aroused emotions.
b. External Actions – Example: walking, eating, dancing, laughing, listening, and
reading.
c. Combinations of internal and external movements – Examples: studying,
driving a car, writing a letter, and playing chess.
MORAL DISTINCTIONS
“Dictates of reason” stands for the norm of morality which is the standard by which
actions are judged as to their merits or demerits.

CLASSIFICATION OF ACTIONS ACCORDING TO THE NORMS OF MORALITY

1. MORAL (GOOD) ACTIONS
Moral (Good) Actions are those which are in conformity with the norms of
morality
2. IMMORAL (BAD) ACTIONS
Immoral (bad) Actions are those actions are not in conformity with the norm of
morality.
3. AMORAL (INDIFFERENT) ACTIONS
Amoral (Indifferent) actions are those actions which stand neutral in relation to
the norm of morality. They are neither good nor bad because of the circumstances
attendant to them.

VOLUNTARINESS
Voluntariness comes from the Latin word “voluntas”, referring to the will. Voluntariness
is essential to an act. Without it, an act is a mere act of man.
CLASSIFICATION OF VOLUNTARINESS
 PERFECT VOLUNTARINESS – Is present in a person who fully knows and fully intends
an act.
 IMPERFECT VOLUNTARINESS – Is present in a person who act without fully realizing
what he means to do, or without fully intending the act.
  CONDITIONAL VOLUNTARINESS – Is present in a person who is forced by
circumstances beyond his control to perform an act which he would not do under normal
conditions.
 SIMPLE VOLUNTARINESS – Is present in a person doing an act willfully, regardless of
whether he likes to do it or not. It is either positive or negative.
TYPES OF VOLUNTARINESS
 DIRECT VOLUNTARINESS accompanies an act which is primarily intended by the doer,
either as an end in itself or as a means to achieve something.
 INDIRECT VOLUNTARINESS accompanies an act or situation which is a mere result
of a directly willed act.
THE MODIFIERS OF HUMAN ACTS
1. Ignorance – absence of knowledge which a person ought to possess.
“Ignorance of the law excuses no one” – implies that no one should not act in the state of
ignorance and that no one who has done wrong may not claim ignorance as a defense.
a. Vincible ignorance can easily be reminded through ordinary diligence and reasonable
efforts.
b. Invincible ignorance is the type which a person possess without being aware of it, or
having awareness of it, lacks the means to rectify it.
2. Passion – either tendencies towards desirable objects, or tendencies away from undesirable or
harmful things.
CLASSIFICATION OF PASSION
a. Positive emotions – love, desire, delight, hope, and bravery.
b. Negative emotions – hatred, horror, sadness, despair, fear, and anger.
3. Fear – disturbance of the mind of the person who is confronted by impending danger or harm
to himself or loved ones.
4. Violence – refers to any physical force exerted on a person by another free agent for the
purpose of compelling said person to act against his will.
5. Habits – is a lasting readiness and facility, born of frequent repeated acts, for acting in a
certain manner. They are acquired inclination towards something to be done. They assume the
role if a second nature moving one who has them to perform certain acts with relative cases.
RIGHTS AND DUTIES
 Man is born with rights and duties and having rights is an attribute of a person. That is
why we have Commission on Human Rights that addresses violations of such rights.
  We insist on our rights but ignore our duties. Duties however are more fundamental than
rights.
DEFINITION OF RIGHT
Objectively – It is anything which is owed or due.
Subjectively – That is, residing in a person, right is a moral power, bound to be
respected by others, by doing, possessing, or requiring something.
KINDS OF RIGHTS
Natural Rights are those based on the natural law, that is, on human nature.
Human Rights are those based on human positive laws, either those enacted by the State or a
Religious sect.
Civil Rights are those dependent upon the laws of the state.
Ecclesiastical Rights or Religious are those dependent upon the laws of a church or a religious
sect.
Alienable and Inalienable Rights – Alienable rights are those, civil or religious rights, which can
be surrendered, renounced, or removed, such as the right to decent livelihood.
Right of Jurisdiction is the power of lawful authority to govern hi subjects and to make laws for
them.
Right of Property is the power to own, to sell, to barter, to lend, to change, or give away one’s
personal possessions.
Juridical Right refers to all rights insofar as they are based on laws. These rights must be
respected, allowed, fulfilled as a matter of strict justice.
Non-juridical Rights are those which are founded on laws, either natural or human, but on virtue.
Thus, these are also called moral rights.
THE “BILL OF RIGHTS”
The Bill of Rights is a list of rights pertaining to person. These rights are recognized,
guaranteed, and protected against invasion, reduction or destruction.
The Bill of Rights is premised on the belief in the dignity of a man and the intrinsic worth
of human life.