SS 121 REVIEWER

Lesson 1 Introduction to Ethics

➢ Ethics is a system of moral principles, wherein, these principles shape our behaviour and help us
understand what is good and bad.
➢ From the Greek word ethos, which means custom, characteristic or habitual way of doing things, or
action that is properly derived from one’s character.
➢ From Latin word, mos or moris (plural mores), origin of the adjective moral is equivalent to ethos. By
etymology, ethical and moral are synonymous.

Moral Experience
- Is any encounter wherein a person understands that the values he or she believes to be
important are either realized or thwarted (Hunt and Carnevale, 2011). An encounter is not limited
ethical questions. You examine, explore, and reflect critically. Moral experiences happen
everyday based on moral standards.

Definition of Ethics from Various Authors

• Lilie (1957) - Ethics is a normative science of the conduct of human beings living in societies.
It judges conduct as right or wrong, good, or bad.
• MacKenzie (1901) - Ethics is concerned about men’s habits and customs. It seeks the
underlying principles behind these habitual acts and investigates what constitutes the
rightness or wrongness of these principles, the good or evil of these habits.
• Montemayor (1994) - Ethics is both a normative and a practical science that is based on
reason. It studies human conduct and provides norms for its natural integrity and honesty.
• Pasco, et al. (2018) - ethics for Filipino students is philosophy of human action that enables
them to learn the art of living.

Branches of Ethics
• Normative - Concerned on the various theories that serves as the basis of moral rules that
governs behavior. Its scope of inquiry includes asking the reasons behind as to why or why
not a particular act should be committed.
• Metaethics - Attempts to answer non-moral questions about morality. Its primary concern is
the study of meanings and the various epistemological foundations of moral statements.
• Applied Ethics - The field that deals with clear and specific moral questions. It is the branch of
ethics that primarily deals with ethical situations and questions regarding abortion, cloning,
and other moral issues.

How Important is Ethics?

- A profession without ethics is prone to conflicting individual interpretations. A society lacks moral
reasoning that may cause conflict or even violence and injustice.
- Ethics gives a sense of justification of a person’s judgement which in turn helps decisions at work
not based on subjective interpretations or personal biases.

How can we Measure that it is Good or Bad?

- Requires a deep understanding of the basic principles that govern and guide human action,
and living a life that is responsible for everyone’s welfare.

▪ Moral Standard – Is a code of what is right or wrong without reference to specific behaviors or beliefs
(Lynn, 1997). It deals with matters that the person thinks have serious consequence and is based on
good reason and impartial considerations overriding self-interest.
Characteristics of Moral Standards
1. Moral standards involve behaviors that seriously affect other people’s well-being. (it can
injure, or benefit them)
2. Moral standards take a more important consideration than other standards, including self-
interest.
3. Moral standards do not depend on any external authority but in how the person perceives
the reasonableness of the action. (no one is telling you it is right or wrong but you just believe
the action is right or wrong)
 4. Moral standards are believed to be universal.
5. Moral standards are based on objectivity. (not based on personal opinion)
6. Moral standards are associated with vocabulary that depicts emotion or feelings. (When you
hurt someone, you feel guilty.)

▪ Non-Moral Standards - can be considered as relative standards by which something or someone is

judged as either good or bad. The rules of non-moral standards vary because these rules depend on
the guidelines agreed by a particular group.

1. Etiquette - It is a set of rules on how an individual should responsibly behave in the society.
Table manners such as the proper use of utensils and the proper manner of eating are
examples of etiquette.
2. Policy - It is a clear, simple statement of how an organization plans to handle its services,
actions, or business. Policies are guiding rules to help with decision making. Example is the
wearing of school uniform and ID.
3. Law - Law is a rule created and enforced by the government and its agencies to maintain
order, resolve disputes, and protect a person’s liberty and rights.
4. Commandment - It is a rule that is to be strictly observed because it was said to be set by a
divine entity such as those in the Ten Commandments (Stahl, 2009).

▪ Moral Dilemma – Is a characteristically defined as situation wherein a moral agent has to choose
between two actions with two conflicting moral situations, none of which nullifies or overrides each
other a situation where: a. there are two or more actions that you can possibly do, b. there is a moral
reason(s) for doing such actions, c. you cannot do all the possible actions presented to you. You
only need to choose one.
Levels of Moral Dilemma
1. Personal Moral Dilemma - Is when your decision in a situation where there is moral conflict is
the cause of either your own; that of another person; or a group of people’s potential harm.
2. Organizational Dilemma - Is when a member or members of the organization is in a situation
where there is moral conflict, and the decision will potentially harm either some members of
the group or organization.
3. Structural Moral Dilemma - Is when a person or group of persons who holds high level positions
in the society faces a morally conflicting situation wherein the entire social system is affected.

▪ Freedom
Why only human beings can be ethical? According to St. Thomas Aquinas, the fundamental
difference between animal and human ethics is that animals behave instinctively while human
behaviour is rational.
Rational Behavior. It is a decision-making process where the person acts in ways that best
achieve his or her needs in accordance with his or her set preferences, priorities, and principles.
The Human person as free being. A human person is a being with inborn properties that he or she
uses to direct his or her own development toward self-fulfillment. One of the inborn properties of the
human
person is freedom.

Perspectives in Freedom
• Gabriel Marcel - Freedom is a gift from God. It is the ability to make significant choices, and
not just arbitrary (not important) choices.
• Aristotle - Freedom is Complementary to Reason – freedom without reason is not freedom at
all. Freedom to achieve one purpose in life needs reason to fulfill it, in other words, self-
direction. T

• Jean Paul Sartre - Freedom is Absolute – we are so free that even “not choosing” is a choice.
Freedom demands responsibility.
It is important to note that a person can act and should choose to act, but his/her actions should
tititititittitititibe in harmony with the others and their rights.
Lesson 2 The Moral Agent
➢ Moral agent has the power of taking the decision, judgement ability to think what is wrong or right,
and leadership qualities to influence others about what is right or wrong. It can be any person or
collective entity capable or exercising moral agency.

Human Acts
- Montemayor (1994)
- Voluntary (free) acts of man.
- Acts done with knowledge and consent.
- Acts which are proper to man which is acted with knowledge and freedom of the will.
- Acts which man is conscious, under his control, and for which man is responsible of it.
- Acts which man is the master, as man has the power and control of doing and not doing as he
pleases.
a. Knowledge - Has intellectual knowledge of the act. When the doer is conscious and aware of
the reason and the consequences of one’s action – good or bad.
b. Freedom - When the doer acts on its own initiative and choice without being forced to do so.
c. Voluntariness - An act is done voluntarily or willfully when the doer approves/consents to the act
and owning it as its own. It requires knowledge and freedom.

Determinants of Morality
a. Object – Pertains to the act itself. Nature of the act.
b. Motive – Intention of the doer.
c. Circumstances – Underlying condition while doing the act.

Culture and Morality - Culture is a complex phenomenon. It contains nearly all aspects of shared human
experience. Culture includes language, beliefs, values, norms, behaviors, and even material objects that
are passed from one generation to another.

5 Basic Elements of Culture

1. Symbols. Can be anything that a group of people find meaningful.
2. Language. Is a complex symbol system that enable human beings to communicate either
verbally or through writing.
3. Beliefs. Are assumptions or convictions held to be true or by an individual or a group of
people. These assumption/convictions could be about events, people, or things.
4. Values. Are culturally acceptable standard of behavior. It is what a person considers important
or beneficial in life.
5. Norms. Is an informal guideline by a particular group of people or social unit about what is
considered is normal or correct/incorrect social behavior. For instance, The Filipino norm in
relating to other people to other people is to get along well with others, even with complete
strangers. This Filipino trait called “pakikisama”.

How does Culture affect Human Behavior?

• Naturally drawn to participate in culture.
• People want to belong.
• To be accepted by peers.
• We also need protection from danger and being part of social group not only feeds our need to
be accepted, but it also increases the human being chance of survival.

How does Culture define Moral Behavior? (Plato)

• Native traits (or what we might call genetic characteristics).
• Early childhood experience.
• One’s cultural surroundings.

How Moral Character is Developed?

- Defining moment refers to a significant life-changing event or moment that reverberates
throughout your career and personal life and so changes everything. A person who has moral
character does moral actions more readily and more willingly than one who does not. Therefore,
 it is good to develop moral character. Moral character is formed by repeatedly doing moral
acts.

Philosophical Views on Moral Character

▪ Confucian Tradition - For Confucian tradition, oral development was attributed to “four beginnings”
of the human personality. These four beginnings were considered as seeds of human personality that
will naturally unfold to become human activities. According to Mencius, people have four innate
ethical dispositions which are: Benevolence, Righteousness, Wisdom, Propriety.
▪ Aristotle & Virtue Ethics - Virtue ethics is an approach that reduces the emphasis on rules,
consequence, and particular acts. Instead, virtue ethics focus on the quality of the person. It is more
concerned with whether the person is acting as a virtuous person should act in the situation.
▪ Virtue for Greeks is equivalent to excellence. A person of virtue is someone who performs the
distinctive activity of being human well. The principle of being virtuous is called “DOCTRINE OF THE
GOLDEN MEAN” – that moral behavior is the one that is in the middle of two extreme behaviors (or
what he called vices). When he said “extreme behavior”, it meant the act was either excessive of
deficient.

Stages of Moral Development

- Lawrence Kohlberg studied morality using a very interesting technique. His theory holds the moral
reasoning, which is the basis for ethical behavior, has identifiable development stages and each
become more adequate at responding to moral dilemmas as the person progress from one
stage to the next.

(1) Level One: Pre-conventional Morality

(a) Stage 1: Punishment-Obedient Orientation
(b) Stage 2: Reward Orientation
(2) Level Two: Conventional Morality
(a) Stage 3: Good Boy/Good Girl Orientation
(b) Stage 4: Authority Orientation
(3) Level Three: Post Conventional
(a) Stage 5: Social Contract Orientation
(b) Stage 6: Ethical-Principal Orientation

Cultural Relativism
- The central tenet in the concept of Cultural Relativism is that “Different cultures have different
moral codes.” There is no concept of universal truth in ethics. The customs of different societies
are all that exist.
Universal Values
- It cannot be denied that in reality, societies really have different moral codes. However, there
are values that continue to be universally true. These are values which find common ground
despite having different forms and enunciations in the world’s various societies. Care for children,
truth telling, prohibition against murder.
The Filipino Way
Strengths & Weaknesses of Filipino
Strengths of Filipino Character Weaknesses of Filipino Character
Character
The home environment Pakikipagkapwa-tao Extreme Personalism
The social environment Family orientation Extreme Family-Centeredness
Culture and language Joy and humor Lack of Discipline
History Flexibility, adaptable and creativity Passivity and Lack of Initiatives
The educational system Hard work and industry Colonial Mentality
Religion Faith and religiosity Kanya-kanya Syndrome
Lack of Self-Analysis and Self-
The economic environment Ability to survive
Reflections
The political environment
Mass media, and
Leadership and role models
Lesson 3 The Act / Moral Actions
➢ Hume and the Philosophy of the Mind
David Hume’s Theory of Mind
I. Reason alone cannot be a motive to the will, but rather is the “slave of the passions”.
II. Moral distinctions are not derived from reason.
III. Moral distinctions are derived from the moral sentiments: feelings of approval (esteem,
praise), disapproval (blame) felt by spectators who contemplate a character trait or
action.
IV. While some virtues and vices are natural, others (including justice) are artificial.
- Although reason is needed to discover the facts of any concrete situations, reason alone is
insufficient to yield a judgment that something is virtuous or vicious (Hume, 2003). According to
Hume’s “Theory of Mind”, humans have what he called as passions (which he used to describe
emotions or feelings).

➢ Direct Passion - Passions are caused directly by the sensation of pain and pleasure; the passion that
arises immediately from good or evil, from pain or pleasure”.
o Desire - Is a direct passion because it is an immediate response to the pleasure we expect to
feel. Other direct passions include aversion, hope, fear, grief, and joy. (Stanford
Encyclopedia of Philosphy, 2016; Cohon, 2010).
➢ Indirect Passion - passions are caused by the sensation of pain or pleasure derived from some idea
or impression.
o Pride - Is a passion that emanated from the pleasure you get for possessing something
admirable (it could be intellect, physique, property, family, ect.) Pride therefore is a result of
the person, the object of the passion, and quality of the object.

➢ Max Scheler and the Philosophy of Feelings

- Scheler sought to know what comprised the structures of consciousness, including that of mental
acts such as feeling, thinking, resolve, etc.
- The emotion is the most important aspect in human existence (Dy, 1986).
- Scheler asserted that emotions/feelings are inherent, objective, and it exists even if you have not
experienced it before (a priori).

Sensual Feelings Involves bodily pleasure or pain.

Life functions such as health,
Vital Feelings
sickness, energy, fatigue, etc.
About aesthetics, justice and
Psychic Feelings
knowledge (scientific).
Spiritual Feelings About divinity; Holiness.

➢ Difference between Responses based on Reason and on Feelings

- Dr. James Rachels asserted that in moral reasoning, you could not rely on your feelings no matter
how powerful these feelings may be. Feelings can be irrational and merely a product of your
prejudice, selfishness, or cultural condition.
An argument is reasonable if:
A. The facts are correct.
B. The moral principles are correctly applied.
C. Everyone’s well-being is treated equally important.

➢ What is the Role of Feelings in Decision-making?

- Reasons play a role in making decisions. It should be noted too that our moral compasses are
also powerfully influenced by feelings. Hume claimed that in any given situation, a person
would act based on emotions rather than reason (Bucciarelli, et al., 2008).

➢ Why feelings can be obstacles to making the right decision?

I. Non-deliberate Nature - Deliberate means the act was intentional, planned, with
conscious effort. Non-deliberate is the contrary term that denotes spontaneous actions. It
is doing something without thinking it through.
 II. Partial Nature - Emotions notoriously play favorites. It operates on a principle called “The
law of concern” (Fridja, 1988) where emotions give focus only on matters of personal
interest. However, emotions are quiet when it is of no personal concern.
1. Decisions based on feelings focus only on a narrow area, and
2. It reflects personal and self-interest perspectives.
III. Capricious Nature - The third problem with emotions is that it rises up for arbitrary reasons.
Aspects or situations that have nothing to do in moral situations could rile up your
emotions, and this emotion will certainly influence your subsequent moral judgment
(Pizarro, 2000).

➢ How emotions Help in Making the Right Decisions?

- Emotions are the foundation of all our cognitive and behavioral processes; and emotional
responses often guide a person in making beneficial choices without any conscious reasoning
(Arnold, 1960; Damasio, 2003)
1. It signals the need to adjust behavior.
2. It can help us learn from our mistakes.
3. Emotional responses can be reshaped as time pass by.
Counterfactual thinking is a psychological concept about the human tendency to create
possible or alternatives scenarios other than what had happened.

➢ Requirements for Ethics

Here are some compelling reasons:
a. It is enlightened self-interest- “I will be better off”.
b. It is traditional law- “Because some authority says so”.
c. It is a responsibility- “It is expected of me”.
d. It is what is fair and equitable- “It is about fairness and justice”.
But most of all,
e. People have shared human needs, goals, desires, and/or objectives; and these are better met
when people treat each other in a manner that promotes what is right and
good.
- Reason is the power of the mind to think, understand, and form judgments by a process of logic.
- Immanuel Kant argued that reason alone is the basis for morality, and once the person
understood this basic requirement for morality, he or she would see that acting morally is the
same as acting rationally (Beck, 1960).
- You, as a person, are able to think and reflect on different actions and then choose what action
to think.
- Impartiality is commonly understood as a principle of justice. It denotes that decision should be
“based on objective criteria rather than on the basis of bias, prejudice, or preferring to benefit
one person over another for improper reasons” (Jollimore, 2011).

➢ 7 STEP MORAL REASONING PROCESS

1. Gather the Facts 2. Identify the Stakeholders 3. Articulate the Dilemma
4. List the Alternatives 5. Compare the Alternatives with the Principles
6. Weigh the Consequence 7. Make a Decision

➢ Moral Courage - It is the courage to put your moral principles into action even though you may be
in doubt, are afraid, or face adverse consequences. Moral courage involves careful deliberation
and mastery of self. Moral courage is essential not for only a virtuous life.
➢ Moral Imagination - An ability to imaginatively discern various possibilities for acting within a given
situation to envision the potential help and harm that are likely to result from a given action
(Johnson, 1994).
➢ Will - The mental capacity to act decisively on one’s desire. It is the faculty of the mind to initiate
action after coming to a resolution following careful deliberation. Enabling a person to act
deliberately. Aristotle believed that “will” gave the person the capacity for “exciting movement in
space”.
➢ Developing the Will - Aristotle discussed the difference between what people decide to do and
what they do. The resolve to put the decision into action is the role of the “will”. “We become just by
the practice of just actions; self-control by exercising self-control; and courageous by practicing acts
of courage (as translated by Baird, 2016).