M I D T E R M (M o d u l e 4) 1

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Course Code : GE 125

Description : Purposive Communication

Schedule : MWF 1:00-2:00p.m. HM 1A (Hyatt)

MWF 3:00-4:00p.m. HM 1C (Delta)
TTH 12:00-1:30p.m. HM 1B (Maxims)

Instructor : Delto Michael A. Abarquez, Jr.

MODULE 4

Week 6 March 11-16, 2024

Instructions : After reading the content of this module, answer the assessment at the
end of the lesson. Please print out your answers and submit during our
face-to-face or in-person session for checking and grading purposes.
If you have any question or concerns, please do not hesitate
to contact me during the scheduled time. Thank you!

Objectives : At the end of this lesson, students will be able to:

1. Know how to communicate in an ethical manner;

2. Apply the ethical principles to their communication process;

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Module 4
COMMUNICATION ETHICS

It is importantu to understand that whatever we communicate should be guided by certain ethical

principles. The US National Communication Association (NCA, 1999) discusses this in their
Credo for Ethical Communication, stating that, “Ethical communciation is fundamental to
responsible thinking, decision-making, and the development of relationships and communities
within and across contexts, cultures, channels, and media. Morever, ethical communication
enhances human worth and dignity by fostering truthfulness, fairness, responsibility, personal
integrity, and respect for self and others. We believe that unethical communication threatens the
quality of all communication and consequently the well-being of individuals and the society in
which we live.

Definition of Ethics
- Derived from the Greek word ethos which means “characteristic way of acting” which is
proper to man as a rational being;
- Is a science that studies the morality of human acts;
- Is a science of human acts with reference to right and wrong;

Definition of Morality
- Refers to the quality of goodness and badness in a human act. Good is described as moral
and Bad is immoral. It means conformity to the rules of right conduct. It implies
judgement and refers to what he would call moral standards and moral conduct while
ethics is used to refer to the formal study of those standards and conduct. For this reason,
ethics is also often called “moral philosophy”;
- The degree to which something is right and good;
- The beliefs about what is right behavior and what is wrong behavior;

There are four ethical principles of communication that are especially relevant for students
today.
1. Advocate truthfulness, accuracy, honesty, and reason as essential to the integrity of
communication. Nowadays, social media and speeches in public have been so filled with
black propaganda and white washing that there is a call to reiterate the needs for truth and
honesty. It is important to be accurate when we communicate and to have facts and
figures to prove our assertions. It is important to be reasonable, rather than to be
emotional or threatening when we communicate.

2. It endorses “freedom of expression, diversity of perspective, and tolerance of dissent

achieved the informed and reasonable decision making fundamental to civil society”. We
must be able to hear different perspective and have a high tolerance for views that are
different from ours. It is important to foster an environment where people feel safe
enough to express what they think and feel, and for these expressions to be met with
reasonable dialogue and debates, rather than outright censure or violence.

3. It states that they “condemn communication that degrades individual and humanity
through distortion, intimidation, coercion and violence and through the expression of
intolerance and hatred”. This condemnation is important because its safeguard society
from racism, sexism, and violence against oppressed people.

4. Lastly, it is states that communicators should “accept responsibility for the short-and the
long term consequences of our own communication and expect the same of others”. All
to often, there have been one people who do not feel accountable for their actions.
Therefore, if one risks to communicate maliciously, spread false news, or insight hatred
or violence, he or she should ready to face consequence of such actions.

Even though these four principles above are short and concise, they are important because
they help us discern the difference between ethical and unethical communication.
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MODULE 4
( Assessment )

NAME: ______________________________________________________________________

SUBJECT: PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION

SECTION:_______________ TIME: __________

Instruction:
It is very important to indicate your subject section and time before answering the process
questions.

Process Questions:

1. In your own words, differentiate ethics and morality.

2. Why do you think there should be ethics in communication?

3. When you think of politicians today, would you say that they have been
communicating in an ethical manner or unethical manner? Justify your answers.