Introduction to Professional Ethics

PHLOSOPHY

= Greek for love of wisdom =philia meaning love or friendship Sophia meaning wisdom

Philosophy components

Epistemology

ie the study of knowledge

Metaphysics

The study of nature of reality

The study of morality

Axiology (ethics)

ETHICS

Ethos (a Greek word)

Habit, custom, love of wisdom

Rational reasoning Theoretical reasoning Standards in regards

Normative ethics

Right wrong Good bad

In relation to conduct, behavior, character One ought to be acceptable by an individual or groups.

Included within these concepts, the meanings

Kantian Utilitarian

Ethics

Whereby the priority refers to what ought, the way an individual ought to think and behave. The main objective is to form a valid norm on the conduct and also emplacing valve on behavioral conduct.

Social ethics

A doctrine related to what is (accepted) as right/as wrong What is good What is bad

Upon the behavioral conduct these characteristics, can be observed in religious ethics.

Ethics

From the Greek word ethos, meaning character Focus on what is right or wrong in human behavior and conduct Question focusing on:

What constitutes any person or action being good, bad, right or wrong? How and what part does self interest or interests of other people play in the making of moral decisions and judgment ?

Question arise then, How do we define right or wrong? Good or bad action? What are the standards by which such decisions can be made?

What is considered good? Is good associated with happiness? Pleasurable? Bad then is associated with unhappiness and pain? How do we determine what is happiness, pleasure, pain, unhappiness?

Society ? Culture? Individual? Independence? What about human experience? Human relationships? .. In the context of what is good, what is right.

Knowledge

we can utilize it for good. What about bad? .actions based on knowledge.

Similarly power .. How do we decide actions that will bring good (for some, some one) but pain for others?

EPISTEMOLOGY

Question such as :

What is knowledge? What are the truth and falsity? How, where do they apply? What is required for an individual to actually know something? What is the nature of perception? What are logic and logical reasoning?

EPISTEMOLOGY

How can we attain them? What is the difference between knowledge and belief?

METAPHYSICS

Question such as :

What exists in reality? What is the nature of what exist? Is there really a cause and effect in reality? How does it work if it exist? What is the nature of human beings? What is the nature of the physical world? Is there a mental or spiritual world? Is there freedom in reality or is it predetermined?

As normative science, ethics involves the focus on the study of norms; criteria related with decision making (choice) done by man which can be differentiate between good and wrong.

ETHICS
Ethics as philosophy Relativism Absolutism Motivation in morals

Introduction to Ethics

The unexamined life is not worth living (Socrates). What is right? What is wrong? Hamlet wonders, to be or not to be but according to Levine (1986), that is not the question. The question is, How to be.

ETHICS

Are all standards of what is right and wrong, what constitutes a good personal life or a good society merely relative to the individual person or to a particular social group expressing nothing more than habit or prejudice and serving individual or group interests and needs? These are the questions of the branch of philosophy called ethics. Ethics asks if there is a highest good for human beings, an absolute good? What is the meaning of right and wrong in human action? What are our obligations? And why should we be moral? (Lavine, 1984, p.3 in Freeman, 2000, p. 29).

ETHICS

Ethics as Philosophy

RELATIVISM

In addressing relativism, the distinction between ethical relativism and cultural relativism is of paramount importance. Ethical relativism is a highly controversial philosophical theory, while cultural relativism is an accepted sociological description of some important differences between cultures.

Ethical relativism concerns itself with the question, What actions are morally right?. Cultural relativism concern itself with the question, What actions do different cultures believe to be morally right? Because differing cultures have diverse moral beliefs, there is no way to decide whether an action is morally right or morally wrong other than by asking the people of that particular culture to judge.

Ethical relativism may be seen as the view that if the members of certain culture believe that a certain action is morally right, then it is morally right to perform that act in that culture. Likewise, if the members of a different culture view the same act as morally wrong, then in that culture to perform that act would be morally wrong.

With that basic difference noted, the larger questions involving relativism can be addressed. Who are you to judge someone elses behavior? What gives you the right to impose your values on others?

Some people doubt that the moral judgments of others can be valid. They reject the idea that there are valid universal moral principals applicable to everyone. Ethical relativism questions whether what is right for one person or culture or society is any indication that is right for another.

Relativism states that morality is relative to something else.

It denies that there are any absolute moral standards and states that different moral standards exist for different cultures and societies. Relativism is one of the largest areas of controversy in the study of ethics.

Holmes (1993) distinguishes three theses relevant to relativism. 1. Moral beliefs and practices vary from culture to culture. 2. Morality depends on: a. human nature (e.g., reason, motivation, emotions, and capacity for pleasure and pain); b. The human condition (the natural order places constraints on human life such as death); c. specific social and cultural circumstances, or some combination of all three of the above. 3. What is right and wrong may vary from person to person and culture to culture.

Holmes (1993) states that thesis 1 simply affirm cultural diversity. Variations in moral beliefs and practices, some of which might be pronounced, are possible but not required in different cultures.

Thesis 2, the dependency thesis, states that morality is dependent on or conditioned by human nature and/or the world people live in. This view states that moralitys function is to guide human conduct, and that it has evolved over time in response to human needs.

Thesis 3 is ethical relativism. It contains both these 1 and 2 and goes beyond them. Ethical relativists believe in right and wrong; however, they contend that what is right for one person or culture has the possibility of being wrong for another.

Relativism allows for the possibility of differing moral judgments about the same behavior being (relatively) correct at the same time.

ABSOLUTISM

Absolute moral standards are both universal and objective. They are universal in that the apply to everyone at all times and also apply to all situations equally. Consistency without contradiction is a key factor in this universal application.

Absolute moral standards are objective in that they do not depend on a persons culture beliefs, thoughts, feelings or customs.

Introduction to Professional Ethics

Professional ethics is about being confident one has the correct combination of attributes to alleviate human distress a promised.

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Specifically, ethics encompasses four dimensions: Having sufficient knowledge, skill, and judgment to use efficacious interventions. Respecting the human dignity and freedom of the client. Using the power inherent in the counselors role responsibly. Acting in ways that promote public confidence in the profession of counseling. (Welfel, 2002).

THE DEVELOPMENT OF CODES OF ETHICS

Ethical standards written by professional associations represent a consensus of members beliefs and concerns about ethical behavior. Kitchener (1984), addressing the issues of ethical principles in counseling, noted that when our ordinary moral judgment fails us, as professionals we must move to a more systematic and evaluative level in our ethical thinking.

Tennyson and Strom (1986) suggest two conditions are necessary in the moral reasoning of counselors who exercise responsibleness. One is a commitment to rational thinking and the other an orientation to moral principles. They suggest professional ethical standards can be viewed as an attempt at the formation of ethical sense (responsibleness).

The codes of ethics of professional organizations are not static; rather, there are living documents that reflect movement and growth within the profession. The American Counseling Association (ACA) code of ethics was adopted in 1961 and has also undergone several minor as well as major revisions (i.e., 1974, 1981, 1988, 1995). Most codes of ethics of professional organizations undergo revisions as the profession grows.

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