BASIC

CONCEPTS
1.B- MORAL vs NON- MORAL STANDARDS
AND
MORAL EXPERIENCE

Prepared by: Roselynn P.M. Taaca

 LEARNING OUTCOMES:
1. Differentiate between moral and non-moral standards.
2. Explain how important more standards are.
3. Discuss the basic characteristics of moral standard
 MORAL OR ETHICAL
EXPERIENCE
The “ moral “ and “ethical” are synonymous with root words, respectively from
the Latin mores which means custom, norm or behaviours or acceptable to a
group and Greek ethikos refers to custom, character or expected behaviours.

TAKE NOTE:
Customs are something that many people do and have done for a long time. 
Norms refer to something that is usual and acceptated general concept.
Behaviours are actions made by individuals.
 MORAL OR ETHICAL
EXPERIENCE
• It is inevitable to choose between what is good or right and what is bad or
wrong.
• There are difficult times when one has to choose what is wrong because it
follows a rule but to make everything right in the end.

• Some continuously do the right or good even if it often brings misfortune and
suffering.

• This kind of experience is often called a moral experience. As the words

suggest, moral experience is the experience of the moral or good.
 MORAL OR ETHICAL EXPERIENCE
• A moral experience is choosing the most preferred or higher
good, values, principles, rules, and standards over the goods.

• Sometimes it is choosing something for the sake of a greater rule,

principle, or value.

• There are times when higher quality rules such as principles are
prioritized more than policies, guidelines, and laws.

• Others also choose to follow rules with lower quality or value to

preserve the higher quality or value such as the common good.
 MORAL PRINCIPLES OR VALUES
AS MORAL STANDARDS
Not all situations of choosing between rules are moral
experiences.
Examples of Rules that are NOT considered components of moral
experience:
1. Requirements
2. Fashion standards
3. Etiquettes that may bring difficult experiences
4. Choosing between rules of games
 MORAL PRINCIPLES OR VALUES AS MORAL
STANDARDS

Essence of Moral Experience:

1. Deciding on what moral principles to prioritize over others
2. Choosing the highest moral standard over other moral standards.
It is no longer the simple experience of the good, but the difficult choice of the better or greatest good.

3. Choosing the societal standard over personal standard or vice versa

because of greater values.
 MORAL/ETHICAL VS. NON-
MORAL/NON-ETHICAL
STANDARDS
mnemonic: WEPAPIBU
1. Well-being oriented
2. Emotion-connected
3. Practical
4. Autonomous
5. Prescriptive
6. Impartial
7. Binding
8. Universalizable
 1. Moral Standards are oriented
towards well-being
• Moral standards are good-oriented.
• Used to measure the importance or
gravity of the effect of behaviors to
human welfare or happiness.
•They determine if behaviors benefit
human persons.
•If behaviors are not beneficial, then
they do not pass the moral standards
and should be rendered bad or wrong.
• However, rules or standards in
games do not have so much impact
on the well-being of people.
•They are of a lower level because
they do not deal with serious
matters about the good and well-
being of people.
•Violation or following any
standards of game does not affect
the good life of a person.
 2. Moral Standards are connected with
emotions.
• Moral standards do not necessarily disregard emotions.
• Emotions are often misunderstood as impediments and are detrimental to a moral life.
• High emotions are normally seen as the source of wrong moral decisions or immoral life.
Many thinkers would consider emotion as the moral compass.
• Most moral issues are driven and powered by negative emotions.
* Karl Marx on the workers’ negative feeling of being alienated and violated of their
moral principles started and fueled meaningful discussions or debates.
* Some emotions brought people together to fight abuses and better their lives.
For instance, anger may arise when employers constantly violate the moral standards of their workers.
3. Moral Standards are practical.
• Moral standards are workable and not impossible to achieve.
• They render behaviors as either moral or immoral, good or bad,
and right or wrong.
•They deal with seriously immoral behaviors that bring extreme
negative effects to people. So that if behaviors are seriously
immoral, it only means that they do not pass the moral standards
and should be rendered immoral.
• Whereas, violations of the rules or standardsl of games could
not be considered seriously immoral or bad. They are just part of
the game, and thus do not have a practical effect on the integrity
of the player or team.
4. Moral Standards are autonomous.
• Moral standards are formed or founded by the autonomy of good
reason and not by its being endorsed by persons or leaders of
authority.
• Good reason
* means sound or logical so that the moral standards it independently establishes
should be backed by adequate and sound reasoning
* for rules to be moral standards, it should not be because an authority figure
validates it so but because they are beyond question.
* Good reason with good support or justification is enough authority for a rule to
be considered as a moral standard.
The moral standard says:
“Do not do unto others what you do not want others do unto you.”
• Any sane person is capable to extract moral standards from his
reason.
 5.Moral Standards are prescriptive.
• Moral standards as products of good reason are authoritative rule
statements on what to do and avoid.
• They come as a practical guide, directive, demand, command, or
proscription, e.g.
“Love your neighbor as you love yourself.” “Treat people as ends.” “Do not kill.”

• As commands, they act as advice, influence to action, guide, and evaluating

tools that may produce different emotions such as sadness/happiness,
satisfaction/guilt, positive/negative, pride/shame.
** If a person kills another, thereby violating the moral standard: “Do not kill.” -> He may feel bad, sad,
guilt, and regret. -> Submits himself to the authority -> Asks forgiveness from the aggrieved party, and
wholeheartedly accept his punishment.
** Unlike the standards of a game which can always be violated because they are not strictly considered
as commands.
 6. Moral Standards are impartial.
• They should not be based on any personal or group
concerns but on something reasonable or universal and
neutral to its recipients.
• It goes beyond the subject and his personal biases in which
each person’s interests are disinterestedly counted. Not being
favored may be hurting emotions but that is impartiality that
does disregard emotions.
•The characterisic of reason as impartial means moral
standards deal with experiences objectively or detached from
any personal connections and prejudgments.
* For instance: “Love one another.” - does not only apply to family
members but goes beyond family ties, race, sexuality, culture, and
religion.
Love goes beyond categories because it is unbiased and
unconditional.
7. Moral Standards are binding.
• They are the most favored values over other values and apply those who
value them.
• People ought to do them given the necessary considerations.
• They are given the most priority in particular situations because they are the right
or most appropriate things to do.
• Not self-serving.
• In choosing a moral standard over others, all things are to be considered one
ought to be prudent.
* To be prudent as a moral standard is to know which standard is best to use and how to use
it proportionately in a particular situation.
• Moral standards are not always good for all situations or “one that fits on does
not fit all.”
* For instance: There is a moral standard that people have the moral obligation to follow the
law; However, when the law becomes seriously immoral, the moral standard that is most preferred
is to either disobey the law or simply change it.
8.Moral Standards are universalizable.
• It can be accepted and supported as
applicable to everyone or worldwide.
• For one to be univerzalizable, it means that
“one that fits one fits all.” It should be very
important to all who are relevantly in a
similar situation.
• If a moral standard is to speak the truth
absolutely and for this to be univerzalizable
then it must apply to everyone.
• Moral standard as univerzalizable is related
to being consistent.