Key Concepts

in Ethics
Sir Sem A. Mapa
 Ethics
● is the branch of philosophy that studies
morality or the rightness or wrongness of
human conduct.
● As a branch of philosophy, ethics stands
to queries about what there is reason to
do. Dealing with human actions and
reasons for action, ethics is also
concerned with character. In fact, the
word 'ethics' is derived from the Greek
ethos, which means 'character', or, in
plural, 'manners!
Morality
● Some questions that are ethical in nature ● speaks of a code or
are: What is the good? Who is a moral system of behavior in
person? What are the virtues of a human regard to standards of
being? What makes an act right? What right or wrong
duties do we have to each other? behavior.
● Also called 'moral philosophy, ethics evaluates moral concepts, values,
principles, and standards. Because it is concerned with norms of human
conduct, ethics is considered a normative study of human actions.
● Clearly, ethics and morality necessarily carry the concept of moral
standards or rules with regard to behavior. So as a way of introducing
moral rules, let us discuss why rules are important to social beings.
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 The Importance of
Rules to Social Beings
1 Rules refer to explicit or understood regulations or principles governing
conduct within a specific activity or sphere ("Rule," n.d.). Rules tell us
what is or is not allowed in a particular context or situation. In many
ways, rules serve as a foundation for any healthy society. Without rules,
society would likely fall into anarchy.
Rules benefit social beings in various
manners:
a. Rules protect social beings by regulating behavior. Rules
build boundaries that place limits on behavior Rules are usually
coupled with means to impose consequences on those who
violate them. One of the reasons people follow accepted rules is
to avoid negative consequences.

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Rules benefit social beings in various
manners:
b. Rules help to guarantee each person certain rights and freedom. Rules form
frameworks for society Nations are generally nations of laws and the governing
principles are outlined in what is called a constitution Because the majority has
agreed to follow and consent to be governed by such a constitution, the freedoms
outlined exist One of the advantages of such a system is that each person is
guaranteed certain rights as the government is limited in its power to ensure that it
does not become powerful enough to suppress liberty. Rules on divisions of power
and checks and balances further protect individual liberty.

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Rules benefit social beings in various
manners:
c. Rules produce a sense of justice among social beings. Rules are needed in order to
keep the strong from dominating the weak, that is, to prevent exploitation and
domination. Without rules, schemes in which those with the power control the system,
would take over. In effect, rules generate a stable system that provides justice, in which
even the richest and most powerful have limitations on what they can do If they
transgress rules such as laws and ordinances and take advantage of people, there are
consequences both socially and criminally.

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Rules benefit social beings in various
manners:
d. Rules are essential for a healthy economic system. Without rules
regulating business, power would centralize around monopolies and
threaten the strength and competitiveness of the system. Rules are
needed to ensure product safety, employee safety, and product quality.
Copyright and patents help protect people's intellectual property. Rules
and regulations also keep the banking system stable so as to avoid
depression and the like.

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 “
In short, society could not soundly function without
rules and regulations. Rules are necessary to protect
the greater good. Even the freest societies ought to
have rules in order to avoid exploitation and tyranny
while upholding the common welfare

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 Moral vs. Non-moral
Standards
2 Not all rules are moral rules. That is, not all
standards are moral standards.
● Morality may refer to the standards
that a person or a group has about
what is right and wrong, or good
and evil Accordingly, moral
standards are those concerned with
or relating to human behavior,
especially the distinction between
good and bad (or right and wrong)
behavior.
● Moral standards involve the rules
people have about the kinds of
actions they believe are morally
right and wrong, as well as the
values they place on the kinds of
objects they believe are morally
good and morally bad. Some
ethicists equate moral standards
with moral values and moral
principles.
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● Non-moral standards refer to rules that are unrelated to moral or
ethical considerations. Either these standards are not necessarily
linked to morality or by nature lack ethical sense Basic examples of
non-moral standards include rules of etiquette, fashion standards, rules
in games, and various house rules. Technically, religious rules, some
traditions, and legal statutes (i.e. laws and ordinances) are non- moral
principles, though they can be ethically relevant depending on some
factors and contexts.

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The following characteristics of moral standards further
differentiate them from non-moral standards:

a. Moral standards involve serious wrongs or significant benefits.

Moral standards deal with matters which can seriously impact, that
is, injure or benefit human beings. It is not the case with many non-
moral standards. For instance, following or violating some basketball
rules may matter in basketball games but does not necessarily affect
one's life or well-being.

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The following characteristics of moral standards further
differentiate them from non-moral standards:

b. Moral standards ought to be preferred to other values. Moral

standards have overriding character or hegemonic authority. If a
moral standard states that a person has the moral obligation to do
something, then he/she is supposed to do even if it conflicts with
other non-moral standards, and even with self- interest.

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The following characteristics of moral standards further
differentiate them from non-moral standards:
● Moral standards are not the only rules or principles in society, but they take precedence
over other considerations, including aesthetic, prudential, and even legal ones. A person
may be aesthetically justified in leaving behind his family in order to devote his life to
painting, but morally, all things considered, he/she probably was not justified. It may be
prudent to lie to save one's dignity, but it probably is morally wrong to do so. When a
particular law becomes seriously immoral, it may be people's moral duty to exercise civil
disobedience. There is a general moral duty to obey the law, but there may come a time
when the injustice of an evil law is unbearable and thus calls for illegal but moral
noncooperation (such as the antebellum laws calling for citizens to return slaves to their
owners).

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The following characteristics of moral standards further
differentiate them from non-moral standards:

c. Moral standards are not established by authority figures. Moral standards

are not invented, formed, or generated by authoritative bodies or persons
such as nations' legislative bodies. Ideally instead, these values ought to be
considered in the process of making laws. In principle therefore, moral
standards cannot be changed nor nullified by the decisions of particular
authoritative body. One thing about these standards, nonetheless, is that its
validity lies on the soundness or adequacy of the reasons that are considered
to support and justify them.

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The following characteristics of moral standards further
differentiate them from non-moral standards:

d. Moral standards have the trait of universalizability. Simply put,

it means that everyone should live up to moral standards. To be
more accurate, however, it entails that moral principles must apply
to all who are in the relevantly similar situation. If one judges that
act A is morally right for a certain person P, then it is morally right
for anybody relevantly similar to P.

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The following characteristics of moral standards further
differentiate them from non-moral standards:

● This characteristic is exemplified in the Gold Rule, "Do unto others what you
would them do unto you (if you were in their shoes)" and in the formal
Principle of Justice, "It cannot be right for A to treat B in a manner in which it
would be wrong for B to treat A, merely on the ground that they are two
different individuals, and without there being any difference between the
natures or circumstances of the two which can be stated as a reasonable ground
for difference of treatment." Universalizability is an extension of the principle
of consistency, that is, one ought to be consistent about one's value judgments.

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The following characteristics of moral standards further
differentiate them from non-moral standards:

e. Moral standards are based on impartial considerations. Moral standard does

not evaluate standards on the basis of the interests of a certain person or group,
but one that goes beyond personal interests to a universal standpoint in which
each person's interests are impartially counted as equal.
○ Impartiality is usually depicted as being free of bias or prejudice.
Impartiality in morality requires that we give equal and/or adequate
consideration to the interests of all concerned parties.

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The following characteristics of moral standards further
differentiate them from non-moral standards:

f. Moral standards are associated with special emotions and vocabulary.

Prescriptivity indicates the practical or action-guiding nature of moral
standards. These moral standards are generally put forth as injunction or
imperatives (such as, 'Do not kill,' 'Do no unnecessary harm,' and 'Love your
neighbor'). These principles are proposed for use, to advise, and to influence
to action. Retroactively, this feature is used to evaluate behavior, to assign
praise and blame, and to produce feelings of satisfaction or of guilt.

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The following characteristics of moral standards further
differentiate them from non-moral standards:

● If a person violates a moral standard by telling a lie even to fulfill a

special purpose, it is not surprising if he/she starts feeling guilty or
being ashamed of his/her behavior afterwards. On the contrary, no
much guilt is felt if one goes against the current fashion trend (eg
refusing to wear tattered jeans)

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 Dilemma and Moral
3 Dilemma
The term 'dilemma' refers to a situation in which a tough
choice has to be made between two or more options,
especially more or less equally undesirable ones. Not all
dilemmas are moral dilemmas.

Also called 'ethical dilemmas,’ moral dilemmas are

situations in which a difficult choice has to be made
between two courses of action, either of which entails
transgressing a moral principle. At the very least, a moral
dilemma involves conflicts between moral requirements.

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 The online Standford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, in discussing moral dilemmas
gives this example from the Book I of Plato's Republic:
"... Cephalus defines 'justice' as speaking the truth and paying one's
debts. Socrates quickly refutes this account by suggesting that it would
be wrong to repay certain debts-for example, to return a borrowed
weapon to a friend who is not in his right mind. Socrates' point is not
that repaying debts is without moral import; rather, he wants to show
that it is not always right to repay one's debts, at least not exactly when
the one to whom the debt is owed demands repayment. What we have
here is a conflict between two moral norms: repaying one's debts and
protecting others from harm..." ("Moral Dilemmas," n.d.)

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What is common to moral dilemmas is conflict. In each ethical dilemma, an agent
regards himself as having moral reasons to do each of two actions, but doing both
actions seems to be ethically not possible.
The key features of a moral dilemma are these:
(a) the agent is required to do each of two (or (b) the agent can do each of the actions, but
more) actions the agent cannot do both (or all) of the actions.

In a moral dilemma, the agent thus seems condemned to moral failure; no matter what
he does, he will do something wrong, or fail to do something that he ought to do.

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In the case given by Plato, many would say that it is more important to protect people from
harm than to return a borrowed weapon. Or, some would suggest that the borrowed item can
be returned later, the owner no longer poses a threat to others. It can be submitted therefore
that the moral requirement to protect others from serious harm overrides the ethical
requirement to repay one's debts by returning a borrowed item even when its owner so
demands.

Some ethicists propose that when one of the conflicting moral requirements overrides the
other, the case is not a 'genuine moral dilemma. Thus, in addition to the features mentioned
above, in order to have a genuine moral dilemma, some add that it must also be the case that

(c) neither of the conflicting moral requirements

is overridden.

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 Three Levels of Moral
4 Dilemmas
a. Personal Dilemma
Personal dilemmas are
those experienced and
resolved on the personal
level. Since many ethical
decisions are personally
made, many, if not most
of, moral dilemmas fall
under, or boil down to, this
level.

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a. Personal Dilemmas
In 1957, the philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre provided a case that could exemplify a personal
moral dilemma:
"Sartre tells of a student whose brother had been killed in the German offensive of
1940. The student wanted to avenge his brother and to fight forces that he regarded as
evil. But the student's mother was living with him, and he was her one consolation in
life. The student believed that he had conflicting obligations. Sartre describes him as
being torn between two kinds of morality: one of limited scope but certain efficacy,
personal devotion to his mother; the other of much wider scope but uncertain efficacy,
attempting to contribute to the defeat of an unjust aggressor." ("Moral Dilemmas," n.d.)

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a. Personal Dilemmas
There are many other personal moral dilemmas. If a person
makes conflicting promises, he faces a moral conflict. When an
individual has to choose between the life of a child who is about
to be delivered and the child's mother, he faces an ethical
dilemma.

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a. Personal Dilemmas

There are many other personal moral dilemmas. If a person makes

conflicting promises, he faces a moral conflict. When an individual
has to choose between the life of a child who is about to be delivered
and the child's mother, he faces an ethical dilemma.

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b. Organizational Dilemma
Organizational moral dilemmas refer to ethical
cases encountered and resolved by social
organizations. This category includes moral
dilemmas in business, medical field, and public
sector.
b. Organizational Dilemmas

A medical institution which believes that human life should not be

deliberately shortened and that unpreventable pain should not be tolerated
encounters a conflict in resolving whether to withdraw life support from a
dying patient. This is a common moral dilemma faced by healthcare
organizations.

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b. Organizational Dilemmas
Ethical dilemmas arise even in professional work. Administrative bodies in business are
confronted with situations in which several courses of action are possible but none of them
provide a totally successful outcome to those affected by the decision or actions taken. Moral
dilemmas in business involve issues about corporate practices, policies, business behaviors,
and the conducts and relationships of individuals in the organizations. Other business-related
dilemmas pertain to the social responsibility of businesses, employee rights, harassment, labor
unions, misleading advertising, job discrimination, and whistle blowing.

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b. Organizational Dilemmas
In a public sector, government leaders and employees have a moral duty to act in a manner
that is fair and unbiased, that is loyal to the public by putting public interest before personal
gain, and that fulfills duties of competency, integrity, accountability, and transparency. In
fulfilling these responsibilities, public officials may encounter foreseeable moral dilemmas.
These dilemmas include whether or not to favor family, friends, or campaign contributors over
other constituents; favoring the agenda of one's political party over a policy one believes to be
good for the community; dealing with conflicting public duties inherent in serving both as a
council member and as a member of an agency or commission; resigning from organizations
in which membership may give rise to future conflicts; becoming a whistle blower even if it
means potentially derailing a policy objective one is pursuing; and accepting gifts if it is
legally permitted but creates the appearance of impropriety.

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c. Structural Dilemma
Structural moral dilemmas refer to cases
involving network of institutions and operative
theoretical paradigms. As they usually
encompass multi-sectoral institutions and
organizations, they may be larger in scope and
extent than organizational dilemmas.
c. Structural Dilemmas
Case in point is the prices of medicine in the Philippines which are higher compared to
other countries in Asia and in countries of similar economic status. Factors affecting
medicine prices include the cost of research, presence of competition in the market,
government regulations, and patent protection. Institutions concerned may want to lower
the costs of medicine, thereby benefiting the Filipino public, but such a move may ruin
the interests or legal rights of the involved researchers, inventors or discoverers, and
pharmaceutical companies which own the patent of the medicines or healthcare
technologies.

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c. Structural Dilemmas
Another case which is structural in nature is that of Universal Health Care (UHC). Locally
applied, it is called "Kalusugan Pangkalahatan" (KP). It is the provision to every Filipino of
the highest possible quality of health care that is accessible, efficient, equitably distributed,
adequately funded, fairly financed, and appropriately used by an informed and empowered
public. As a government mandate, it intends to ensure that every Filipino shall receive
affordable and quality health benefits by (ideally) providing adequate resources - health
human resources, health facilities, and health financing.

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c. Structural Dilemmas
Concerning this program, health financing is first and foremost a big issue. Government could
set aside bigger budget for health for the implementation of this provision. But then, this
would mean cutting down allocations on other sectors (such as education or public works.).

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 'Only human beings can
5 be ethical'
Another basic tenet in ethics is the belief
that only human beings can be truly ethical.
Most philosophers hold that unlike animals,
human beings possess some traits that make
it possible for them to be moral:

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a. Only human beings are rational,
autonomous, and self-conscious.
The qualities of rationality, autonomy, and self-consciousness are believed to confer a
full and equal moral status to those that possess them as these beings are the only ones
capable of achieving certain values and goods. These values and goods are something
that outweighs the types of values and goods that non-rational, non-autonomous, and
non-self-conscious beings are capable of realizing. For instance, in order to attain the
kind of dignity and self-respect that human beings have, a being must be able to
conceive of itself as one among many, and must be able to consciously select his actions
rather than be led by blind instinct.

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a. Only human beings are rational,
autonomous, and self-conscious.
Many ethicists thus believe that only rational, autonomous, and self- conscious beings deserve
full and equal moral status. Because only human beings are rational, autonomous, and self-
conscious, it then follows that only human beings deserve full and equal moral status.

Moreover, the values of appreciating art, literature, and the goods that come with deep
personal relationships all require a being to be rational, autonomous, and self-conscious.
These values, and others like them, are the highest values to us humans; they comprise those
which make our lives worth living.

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b. Only human beings can act morally or
immorally.
Strictly speaking, an animal which devours another animal cannot be
said to be immoral. In the same manner, no matter how 'good' an
animal's action seems to be, it cannot be technically said to be moral.

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b. Only human beings can act morally or
immorally.
Only human beings can act morally or immorally. This is important in
ethics because only beings that can act morally can be required to
sacrifice their interests for the sake of others. Not able to truly act
morally, animals could not really sacrifice their own good for the sake
of others, but would even pursue their good at the expense of others.

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c. Only human beings are part of the
moral community.
The so-called moral community is not defined in terms of the intrinsic
properties that beings have, but rather in terms of the essential social
relations that exist between or among beings. Distinctively, only
human beings can possess or practice values such as love, honor,
social relationships, forgiveness, compassion, and altruism.

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c. Only human beings are part of the
moral community.
Moreover, only human beings can communicate with each other in truly meaningful ways, can
engage in economic, political, and familial relationships with each other, and can also form
deep personal relationships with each other. These kinds of relationships require the members
of such relationships to extend real concern to other members of these relationships in order
for the relationships to continue. These relationships are what constitute our lives and the
values contained in them.

Another thing human beings have that no animal has is the ability to participate in a collective
cognition. That is, we, as individuals, are able to draw on the collective knowledge of
humanity in a way no animal can.

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 Freedom as a

6 Foundation of
Morality
As explained above, one of the reasons
animals cannot be truly ethical is that they
are not really autonomous or free. Likewise,
a robot, no matter how beneficial its
functions may be, cannot be said to be
moral, for it has no freedom or choice but to
work according to what is commanded
based on its built-in program.

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Basically, morality is a question of choice. Morality, practically, is
choosing ethical codes, values, or standards to guide us in our daily lives.
Philosophically, choosing is impossible without freedom.

Morality requires and allows choice, which means the right to choose
even differently from our fellows. In their daily lives, people make the
choice to give to charities, donate time and money to schools, mentor
children, open businesses, of protest against animal cruelty.

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Everyone who wishes to function morally and rationally in a society has
to make choices virtually every minute of the day. Practically, the sum
of our choices can be said to define our specific 'morality.' Applicably,
using the government or one's culture to coerce people to behave in a
certain way is not morality but the antithesis of morality. This principle
in ethics applies even when the motive is pure.

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 Minimum
Requirement for
7 Morality: Reason and
Impartiality
The late Philosophy professor James Rachels (1941-2003) holds that
moral judgments must be backed by sound reasoning and that morality
requires the impartial consideration of all parties involved (Rachels,
1999). It is thus submitted that reason and impartiality compose the
"minimum conception" of morality or, as some put it, the minimum
requirement for morality.

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Reason
as a requirement for morality entails that human feelings may be
important in ethical decisions, but they ought to be guided by reason.
Sound reasoning helps us to evaluate whether our feelings and
intuitions about moral cases are correct and defensible.

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Impartiality
on the other hand, involves the idea that each individual's interests and point
of view are equally important. Also called evenhandedness or fair-
mindedness, impartiality is a principle of justice holding that decisions ought
to be based on objective criteria, rather than on the basis of bias, prejudice, or
preferring the benefit to one person over another for improper reasons.
(Detailed discussions on reason and impartiality can be found in a later
section of this book. For other introductory topics about Ethics, you may read
the Appendix A: "Ethics: A Primer" of this book.)

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Thank You!

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