Gened 8: Ethics

Moral and Non – Moral Standards

Moral Dilemmas
Three Levels of Moral Dilemmas
Corpuz, R. & Corpuz, B. (2020) Ethics. Lorimar Publishing, Inc.

Summer Class 2023

Intended Learning Outcomes
At the end of the sessions, the students are able to:

Distinguish between moral and non – moral

standards
Explain moral dilemma as a moral experience
Determine a moral dilemma and a false
dilemma
Discuss the three levels of moral dilemmas
 Group Activity

Instruction
Classify the given standards into:
moral standards and non – moral
standards
Time Limit: 3 minutes
 Moral or Non – Moral Standard?

Group 1 Group 2
No talking while your mouth is full. Do not lie.
Wear black or white for mourning; never
Do not steal.
red.
The males should be the one to propose
Do not kill.
marriage not females.
Submit school requirements on time. Do not cheat others.
If you’re a male, stay by the danger side
Do not speak evil against others.
of the road when walking with a female.
 Etymology and Meaning of
Ethics

Ethics comes from the Greek word ‘ethos’

meaning ‘custom’ used in the works of
Aristotle.

Moral is a Latin word equivalent of ethics.

 Etymology and Meaning of
Ethics

Ethics or moral philosophy is a branch of

philosophy which deals with moral standards.
It inquires about:
the rightness or wrongness of human behavior
the goodness or badness of personality, trait or
character
 Etymology and Meaning of
Ethics

Ethics is the study of the morality of human acts and

moral agents, what makes an act obligatory and what
makes a person accountable.

‘Moral’ is the adjective describing a human act as

either ethically right or wrong, or qualifying a person,
personality, character, as either ethically good or bad.
 Moral Standards or Moral Frameworks and

Non – Moral Standards

What are ‘moral standards’?

 Moral Standards or Moral Frameworks and

Non – Moral Standards

Moral standards are norms or prescriptions that serve as

the frameworks for determining what ought to be done or
what is right or wrong action, what is good or bad character.
Killing is wrong.
Stealing is wrong.
Telling lies is wrong.
Adultery is wrong.
Giving what is due to others is justice.
 Moral Standards or Moral Frameworks and

Non – Moral Standards

Moral standards are either consequences standards or non –

consequence standards.

The consequence standards depend on The non - consequence standards are

results, outcome. An act that results in
the general welfare, in the greatest good
of the greatest number, is moral. To take
part in a project that results in the
improvement of the majority of people is,
therefore, moral.
based on the natural law. Natural law is
the law of God revealed through human
reason. It is the “law of God written in the
hearts of men.” To preserve human life is
in accordance with the natural law,
therefore, it is moral.
 Moral Standards or Moral Frameworks and
Non – Moral Standards

Non – moral standards are social rules, demands of etiquette

and good manners. These are guides of action which should be
followed as expected by society. Sometimes these may not be
followed or some people may not follow them. From time to
time, changes are made regarding good manners or etiquette.
In sociology, non-moral standards or rules are called folkways.
In short, non – moral actions are those where moral categories
cannot be applied.
 Moral Standards or Moral Frameworks and
Non – Moral Standards

An indicator whether or not a standard is moral or non

– moral lies in its compliance as distinguished for its
non – compliance.
Non – compliance with moral standard causes a
sense of guilt, while non – compliance with a non –
moral standard may only cause shame or
embarrassment.
 Classification of the Theories of Moral
Standards

Garner and Rosen (1967) classified the various moral

standards formulated by moral philosophers as follows:
1. Consequence (teleological, from ‘tele’ which means
end, result, or consequences) standards states that an
act is right or wrong depending on the consequences of
the act, that is, the good that is produced in the world.
Will it do you good if you go to school? If the answer is right,
because you learn to read and write, then going to school is right.
 Classification of the Theories of Moral
Standards

The consequence standard states that the

rightness and wrongness of a rule depends on
the consequences of the good that is produced if
following of the rule. For instance, if everyone
follows the rule of a game, everyone will enjoy
playing the game.
 Classification of the Theories of Moral
Standards

2. Not – only – consequence standard

(deontological), holds that the rightness and wrongness
of an action or rule depends on sense of duty, natural
law, virtue, and the demand of the situation or
circumstance. The rightness and wrongness on an
action does not only depend or rely on the
consequence of that action or following the rule.
 Classification of the Theories of Moral
Standards

Natural law and virtue ethics are deontological

moral standards because their basis for
determining what us right and wrong does not
depend on consequences but on natural law and
virtue.
 What Makes Standards Moral?

For theists, believers in God’s existence, moral standards are

commandments of God revealed to man through prophets.
One who believes in God vows to Him and obliges
himself/herself to follow His Ten Commandments.

For non – theists, God is not the source of morality. Moral

standards are based on the wisdom of sages like Confucius
or philosophers like Immanuel Kant.
 Read the Situation

“A pregnant woman leading a group of five people out of a cave on

a coast is stuck in the mouth of that cave. In a short time, high tide
will be upon them and unless she is unstruck, they will all be
drowned except the woman whose head is out of the cave.
Fortunately (or unfortunately), someone has with him a stick of
dynamite which will inevitably kill her; but if they do not use it,
everyone else will drown.”

What would you do if you were one of them?

 What is a Moral Dilemma?

It is a problem in the decision – making between

two possible options, neither of which is
absolutely acceptable from an ethical
perspective.
 What is a Moral Dilemma?

Based on the definitions, moral dilemmas have the following in

common:
1. The agent is required to do each of the two (or more) actions
which are morally unacceptable
2. The agent can do each of the actions
3. The agent cannot do both (or all) of the actions. The agent thus
seems condemned to moral failure; no matter what he does, he
will do something wrong (or fail to do something that she ought to
do)
 What is a Moral Dilemma?

To have a genuine dilemma, one of the conflicting

solutions should not override the other. For instance, ‘the
requirement to protect others from serious harm overrides
the requirement to pay one’s debts by returning a
borrowed when its owner so demands’. Hence, in addition
to the features of mentioned, in order to have a genuine
moral dilemma, it must also be true that neither of the
conflicting requirements is overridden.
 What is a False Dilemma?

It is a situation where the decision – maker has a

moral duty to do one thing, but is tempted or
under pressure to do something else. A false
dilemma is a choice between a right and a wrong.
For example, a lawyer or an accountant can face
an opportunity to prioritize self – interest over the
client’s interest.
 What to do when faced with a
moral dilemma?

Ultimately, dilemmas are conflicts in the

application of moral standards. The question is
which moral standards must be followed? In a
state of emergency, necessity demands no moral
law. You have to decide based on your judgment
or choose based on the principle of lesser evil or
greater good or urgency.
 The Three Levels of Moral
Dilemma

1. Individual
 This refers to personal dilemmas. It is an
individual’s damn – if – you – do and damn – if
– you – don’t situation.
 For instance, stealing a drug to save your
child.
 The Three Levels of Moral
Dilemma

2. Organizational
 It is a puzzled posed by the dual necessities of a social
organization and members’ interest. It may exist between
personal interests and organizational welfare or between group
interest and organizational well – being.
 For example, ‘the dilemma of the school to provide quality education
for the poor keeping the tuition fee low and yet to keep quality faculty,
the school must raise their salary and consequently, must raise tuition.
 The Three Levels of Moral
Dilemma

3. Structural
 The case of the principal whether to be
participatory or non – participatory in school affairs
but due to her not so favorable experience of
attempting to be participatory ended – up to one –
woman rule is an example of structural dilemma.
 The Three Levels of Moral
Dilemma

Examples of structural dilemmas:

a. Differentiation versus Integration in Structural

Dilemma
 different divisions have their own different culture and
so coordination between divisions or bringing them
together becomes more difficult.
 The Three Levels of Moral
Dilemma

Examples of structural dilemmas:

b. Gap versus Overlap

 There may be gaps and overlaps in roles and responsibilities. If key
responsibilities are not clearly assigned, there may be gaps or overlaps
in important tasks. If there are gaps, organizations end up with no one
doing the responsibility. If there are overlaps, things become unclear an
may lead to more confusion and even conflict and worse wasted effort
and perhaps even resources because of the unintended overlap.
 The Three Levels of Moral
Dilemma

Examples of structural dilemmas:

c. Lack of Clarity versus Lack of Creativity

 If employees are unclear about what they are supposed to do, they
often tailor their roles around personal preferences instead of system
wide goals, frequently leading to trouble. But when responsibilities
are over defined, people conform to prescribed roles and protocols in
‘bureaucratic’ ways. They rigidly follow jo descriptions regardless of
how much the service suffers and so end up uncreative.
 The Three Levels of Moral
Dilemma

Examples of structural dilemmas:

d. Excessive Autonomy versus Excessive Interdependence

 When individuals or groups are too autonomous, people often
feel isolated and disconnected.
 If units and roles are tightly linked, people distracted from work
and waste time on unnecessary or too much coordination.