ETHICS INTRODUCTION

4. Descriptive Ethics
ETHICS: DEFINED  The study of people’s beliefs about morality.
 Came from the Greek word “ETHOS” -meaning custom,
character, disposition CODE OF ETHICS
 It is defined as the SYSTEMATIC STUDY OF MORALITY  This refers to a written set of guidelines issued by an
 It may refer to the philosophical study of the concepts of organization to its workers/members and management to
moral right and wrong or moral good and bad. help them conduct their actions in accordance with its
 It is related to the code or set of principles, standards, or primary values and ethical standards.
rules that guide the moral action of a person within a
particular social framework. 6 Conditions for Effective Code of Ethics:
 May be associated with particular religions, cultures, 1. There should be a valid motivation for the introduction of
professions, or virtually any other group that is at least ethics.
partly characterized by its moral outlook. 2. Broad acceptance within the company/organization.
 It is concerned with moral judgment and moral decision, 3. Continuous feedback is important.
involving questions about human behavior or conduct. 4. Verification and control. New guidelines should be drawn
up if the rules prove inadequate in any way.
TYPES OF ETHICS 5. Integration in abroad company/organization philosophy.
1. Meta-ethics 6. Sanctions and control.
 A branch of ethics that seeks to understand the
nature of ethical properties, statements, attitudes, Difficulties in Implementing Code of Ethics:
and judgments.  The main difficulty with the code of ethics is that they do
 A meta-ethical question is abstract and relates to a not establish priority between norms and beliefs.
wide a wide range of more specific practical  The 3 main areas that can create obstacles to put codes
questions. into practice are:
 a) Culture
2. Normative Ethics b) Design
 It is the study of ethical action and is distinct from c) Enforcement
meta-ethics and descriptive ethics.
 WHY DO WE STUDY ETHICS?
3. Applied Ethics * Ethics, also called moral philosophy evaluates moral
 The most practical division of the philosophy of concepts, values, principles, and standards.
ethics. * It is also considered a normative study of human actions
 It is the actual application of ethical theory for the because it is concerned with norms of human conduct.
purpose of choosing an ethical action in a given * Thus, the aim of studying ethics is to understand one’s
issue. moral compass in order to develop better judgment.

 * College students already have a set of moral standards by
which they use to understand the world and a moral RULES BENEFIT SOCIAL BEINGS IN VARIOUS MANNERS:
compass to navigate in it. * Rules protect social beings by regulating behavior.
* This reality makes it important for students to study, * Rules build boundaries and place limits on behavior.
* Rules are usually coupled with means to impose consequences on
explore, understand, and critically reflect on their personal
those who violate them. One of the reasons people follow accepted
value systems.
rules is to avoid negative consequences.
* So the end goal of studying ethics is for the student to become * Rules help to guarantee each person certain rights and freedom.
a person who makes sound judgments, sensitive to the common * Rules form frameworks for society.
good.
* Ethics ensure a generally agreed standard work-related behavior Nations are generally nations of laws and the governing
that empowers professionals to foster moral values through principles are outlined in what is called constitution. Because
their work. the majority has agreed to follow and consent to be governed
* Ethics gives a sense of justification in one’s judgment and helps by such a constitution, the freedom outlined exists.
ensure that decisions at work are not made based on purely One of the advantages of such a system is that each person is
subjective factors. guaranteed certain rights as the government is limited in its
* Ethics and morality necessarily carry the concepts of moral power to ensure that it does not become powerful enough to
standards or rules about behavior. So as a way of introducing suppress liberty.
moral rules, let us discuss why rules are important to social Rules produce a sense of justice among social beings. Rules
beings. are needed to keep the strong from dominating the weak,
that is, to prevent exploitation and domination.
WHY ARE RULES IMPORTANT? Without rules, schemes in which those with the power
RULES: control the system, would take over. In effect, rules generate
 refers to explicit or understood regulations or principles a stable system that provides justice,
governing conduct within a specific activity or sphere. Rules are essential for a healthy economic system. Without
 Are usually coupled with means to impose consequences rules regulating business, power would centralize around
monopolies and threaten the strength and competitiveness
on those who violate them.
of the system.
 Are considered essential for a healthy economic system.
Rules are needed to ensure product safety, employee safety,
 Produce a sense of justice among social beings. and product quality. Copyrights and patents help protect
people’s intellectual property. Rules and regulations also
IMPORTANCE OF RULES TO SOCIAL BEINGS keep the banking system stable to avoid depression and the
* Humans in general, do not live in isolation. Instead, an individual like.
is a member of a community of people whose common goal is
to survive and thrive. In short, society could not soundly function without rules
* As human societies evolved, they found that human and regulations. Rules are necessary to protect the greater
communities have better chances to survive if they work good. Even the freest societies ought to have rules to avoid
together; and that working together is more effective when exploitation and tyranny while upholding the common
there is a system in place. welfare.
* One of the systems that humans developed are standards that
guide human activities, or simply, “rules”.
WHAT ARE MORAL STANDARDS? WHAT ARE NON-MORAL STANDARDS?
* Moral standards take a more important consideration than other * Non-moral standards can be considered as relative standards by
standards, including self-interest. which something or someone is judged as either good or bad.
o For example, because trust is more important to you * The rules of non-moral standards vary because these rules
than revenge, you refuse to expose your friend’s terrible depend on the guidelines agreed by a particular group. These
secret even though she offended you. refer to rules that are unrelated to moral or ethical
considerations.
* Moral standards do not depend on any external authority but on * Either these standards are not necessarily linked to morality or
how the person perceives the reasonableness of the action. by nature lack ethical sense.
o For example, you will not copy your classmate’s answers o For example, when you take a picture in the dark with no
during the exam not because your teacher will fail you as flash; when you wear a sleeveless shirt and shorts on a
you do so, but because your personally believe cheating very formal occasion; or you write a grammatically
is wrong and demeaning to you as a student. incorrect essay- you have violated certain standards. In
the sample situations, you violated no-moral standards
* Moral standards are believed to be universal. Thus, when you in rules of technique, fashion standards, grammar,
truly believe an act is wrong you also will not agree or consent etiquette, rules in games, and various house rules.
when other people commit what you consider a wrongful act. On
the other hand, if you believe an action is morally right, then you MORAL STANDARDS VERSUS OTHER RULES IN LIFE
will also support other people doing such acts. * Although the six characteristics of moral standards distinguish it
o For example, you believe lying is wrong therefore you from other life rules, it is useful to discuss other standards with
will not also agree when someone is not telling the truth. which moral standards are sometimes confused.
On the other hand, you tend to trust the person whom * These other life rules are etiquette, policy, law, and
you know as someone true to his or her word. commandment.
o Etiquette is a set of rules on how an individual should
* Moral standards are based on objectivity. This means what you responsibly behave in society (Taylor and Williams,
consider as right or wrong does not depend on whether the 2017). Table manners such as the proper use of utensils
action advances the interest of a particular person or group, but and the proper manner of eating are examples of
your action depends on a universal standpoint where everyone’s etiquette.
interest is counted as equal. o Policy is a clear, simple statement of how an
organization plans to handle its services, actions, or
* Moral standards are associated with vocabulary that depicts business. Policies are guiding rules to help with decision-
emotion or feelings. making. When schools require their students to wear the
o For example, when you go against your moral standards, proper school uniform and ID, the No Entry rule posted
you will say you feel guilty, remorseful, or shamed. You at your school’s entrance is an example of a policy.
may describe your behavior as immoral or sinful. If you o A Law is a rule created and enforced by the government
see people going against your moral standards you feel and its agencies to maintain order, resolve disputes, and
indignant or perhaps disgusted with that person. protect a person’s liberty and rights.
o A Commandment is a rule that is to be strictly observed
because it was said to be set by a divine entity, such as
those in the Ten Commandments.