WHAT IS ETHICS?

• DERIVED FROM THE GREEK WORD ETHOS, WHICH MEANS “CHARACTER”. IN PHILOSOPHY,
ETHICAL BEHAVIOR IS THAT WHICH IS “GOOD.”

• IS THE BRANCH OF PHILOSOPHY THAT STUDIES MORALITY OR THE RIGHTNESS OR

WRONGNESS OF HUMAN CONDUCT.

MORALITY

• A CODE SYSTEM OF BEHAVIOR.

• RELATING TO THE STANDARDS OF GOOD OR BAD BEHAVIOR, FAIRNESS, HONESTY, ETC.

THAT EACH PERSON BELIEVES IN, RATHER THAN TO LAWS.

- PERSONAL ETHICS ARE ETHICAL PRINCIPLES THAT A PERSON USES WHEN MAKING DECISIONS
AND BEHAVING IN BOTH PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL SETTINGS.

NATURE OF ETHICS:

• ETHICS REFER TO GUIDING WHAT HUMANS OUGHT TO DO, USUALLY IN TERMS OF RIGHTS,

• OBLIGATIONS, FAIRNESS, AND SPECIFIC VIRTUE. IT IS RELATED TO ISSUES OF PROPRIETY –

RIGHTNESS

• AND WRONGNESS, WHAT IS RIGHT IN ETHICAL, AND WHAT IS WRONG IN UNETHICAL.

SOMETIMES THE

• WORDS ‘PROPER’, ‘FAIR’, AND ‘JUST’ ARE ALSO USED IN PLACE OF RIGHT AND ETHICAL.

MORAL VS NON- MORAL STANDARD

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 the one kinds of objects they believe are morally
good and morally bad

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

A. Moral standards involve serious wrongs or significant benefits

B. Moral standards ought to be preferred to other values –
C. Moral standards are not are not established by authority figures
D. . Moral standards have the trait of universalizability
E. Moral standards are based on impatial consideration
F. Moral standards are associated with special emotion and vocabulary

DILEMMAS - refer to situations where a person must choose between two or more conflicting
options, each of which has its own challenges, risks, or undesirable outcomes.
Moral Dilemmas - Involve choosing between conflicting moral principles.for example should you tell
the truth if it would hurt someone's feelings, or should you lie to protect them

Ethical Dilemmas - often occur in professional settings where someone must decide between two
ethical standards or values.for instance,a doctor may face an ethical dilemma about whether to
respect a patient's autonomy or intervene to save their life.

Practical dilemmas - Fucos on everything decision where practical consequences are at stake,like
choosing between spending time with family or staying late at work to complete an important
project

Legal dilemmas - Occur when following the law might conflict with what one believes is morality
right.

THE THREE LEVELS OF MORAL DILEMMAS

INDIVIDUAL - Judgment is based on self-chosen principles, and moral reasoning is based on

individual rights and justice.

organizational dilemma - a puzzle posed by the dual necessities of a social organization and
members self-interest. It may exist between personal interests and organizational welfare or
between group interests and organizational well-being. Organizational dilemmas may likewise occur
in the business, medical, and public sectors.

STRUCTURE DILEMMAS - these structural moral dilemmas pertain to cases involving networks 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

FREEDOM AS A FOUNDATION FOR MORAL ACTS

- Considered the foundation of moral acts because it allow individual to make choices based
on their own value, belief,and reasoning.

1. Autonomy - Moral acts require autonomy the ability to make choices without coercion. They can
act according to their moral principles rather than being forced to comply with external demands.

2. Deliberation - Rationality requires deliberation considering various options and their

implications.this process is only possible in a context of freedom where individuals can explore
different perspective and make choices based on reasoned arguments

3.Ethical frameworks - Many ethical theories, such as Kantian ethics, assert that rationality is
essential for moral law. According to Kant,moral actions are those that can universally applied,and
this universality requires rational deliberation, which is only meaningful if individual are free to acts

4. Conflict and Resolution - In situationsnof moral conflict, rationality help individuals navigate their
choice. freedom allows them to weigh competing values and principle, leading to resolution that
reflect their moral beliefs.
THE ACT
LESSON 1: FEELINGS AND MORAL DECISION-MAKING

two theories in ethics that give focus on the role of feelings on morality

(1) ETHICAL SUBJECTIVISM

(2) EMOTIVISM.

1. FEELINGS AS INSTINCTIVE RESPONSE TO MORAL DILEMMAS - Some ethicists believe that

ethics is also a matter of emotion. They hold that moral judgments should also be emotional
- reason and emotion are not really opposites.
- Feelings or emotions are said to be judgments about the accomplishment of one's goals

2. FEELINGS AS OBSTACLES TO MAKING THE RIGHT DECISIONS –

 ETHICAL SUBJECTIVISM - the view that moral judgments are based on individual beliefs and
values. It posits that what is right or wrong is determined by personal opinions, making
moral perspectives subjective and varied among individuals.

• EMOTIVISM - the theory that moral statements express emotional attitudes rather than
factual claims. It suggests that when people make moral assertions, they are primarily
expressing feelings and trying to influence the emotions of others rather than stating
objective truths.

3. FEELINGS CAN HELP IN MAKING THE RIGHT DECISIONS

- Ethical Subjectivism and Emotivism should not be construed as removing people's feelings
in morality

Reason and impartiality – humans have not only feelings but also reason, and reason plays a
vital role in ethics. In fact, moral truth are thruth of reason; that is moral judgement is tru if it
is espoused by better reason than the alternatives.

Reason – is the basis or motive for an action, decision or conviction.

Moral deliberation – a matter of weighing reasons and being guided by them

Impartiality - , involves the idea that each individual’s interests and point of view are equally
important.

THE 7-STEP MORAL REASONING MODEL

 Rae introduces a systematic way to approach ethical decision-making, emphasizing reason
and impartiality.
 1.Gather the Facts: Start by understanding the available facts and identifying any missing
information. Ask, "What do we know?" and "What do we need to know?" before analyzing
the case.

2.DETERMINE ETHICAL ISSUES: Identify the conflicting interests in the situation (e.g.,
confidentiality vs. protecting someone from harm). These issues should be clearly presented
in a "P vs. Q" format.

3. DENTIFY PRINCIPLES: Recognize the moral principles or values that are important to the
case. Decide if some principles should be given more weight than others, such as biblical,
constitutional, or natural law principles.

4. LIST THE ALTERNATIVES - Think of different possible actions to take. Consider as many
alternatives as possible, including creative options you might not have thought of initially.

5. COMPARE THE ALTERNATIVES WITH THE PRINCIPLES OR RULES: Eliminate alternatives

that conflict with the moral principles identified earlier. If one alternative clearly stands out
after this comparison, a decision can be made.

6.CONSIDER THE CONSEQUENCES: If no clear decision is reached, consider the positive and
negative consequences of the remaining alternatives. Prioritize the options with the most
beneficial outcomes and least harmful consequences.

7.MAKE A DECISION - After considering all steps, make a decision. Keep in mind that moral
dilemmas often have no perfect solutions, and the goal is to choose the option with the
fewest negative consequences.

MORAL COURAGE
THE IMPORTANCE OF WILL AND MORAL COURAGE

- A MORAL DECISION IS NOT COMPLETE UNTIL IT IS EXECUTED. KNOWING WHAT IS RIGHT IS

ONE THING, BUT ACTING ON IT REQUIRES MORAL COURAGE, WHICH IS LINKED TO THE
CONCEPT OF WILL. IN MORAL DECISION-MAKING, WILL IS AS IMPORTANT AS REASON.

MORAL COURAGE IS DEFINED AS DOING THE RIGHT THING, EVEN AT THE RISK OF FACING
INCONVENIENCE, RIDICULE, PUNISHMENT, OR LOSS
WILL REFERS TO THE MIND’S ABILITY TO CHOOSE THE STRONGEST DESIRE WHEN MAKING
DECISIONS. IN PHILOSOPHY, WILL IS SEEN AS PART OF THE MIND,

ARTHUR SCHOPENHAUER, A GERMAN PHILOSOPHER, EXPLAINED THAT WILL IS THE CORE OF

HUMAN NATURE, DRIVING OUR ENDLESS DESIRES AND ACTIONS. ACCORDING TO HIM, WILL
IS THE INNER ESSENCE OF EVERY INDIVIDUAL AND IS CENTRAL TO BOTH NATURE AND
HUMAN CONDUCT.
 WILL POWER - THE INTERNAL STRENGTH TO MAKE DECISIONS, TAKE ACTION, AND PERSIST
UNTIL A TASK IS ACCOMPLISHED, REGARDLESS OF DIFFICULTIES, INNER RESISTANCE, OR
DISCOMFORT

MORAL COURAGE - DOING THE RIGHT THING BY LISTENING TO ONE'S CONSCIENCE

- MAKING JUDGMENTS ABOUT BEHAVIORS THAT ALIGN WITH ONE’S HIGHEST ETHICAL IDEALS

DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR, MAHATMA GANDHI, AUNG SAN SUU KYI, AND ESPECIALLY
JESUS CHRIST AND HIS APOSTLES. WHEN WE SEE INDIVIDUALS PUT THEIR COMFORT, SAFETY,
SECURITY, REPUTATION, OR EVEN LIFE ON THE LINE FOR A CAUSE THE BELIEVE IN, OR FOR AN
IDEAL THAT MATTERS MORE THAN PERSONAL WELLBEING, WE WITNESS MORAL COURAGE
AND WILL IN ACTION.