Ethics - GEC107 Module 1 PDF

G EC 1 0 7 Ethics “Why should human beings be moral? Why should I do what is right? a. It is enlightened self- interest. b. It is the traditional law. c. It is a responsibility. d. It is what is fair and equitable. e. People have shared human needs, goals, desires, and/or objectives; and...

G EC 1 0 7 Ethics “Why should human beings be moral? Why should I do what is right? a. It is enlightened self- interest. b. It is the traditional law. c. It is a responsibility. d. It is what is fair and equitable. e. People have shared human needs, goals, desires, and/or objectives; and these are better met when people treat each other in a manner that promotes what is right and good (Thiroux and Krasemann, 2009). PHILOSOPHY rooted in the Greek words that translate to “lover of wisdom”. Philosophy is a way of thinking about the world, the universe, and society.  ETHICS A branch of philosophy that simply tells us to do what is right and to avoid doing what is wrong. The standard of what is right and wrong as accepted by the society  MORALS Refers to specific beliefs or attitudes that people have or people act or perform it is sometimes said that an individual’s personal conduct is referred to as moral, and if he falls short of behaving properly, this can be described as immoral.  A person who consistently does wrong even when he knows what is right is considered as immoral. Man is considered as moral because he has the capacity to choose between what is right and wrong based on logic and reasoning; then accept the consequences of one’s action.  Other animals are considered as amoral because they don’t have the capacity to use reasoning and accept consequences of one’s moral decision.  HUMAN REASONING Our capacity to think and to reason that gives us the ability to judge whether or not our actions are acceptable or not. The ability of the mind to find reasons and justify actions  MORAL ISSUE A situation that needs for moral valuation and judgment. “issue: is also often used to refer to those particular situations that are often the source of considerable and inconclusive debate (thus, we would often hear topics such as capital punishment and euthanasia as moral “issues”).  MORAL DILEMMA A complicated situation wherein a person is torn between choosing one of two goods or choosing between the lesser of two evils We have a dilemma when an individual can choose only one from a number of possible actions, and there are compelling ethical reasons for the various choices.  VALUE A value is something we consider as important or an act that has human relevance. When a person considers an attitude valuable, he practices it (like honesty, friendship, etc.) generally, people are predisposed to adopt the values they are raised with.  VALUE Some values have intrinsic worth like love, truth and freedom. Some values are instrumental in achieving goals such as ambition, courage, and responsibility Some values are considered as sacred values such as patriotism and religiosity, which are considered as moral imperatives to those who believe them.  To produce leader-professionals committed to nation-building and to the core values of integrity, industry, respect to cultural diversity and environmental sustainability. -Mindanao State University at Naawan Goal no. 1  Valuations are judgments or perceptions or decisions a person make concerning a particular thing, activity, attitude, belief or practice. This referred to as value judgments.  Types of Value judgments 1. Aesthetics - a value judgment made that pertains to artistic or creative choice. - greek word “aesthesis” (sense or feeling) -refers to judgments of personal approval or disapproval that we make about what we see, hear, smell, and taste  Types of Value judgments 2. Etiquette - sense of approval or disapproval concerning certain actions; but not serious enough to belong to a discussion of ethics.  Types of Value judgments 3. Technical Valuation - the right and wrong technique in doing things that is not necessarily an ethical issue. - from the Greek word “techne”, meaning the proper way of doing things.  Types of Value judgments 4. Moral valuations - involve valuations that we make concerning human action, characterized by certain gravity that involves human well-being and human life itself.  Different Sources Of Moral Authority 1. Religion Obedience to the divinity called God, Allah or Supreme Being is a topic in ethics referred to as divine command theory, where the creation is subject to obey the will of the Creator who knows best for His created beings. This is dominantly appealing because many of us were trained and grew up in a religious affiliation  Different Sources Of Moral Authority 1. Religion From the churches where we grow up, we were taught to practice love, generosity, forgiveness, patience, and understanding. These intrinsic values are ethical principles used by many in making moral decisions. problems with religion: multiplicity of religions; beliefs hamper on the rights and freedom of its members. ; teachings and doctrines which are contrary to some ethical and intrinsic values of peace and forgiveness.  Different Sources Of Moral Authority 2. The Law It is supposed that law is one’s guide to ethical behavior. In the Philippines, Filipinos are obliged to obey the laws of the land as stated in the country’s criminal and civil codes. Furthermore, the law is enforced by way of a system of sanctions or legal consequences of one’s bad actions.  Different Sources Of Moral Authority 3. Culture Culture is defined as a persons’ way of living or lifestyle (choices, manners, habits, and general conduct) based on societal expectations and traditional practices. Our exposure to differentiate societies and their cultures makes us aware that there are ways of thinking and valuing that are different from our own. Our culture help shape our behavior and belief system; that’s why culture is considered as very influential in how we make moral and ethical decisions.  Different Sources Of Moral Authority 3. Culture Cultural relativism - a principle which posits that there no single universal standard by which we could judge what is ethical or unethical because of the differences in the belief system in every culture. - What is acceptable to one culture may be an unacceptable action in another culture. - it makes us accept the reality of our differences; respect and understand these cultural differences; and finally helping us internalize that our own cultures system of moral code is not superior or inferior from other. Problems behind cultural relativism 1. Difficult concern to distinguish what is right from wrong - negating the universality of goodness and some intrinsic values such as love and generosity 2. Not in the position to render moral judgment to others, resulting to abuse of the rights of some women and children (and all vulnerable individuals) where external cultures should not interfere