ETHICS

Ethics Definitions and Examples

Ethics are a defined as what is good appropriate behaviour good morals as

deemed by the society, community and extending to the law of the land and
the world.
1. Ethics as a field of study or discipline deal with:
► what is good and bad and
► moral duty and obligation

2 Ethics and Religion :

In Christianity ethics are guided by the Bible for example are part of the 10
commandments
Ethics Examples

3 Other Religions e.g... Jews follow the Mosaic (Moses’) Laws

Muslim have their guiding principles as well Hindu and others have their own divine
beliefs.
4. Law and Justice our Zimbabwean courts of law follow the Roman-Dutch law system
and are technically guided by the Bible.
5. Organisations – employers use ethics as the guiding principles for good conduct at
the work place. Professional and social associations also use them
as guidelines for members conduct.
Example: The IEEE code of Ethics provides an outline of how members are expected to
behave towards the public and fellow members. The code also dictates expected work
standards, respect of customers, Engineering professionalism, training of juniors etc.
Theory of Ethics

► Theories help us to understand causes ad effects they try to explain or

conjure debate on phenomena
► There are may theories of ethics out there out our situation as Engineers is to
try to make practical use or application ..e.g... if you understand a person's
culture you may understand their beliefs ad maybe help them I difficult
situations.
► There are may theories regarding ethics but we will bunch them into two
main groups from where the rest are derived
 Theory of Ethics- Utilitarian vs Deontological

► There are many branches of study of ethics from their historical origin to
their application…
► The historical part delves into the philosophical and religious aspects of the
subject dating back from the middle ages.
► We will look at the application side which is relevant to our situation
► We look at two major theories the utilitarian and deontological ethical
theories. The two have many other derivatives which would be too numerous
to cover.
Utilitarian – consequentialism

► Utilitarian – usefulness, convenience, profitability, advantageous or similar.

► Ethical behaviour or action is determined by the answer to questions like is
the outcome beneficiary? If so to whom is the it beneficiary ?
► Also known as consequentialism as the desired results or consequences
must be profitable or convenient for the behaviour to be deemed ethical.
► The theory concludes that what is ethical (or morality) depends on the
consequences (outcomes, resultant situations) – their usefulness
► In other words utility
Two Forms of
Utilitarianism
Act and Rule Utilitarianism
Act Utilitarianism

► Principle of Utility
(Also known as Greatest Happiness Principle)
– An action is right to the extent that it increases the total happiness of the
affected parties
EG if everyone is satisfied by an act the that act is right in other words ethical

– An action is wrong to the extent that it decreases the total happiness of the
affected parties.

Note that “happiness” may have many definitions such as: advantage, benefit,
good, or pleasure
Pros of Act Utilitarianism

► It focuses on happiness
► It is down-to-earth
– It is practical
– Well defined
► It is comprehensive
Cons of Act Utilitarianism

► The boundaries of an evaluation are not clear

► i.e. a “good” act is relative..it depends on situations .
► It is not practical
► Ignores persons’ innate sense of duty
– It is consequence oriented
– It is susceptible to the problem of “moral luck”
The opposite of bad luck e.g. a drunk driver losing control of their vehicle which
is stopped by the pavement and not suffering injury or arrest is moral luck
– In other words the consequences (blame or praise) will not be apportioned to
anyone but “fate”. If someone gives you stolen goods you risk being arrested…
– The actors are not always in control of the consequences
Rule Utilitarianism

► Rules are based on the Principle of Utility

– A rule is right to the extent that it increases the total happiness of the
affected parties
– The Greatest Happiness Principle is applied to moral rules
Pros of Rule Utilitarianism

► Calculating the total happiness is easier than in Act Utilitarianism –driving

on the right hand side in Zimbabwe is wrong (What about in USA or
France )
► Not every moral decision requires the utilitarian calculations
► It’s easier to resolve conflicting rules
► It overrides “moral luck”…receiving stolen goods is illegal.
► It appeals to a large cross section of society
► Considered “workable”
– Treats all persons as equals
– Is rational and reasons can be given to explain why actions are good or bad
Cons of Utilitarianism

► We are forced to use the same scale or measure for all evaluations even if
the consequences are completely different
– Usually the consequences are expressed in dollar
– lost or gained
– But, many consequences are difficult to measure in dollars
► It ignores the unjust distribution of good consequences
– Not all members of society may benefit equally
Cons of Utilitarianism

► One main problem is that utilitarianism, if adopted, justifies as morally

appropriate things that are clearly immoral. For example, utilitarianism can
be used to justify punishing an innocent man or enslaving a small group of
people if such acts produce a maximization of consequences. But these acts
are clearly immoral regardless of how fruitful they might be for the greatest
number.
Immoral outcomes

► Egoistic – self pleasing useful to self it implies:

► Expedience—political popularity or gain
► Vanity
► narcissism
► selfishness,
Deontological ethics
Duty Ethics
► Many thinkers opposed to Utilitarianism have advocated a second type of
moral theory, deontological ethics
Deontological DUTY
ethics
► Deontological ethics is in keeping with Scripture, natural moral law, and
intuitions from common sense. The word "deontological" comes from the
Greek word deon which means "binding duty."
Deontological ethics - Three important
features.
► First, duty should be done for duty's sake.
► Second, humans should be treated as objects of intrinsic moral value
► Third, a moral principle must be universalizable
I. Duty should be done for duty's sake –
intrinsic morals
► The rightness or wrongness of an act or rule is, at least in part, a matter of
the intrinsic moral features of that kind of act or rule.
► For example, acts of lying, breaking a promise , or murder are intrinsically wrong
and we have a duty not to do these things.
I. Duty should be done for duty's sake-
but still consider the consequences
► This does not mean that consequences of acts are not relevant for assessing
moral acts. For example, a doctor may have a duty to benefit a patient, and
he or she may need to know what medical consequences would result from
various treatments in order to determine what would and would not benefit
the patient.
► Electronic Engineer must consider the safety of a power utility e.g. earth
protection. Ensure that a optic fibre has laser cladding cover to prevent eye
contact etc.
II. Humans should be treated as
objects of intrinsic moral value
► Humans should not be treated as a mere means to some other end (say,
overall happiness or welfare).
► In other words it is one’s duty not to use others for their personal gain.
► Do not use them as your stepping stone(s)
► E.g. through false promises…underpayment..exploitation..
► Nevertheless, justified or unjustified, deontological ethics imply that humans
are ends in themselves with intrinsic value.
III A moral principle must be
universalizable
► Moral statements are imperatives or commands that hold for all examples of
the type of act in consideration, such as truth telling. Moral statements say,
"keep your promises," "do not murder," and so forth.
► Ten commandments
► Legally binding across communities, nations etc.
Deontological Ethics - Pros and Cons

► May be found wanting in some religions…..

► Student to add more…
APPLIED ETHICS

► As ethics are concerned with what is moral or acceptable behaviour. Ethics can thus be
used to for example the determine the boundaries of good thus what is external to that
becomes bad or even punishable
By law…. EG wearing of a mask to prevent spread of a pandemic

Whilst The law of the land is supreme

Organisations have their own refined rules ad regulations which one could loosely call by-laws
APPLIACTIO of Rules I work places may be at a private level following a document called code
of conduct
Professional organisations have their own ethical codes of practice or conduct for members
e.g... Doctors (Hippocratic Oath)
Accountants Lawyers
Engineers
 Code of ethics
The section looks at a example of Applied Ethics in other words we are
turning Ethics theory into practice.
What is a code of ethics?

► A code of ethics is a set of rules agreed upon by a particular group. It could

be a code of ethics of society, a code of ethics by a company, a code of ethics
by Christians, etc. When someone speaks about a code of ethics they usually
have to state which particular group they are referring to.
► http://www.learnersdictionary.com/definition/ethic
A code of ethics, also called a code of conduct or ethical code, sets out the
company's values, ethics, objective and responsibilities. A well-written code of
ethics should also give guidance to employees on how to deal with certain
ethical situations.
 IEEE Code of Ethics

Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) is a professional

association for electronic engineering and electrical engineering (and
associated disciplines) with its corporate office in New York City and its
operations center in Piscataway, New Jersey.
As ay other professional institute its members are governed by law and have their
own rules for their members
Item 7.8 IEEE Code of Ethics describes them as follows:
Item 7.8 IEEE Code of Ethics

We, the members of the Institute of Electrical ad Electronic Engineers IEEE, in

recognition of the importance of our technologies in affecting the quality of life
throughout the world, and in accepting a personal obligation to our profession,
its members, and the communities we serve, do hereby commit ourselves to the
highest ethical and professional conduct and agree:
Item 7.8 IEEE Code of Ethics

► to hold paramount the safety, health, and welfare of the public, to strive to
comply with ethical design and sustainable development practices, and to
disclose promptly factors that might endanger the public or the environment;
Item 7.8 IEEE Code of Ethics

► to avoid real or perceived conflicts of interest whenever possible, and to

disclose them to affected parties when they do exist;

► to be honest and realistic in stating claims or estimates based on available

data;
Item 7.8 IEEE Code of Ethics

► to reject bribery in all its forms;

► to improve the understanding by individuals and society of the capabilities

and societal implications of conventional and emerging technologies,
including intelligent systems;
Item 7.8 IEEE Code of Ethics

► to maintain and improve our technical competence and to undertake

technological tasks for others only if qualified by training or experience, or
after full disclosure of pertinent limitations;

► to seek, accept, and offer honest criticism of technical work, to acknowledge

and correct errors, and to credit properly the contributions of others;
Item 7.8 IEEE Code of Ethics

► to treat fairly all persons and to not engage in acts of discrimination based on
race, religion, gender, disability, age, national origin, sexual orientation,
gender identity, or gender expression;
Item 7.8 IEEE Code of Ethics

► to avoid injuring others, their property, reputation, or employment by

false or malicious action;
►
► to assist colleagues and co-workers in their professional development and
to support them in following this code of ethics.

► https://www.ieee.org/about/corporate/governance/p7-8.html#top
ETHICS
VS THE LAW OF THE LAND
► Laws are passed by human beings and may represent the interests of a few
usually privileged…and be devoid of the needs of the majority.
► Here are some examples
► COVID-19 rules and regulations vs the poor access to medical; facilities loss
of income; the poorer communities for example the blacks are the most
affected in US ad UK. Access to vaccines…
► Legalization of same gender “partnerships ”
► Euthanasia –merciful killing e.g... by switching off life support eqpt
► Capital punishment - death by of hanging lethal injection etc of suspected
killer is it justified?
ETHICS
VS THE LAW OF THE LAND

► Legalization of drugs such as marijuana

► Legalization of abortion
► Fight against Terrorism
► Discrimination religion race or creed class etc.
► China discrimination and stigmatization targeting Africans e.g... compulsory
testing and/or isolation
► Immigration laws- Xenophobia
► Business -loans with exorbitant interest rates- USURY the action or practice of
lending money at unreasonably high rates of interest.
► Taxation: levies does the money benefit the poor disadvantaged etc.?
► International Finance Aid (Conditional) bodies such as IMF and World Bank:
► These dictate how a country should run their economy giving such measures
as reduced public spending by cutting down on
► the number of people in employment
► salaries
► subsidies
► Add your own examples
THE END