How to create a framework for Ethical Reasoning?

 First, come to moral judgments with instinct and emotion

 Rational analysis comes as a second step
 having a set of intuitive and practical questions
o Am I comfortable with the likely consequences of this action?
o Am I meeting my duties and respecting others’ rights?
o Am I respecting the community and its norms?
o Am I meeting my commitments and my company’s commitments?

On what foundation we built in charged moral situations?

 personal, family, and cultural values
 tenets of our religious beliefs and personal philosophies,
 past experiences,
 prior knowledge
 general understanding of what morality means.

Am I comfortable with the likely consequences of this action?

What is the aim of Utilitarianism?
Utilitarianism aims to maximize social welfare by balancing the interests of individuals who will be
affected by an action or policy, seeking, as it is often referred to in shorthand: the greatest good for the
greatest number

What is the implementation of to test consequences?

In an implementation, this test requires you to:

 seek good outcomes for affected parties

 be objective in identifying everyone’s interests and the likely consequences of your actions;
 be impartial – weighing the effects on others equal to the effects on yourself.

Objectivity and impartiality are key elements of this test

What are the most important considerations in analyzing consequences?
 to correct for a narrow perspective on the situation, build a comprehensive list of stakeholders,
looking beyond immediately impacted individuals, groups, and organizations to second-and
third-order effects that your action might have;
 to correct for “short-termism,” consider longer-term consequences as well as immediate effects.

The consequences test may fail to respect individual rights

Am I meeting my duties and respecting others’ rights?

moral duties and rights are frequently described as two sides of the coin of ethical
responsibility.
What are the three categories of moral responsibility?
 Voluntary
 An obligation of solidarity
 Natural duties

What are the 8 basic moral principles?

 Fiduciary principle: Act in the best interests of the company and its investors.
 Property principle: Respect property and the rights of those who own it.
 Reliability principle: Keep promises, agreements, contracts, and other commitments.
 Transparency principle: Conduct business in a truthful and open manner.
 Dignity principle: Respect the dignity of all people.
 Fairness principle: Deal fairly with all parties.
 Citizenship principle: Act as responsible members of the community.
 Responsiveness principle: Be responsive to the legitimate claims and concerns of others.

Moral rights are not, however, absolute, and sometimes must give way to other claims.

Am I respecting the community and its norms?

What are the categories of community and their examples?
 a community of place, such as a city,
 a community of memory—a group of “strangers who share a morally significant history.”
 Examples include a nation or a language-based ethnocultural group.
 a psychological community—a community of “personal interaction governed by sentiments of
 trust, co-operation, and altruism.” The family is a standard example. The firm is often proposed
as another.

-Because communities differ, it is difficult to provide a one-size-fits-all approach to

respecting the value of community in a specific context.

What are the three levels of analysis involved in respecting the values of the community?
The first is from your perspective as a community member. The second and third are
from an external perspective of operating across different communities.

 The first level involves a communitarian approach toward duties and

responsibilities
 The second is to consider the impact of the proposed course of action on the
vitality of a community.
 The third involves respecting relevant differences across communities
- A communitarian approach toward ethical reasoning involves fulfilling your role and
respecting the relationships you occupy in the community.

Am I meeting my commitments and my company’s commitments?

-moral challenges are not just tests of moral reasoning and right conduct, they are also
tests of personal and organizational identity.
How do defining moments operate for individual managers and organizations?
 they reveal at least some of their basic values,
 test the strength of their commitment to the beliefs and goals they espouse
 shape the individual and the institution in new ways

how does appealing to commitments may be not straightforward?

 interpreting general statements of principle or belief in light of the particular details of a specific
situation to determine what action they suggest
 discovering new principles that the situation calls for, since many moral challenges represent
new situations for which no moral “decision rule” has been established
 ranking commitments to different individuals and groups or to different ethical principles in the
face of a conflict among them
 trading off one moral “good” for another.

What are the quick tests that can be helpful?

 Visibility – testing for consequences: Would I be comfortable if this action were described on the
front page of a respected newspaper?
 Generality – testing for bright lines: Would I be comfortable if everyone in a similar situation did
this?
 Suitability – testing for the value of community: How would my (or our) action be viewed by a
member of this community?
 Legacy – testing for commitments: Is this how I’d like my leadership (or we’d like our
organization) to be remembered?
LEC(2)
What are the sources of general ethical guideline for health professionals ?
 Respect of autonomy
 Nonmaleficence
 Beneficence
 Justice

What are the rules for respect autonomy ?

 Tell the truth
 Respect the privacy of others
 Protect confidential information
 Obtain consent for interventions with patients
 When asked, help others make important decisions

What is meant by nomaleficence?

Asserts an obligation not to inflict harm on others.

What are the rules of nonmaleficence?

 Do not kill
 Do not cause pain or suffering
 Do not cause offense
 Do not deprive other of the good of life

What is meant by beneficence ?

One must take positive steps to help others, not merely refrain from harmful acts

What are the rules of beneficence?

 Protect and defend the rights of others
 Prevent harm from occurring to others
 Remove conditions that will cause harm to others
 Help persons with disabilities
 Rescue persons in danger

What is meant by justice ?

The term distributive justice refers to fair, equitable, and appropriate distribution determined by
justified norms.

What is the difference between criminal justice and Rectifactory justice?

 Criminal Justice : infliction of punishment
 Rectifactory Justice : compensation for transactional problems such as breaches of contracts
and malpractice.

What are the valid material principles of justice?

 To each person equal share
 To each person according to need
 To each person according to effort
 To each person according to contribution
 To each person according to merit