ETHICS

“
Without ethics, man has no future. This
is to say, mankind without them cannot
be itself. Ethics determine choices and
actions and suggest difficult priorities.

What is Ethics?
 Ethics is the branch of philosophy that focuses on
morality and the way in which moral principles are
applied to everyday life.
 Ethics has to do with fundamental questions such as
“What is fair?”
“What is just?”
“What is the right thing to do in this situation?”
▸Morality may refer to the standards that a
person or a group has about what is right and
wrong, or good and evil. Accordingly, moral
standards are those concerned with or
relating to human behavior, especially the
distinction between good and bad (or right
and wrong) behavior.
THE NEED TO STUDY ETHICS

▸ The Commission on Higher Education States “ethical deals

with principles of ethical behaviour in modern society at the
level of the person, society, and in interaction with the
environment and other shared resources.”
RELEVANCE OF STUDYING ETHICS IN YOUR CHOSEN PROFESSION

▸ Ethics ensure a generally agreed standard of work-related

behaviour that empowers professionals to foster moral
values through their work.

▸ Ethics gives a sense of justification in one’s judgement, and

helps ensure that decisions at work are not made based on
purely subjective factors.
IMPORTANCE OF RULES TO SOCIAL BEINGS

▸ Humans in general, do not live in isolation.

▸ One of the systems that humans
developed are standards that guide human
activities, “rules.”

▸ Rule is defined as “a statement that tells

you what is or is not allowed in a particular,
situation.” (Merriam-Webster, 2017)
MORAL VS. NON-MORAL STANDARDS

▸ 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 on the kinds of objects
they believe are morally good and morally bad. Some
ethicists equate moral standards with moral values and
moral principles.
SIX CHARACTERISTICS OF MORAL STANDARDS

1. Moral standards involve behaviors that seriously affect

other people’s well being.

2. Moral standards take a more important consideration than

other standards, including self-interest.

3. Moral standards do not depend on any external authority

but in how the person perceives the reasonableness of the

action.
SIX CHARACTERISTICS OF MORAL STANDARDS

4. Moral standards are believed to be universal.

5. Moral standards are based on objectivity.
6. Moral standards are associated with vocabulary that

depicts emotion or feelings.

MORAL VS. NON-MORAL STANDARDS

▸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. Basic
examples of non-moral standards include rules of
etiquette, fashion standards, rules in games, and
various house rules.
ETIQUETTE, POLICY, LAW AND COMMANDMENT

▸ Etiquette is a set of rules on how an individual should

responsibly behave in the society. (Taylor & Williams,2017)
▸ Policy is a clear, simple statement of how an organization
plans to handle its services, actions, or business.
▸ Law is a rule created and enforced by the government and
its agencies to maintain order, resolve disputes, and protect a
person’s liberty and rights.
▸ 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 Ten Commandments.
What is the advantage of owning moral standards over
merely abiding by moral standards?

“What should I do?” or “How should I act?”

Ethics presumed as a moral rules on how a person should act.

“Every person is obligated to do the greatest good for the
most number of people.”
 Quick Test
▸ How moral standards different from non-moral
standards?
▸ How do moral standards differ from etiquette, policy, law
and commandment?
▸ Give at least three school rules. Describe each. Why are
these rules important to your school?
▸ Give at least three community rules. Describe each. Why
are these rules important to your community?
 MORAL
DILEMMA
What would you do when faced
with a difficult moral choice?
Dilemma Defined
▸ Dilemma is a situation in which a
d i f fic u l t c h o i c e h a s t o b e m a d e
between two or more alternatives,
especially equally undesirable ones.
(Dictionary.com,2017)
A moral dilemma is a situation where:
▸ There are two or more actions that you can
possibly do.
▸ T h er e i s mo ra l r ea s o n f o r d o i ng s u c h
actions.
▸ You cannot do all the possible actions
presented to you. You only need to choose
one.
Imagine that you are an employee working for the train company
as a switch operator. One day you see a train speeding down the
track, its driver is in obvious distress. You realize that the train has
had a malfunction and is unable to stop.

You look ahead of the train and see f iv e workers working on the
track. If you allow the train to go ahead, it will surely kill all five.
However, you could divert the train by switching tracks. On the
alternate track, there is one worker, working alone.

If you switch the train, you cause the death of one worker; if you
do nothing, five will die. What will you do?
THREE LEVELS OF MORAL DILLEMA

▸ Personal moral dilemma is when your

decision in a situation where there is
moral conf lict is the cause of either your
own; that of another person; or a group of
people’s potential harm.
Should you always tell the
truth?
▸A murderer at the door is looking for your
friend who is hiding in your house.

▸Your co-worker is cheating on her time-sheet.

▸You witness a parking-lot accident.

▸You are an emergency worker that has just been called to the scene of an accident. When you arrive
you see that the car belongs to your wife. Fearing the worst you rush over to see she is trapped in her
car with another man.
▸She sees you and although barely conscious, she manages to mouth the words “I’m sorry”…
▸You don’t understand, but her look answers you question. The man next to her is her lover with whom
she’s been having an affair.
▸You reel back in shock, devastated by what her eyes have just told you. As you step back, the wreck in
front of you comes into focus. You see your wife is seriously hurt and she needs attention straight away.
Even if she gets attention there’s a very high chance she’ll die.
▸You look at the seat next to her and see her lover. He’s bleeding heavily from a wound to the neck and
you need to stem the flow of blood immediately. It will only take about 5 minutes to stop, but it will
mean your wife will definitely die.
▸If you tend to your wife however, the man will bleed to death despite the fact it could have been
avoided.
▸Who would you choose to work on?
THREE LEVELS OF MORAL DILLEMA
▸ An organizational dilemma is when a
member or members of the organization
is in a situation where there is moral
conf lict, and the decision will potentially
harm either some members of the group
or the entire organization (company,
cooperative, association) itself.
THREE LEVELS OF MORAL DILLEMA

▸ Structural Dilemma is when a person or

group of persons who holds high-level
positions in the society faces a morally
conf li cting situation wherein the entire
social system is affected.
Based on what you have learned so far, how
will you decide when you are faced with a
d i l e m m a ? Wh y w i l l y o u d e c i d e i n s u c h
manner? Cite a specif ic scenario, either a
personal, organizational, or a structural
dilemma to illustrate how you decide in
morally conflicting situations.
FREEDOM
“ FREEDOM IS NOT WORTH
HAVING IF IT DOES NOT
INCLUDE THE FREEDOM TO
MISTAKES
~MAHATMA GANDHI
“
RESPONSIBILITY IS THE
PRICE OF FREEDOM
What does
freedom
means to you?
FREEDOM & RESPONSIBILITIES

▸ FREEDOM connotes no ties, no

hindrances, no blocks.

▸ RESPONSIBILITY connotes doing

something, not because you want to but
because it is expected of you.
WHY ONLY HUMAN BEINGS CAN BE ETHICAL

▸ There has been some claim that

m o ra l i t y i s n o t u n i qu e t o h u m a n
beings.

▸ Dame Jane Mo rris G o o dall DBE,

reported that sometimes
chimpanzees show a truly self le ss
concern for the well-being of other
(Goodall,1990)
 WHY ONLY HUMAN BEINGS CAN BE ETHICAL

▸ Religious theories believe that only human beings

can be ethical. (Wilson, 2017)

▸According to St. Thomas Aquinas, the fundamental

difference between animal ethics and human ethics is
tha t a nim a ls behave ins tinctively while hum a n
behaviour is rational. (BBC,2014)
 WHY ONLY HUMAN BEINGS CAN BE ETHICAL

▸ Animal – Instinctive behaviour – kin selection

▸ Human – Rational behaviour – decision-making

“Only human beings can be ethical because

only humans have capacity for free moral
judgement.”
THE FOUNDATION OF MORALITY
According to Lewis, though each ship
must sail, well on its own, each must
also coordinate with the other ships at
all times to stay in formation and avoid
collisions. Finally the f leet must have a
destination or purpose for the journey
because if the ship was just aimlessly
sailing then it has failed its ultimate
purpose, that of getting from one point
to the next.
WHY IS FREEDOM CRUCIAL IN
YOUR ABILITY TO MAKE
MORAL DECISIONS?
 WHY IS FREEDOM CRUCIAL IN YOUR ABILITY TO MAKE MORAL DECISION

▸ The personal aspect of morality is about developing virtue

so that thinking morally, performing moral acts, and
choosing to do what is good becomes a habit.
▸ Vir tue is your thought or behaviour guided by, and
displays, high moral standards.
▸ Vir tues are habits developed through learning and
practice.
▸ Once you have it your virtue will be your characteristics.
 WHY IS FREEDOM CRUCIAL IN YOUR ABILITY TO MAKE MORAL DECISION

▸ An ef ficiently run ship is like a virtuous person: both have

internalized the practices that make them weather
storms. However, a ship is under the control of a captain
while a virtuous person is free to cultivate his or her
values.

▸ Freedom, then, is the foundation of moral acts. For a

person to be virtuous, he or she must also be free.
 WHY IS FREEDOM CRUCIAL IN YOUR ABILITY TO MAKE MORAL DECISION

▸ Rules

▸ Harmony

▸ Free

▸ Rights
 What does
“human person”
mean?
THE HUMAN PERSON AS A FREE BEING

▸ The human being is a person endowed with

characteristics that are material, spiritual, rational and free.

▸ A human person is a being with inborn properties that he

or she uses to direct his or her own development toward
self-fulfilment. One of the inborn properties of the human
person is freedom.

The Aristotelian idea of being connotes actuality; existence; an actual

condition.
Philosophical
Insights on
Freedom
FREEDOM IS A GIFT

▸ According to Gabriel Marcel, freedom is the ability to

act signif icantly. Free acts are signif icant because they
help to make us who we are as human beings.

▸ Freedom is the ability to make signif icant choices and,

according to Marcel, it is a gift given to us by God.
(Hernandez, 2009)
FREEDOM IS COMPLEMENTARY TO REASON

▸ One of Aristotle’s ethical doctrines asserted that

freedom an d reason are complemen tary. In
Aristotle’s view, the human person as a moral
agent must exercise practical rationality in order
to determine how to pursue his or her ultimate
end.
FREEDOM IS ABSOLUTE

▸ Existentialist ph ilosoph er Jean-Paul Sar tre’s

concept of freedom to do something or anything. In
Sartre’s view, the human person is “absolutely free”

▸ Freedom sets the human person apart from other

creatures
 • Freedom
from
restrictions.

• It is primitive
kind of
freedom.

• It is freedom
for mere
survival.
 FREEDOM DEMANDS RESPONSIBILITY

▸ Jean-Paul Sartre said “You are free” because he believed a

person always has a choice. (You must choose)
▸ His idea was that freedom is the capacity to choose, that even
not choosing is a choice.
▸ Concept of Responsibility to freedom.
▸ According to Sartre, even though individuals must take their
own choices because they’re free, these choices also have
consequences. These consequences to freedom are something
that the person must endure. Therefore, responsibility follows
freedom.
 FREEDOM DEMANDS RESPONSIBILITY

▸ Lao Tzu discussed freedom and responsibility.

▸ He advocated that a person can and should choose the act,
but his or her actions should be that which would result in
harmony.
▸ Lao Tzu’s idea that the person is free to do anything; but it is
not without consequence of one’s actions.
▸ Responsibility, as a moral quality serves as a voluntary check
and balance of one’s freedom.
CULTURE
 WHAT IS CULTURE?
▸ Culture is the social behavior and norms found in
human societies.

▸ Culture is a complex phenomenon. It contains

nearly all aspects of shared human experiences.
“ How does culture
affect human
behaviour?
“
ELEMENTS OF CULTURE

▸ SYMBOLS
Sym bol s can be anythi ng
tha t a g roup of p e op l e f i nd a
meaningful.

▹ LANGUAGE
Language is a complex
s y m b o l s y s t e m t ha t e na b l e d
human beings to communicate
 ELEMENTS OF CULTURE
▸ BELIEFS
Beliefs are assumptions or
c o n v i c t i o n s h e l d t o b e t r u e by a n
individual or a group of people. These
assumptions/convictions could be about
events, people, or things.

▹ VALUES
Values are culturally acceptable
standards of behaviour. It is what a
person considers important or beneficial
ELEMENTS OF CULTURE

▸ NORM
Norm is an informal guideline
by a particular group of people or
social unit about what is considered
normal or correct/incorrect social
behaviour. For instance, the Filipino
norm in relating to other people is to
get along well with others, even with
complete strangers. This Filipino
trait is called pakikisama.
HOW DOES CULTURE DEFINE MORAL BEHAVIOR?

▸ Plato in his famous philosophical

work, Th e Repu blic c it ed t h ree
critical elements that jointly
influence the human person’s moral
development. These elements are
n a t i v e t ra i t s ; e a r l y c h i l d h o o d
ex p eri en c e; a n d on e’s c u l t u ra l
surroundings.
PRELIM REQUIREMENT

Write of a story of somebody you personally know

that displayed desirable moral values and then
ref le ct on why he/she should be a model for
everybody.

-output should not exceed 500 words. -present a

picture of the person you choose
CULTURAL
RELATIVISM
 What is cultural relativism?
is the view that all beliefs, customs, and ethics are relative to
the individual within his own social context.
e r t” “Different cultures have
o
rnds, t
“ h
r i g h
woId g” different moral codes” often is
anre“cwu l un
rto re-
a specific u s e d a s a k e y t o
u n d e r s t a n d i n g m o ra l i t y.
Proponents argue that there is
not as universal truth in ethics;
there are only the various
cultural codes and nothing
more. The customs of
Why can’t all cultural practices be always correct

All moral and ethical standards (or the judgement

of what is right or wrong) is valid and there is not
“one” standard that is “better” among all others.
▸In America, eye contact
suggests that you are
p ayin g at t e n t io n an d
in terested in w h at a
person has to say. Yet, in
other cultures, eye
contact can be
considered rude and a
challenge of authority.
▸In Bolivia, 14-year-old
girls can legally get
married. In China, men
have to wait until they're
22.
Why can’t all cultural practices be always correct?

▸P h i l o s o p h e r a n d u n i v e r s i t y
P ro fe sso r D r. J ame s Rac h e ls
(1 9 4 1 -2 0 0 3 ), in h is b o o k T h e
Elements of Moral Philosophy, laid
o u t f iv e c l a i m s o f c u l t u r a l
relativists as to why right or wrong
is on ly a matter of c u ltu ral
standards.
Why can’t all cultural practices be always correct?

1. Different societies have different moral codes.

2. The moral code of a society determines what is right or
wrong. There is no objective standard considered better
than others.
3. There are no universal moral truths.
4. The moral code of a particular society has no special
status. It is but one among many.
5. It is arrogant for one culture to judge another culture.
There should be tolerance among cultures.
THE ADVANTAGE AND DANGERS OF CULTURAL RELATIVISM

1. It warns us from assuming that our preferences are the

absolute rational standard.
2. It teaches us to keep an open mind and to be more
amenable in discovering the truth.

Cultural relativism makes us understand that we

think as truth may actually be just the result of
cultural conditioning.
The Dangers of Cultural Relativism

1. We cannot call out societal practices that

promote harm.
2. We cannot justif ia bly criticize our own
culture’s harmful practices.
3. The id ea of social progress becomes
doubtful.
THE FILIPINO
WAY
QUALITIES OF THE FILIPINO MORAL IDENTITY
Psychologist, educator, and
former Chairperson of the
Commission on Higher
Education

Dr. Patricia B. Licuanan

 STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF THE FILIPINO CHARACTER

1. The Home Environment

2. The Social Environment
3. Culture and Language
4. History
5. The Educational System
6. Religion
7. The Economic Environment
8. The Political Environment
9. Mass Media, and
10. Leadership and role models
 STRENGTHS OF THE FILIPINO CHARACTER
The strong aspects of Filipino character are:

1. Pakikipagkapwa-tao
2. Family Orientation
3. Joy and Humor
4. Flexibility, Adaptability and Creativity
5. Hard work and Industry
6. Faith and Religiosity
7. Ability to Survive
“ Matutong mamaluktot
habang maikli ang
kumot
 WEAKNESS OF THE FILIPINO CHARACTER

1. Extreme Personalism
2. Extreme Family-Centeredness
3. Lack of Disciplne
4. Passivity and lack of initiative
5. Colonial Mentality
6. Kanya-kanya Syndrome
7. Lack of Self- Analysis and Self-Reflection