HS-401: Professional Values and Ethics

LECTURE NO 2: PROFESSIONAL ETHICS

ORGANIZATION OF LECTURE 2
 Definition.
 Ethical Theories.

 Branches of Ethics.

 Laws and Ethics.

 Personal Ethics.

 Professional Ethics.

 Developing an Ethical Code.

 Advantages of Professional Ethics.

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DEFINITION AND BASIC IDEA
 Greek word : Ethos / Ethikos = Character
 Concerned with the principles of right conduct.

 Study of value or quality.

 Deals with the concepts of right, wrong, good, bad

and responsibility, moral duty and obligation.
 Principles of conduct governing an individual or
group.
 "Ethic is a study of morality".

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4 ETHICAL THEORIES.

1. UTILITARIANISM
2. DUTY ETHICS
3. RIGHT ETHICS
4. VIRTUE ETHICS

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UTILITARIANISM
 Utilitarianism : It holds that those actions are good that
serve top maximize human well-being. Emphasis in
utilitarianism is not on maximizing the well-being of the
individual but rather on maximizing the well-being of
society as a whole and as such it is somewhat a
collectivist approach. E.g. Dam construction
 Two Parts
 Act utilitarianism: focuses on individual actions rather
than rules.
 Rule utilitarianism: differs from act utilitarianism, moral
rules are most important.

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DUTY ETHICS
 It comes with terms that there are duties that
should be performed regardless of whether these
act badly to the most good.
 Duty Ethic and Right ethics are similar to each
other.
 Immanuel Kant says moral duties are fundamental
ethical actions which can be written down as
duties. Be honest, don't' cause suffering for
others, be fair to others.

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RIGHTS ETHICS
 They emphasize that we all have moral rights, and
any action that violate these rights is ethically
unacceptable.
 Right ethics was formulated by John Locke
statement: humans have the right to life, liberty
and property.

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VIRTUE ETHICS
 Virtue is defined as moral distinction and goodness. A
virtuous person exhibits good and beneficial qualities.
 Actions are considered right if they support good
character traits and wrong if they support bad character
traits.
 Focuses on words such as responsibility, honesty,
competence, loyalty, trustworthiness, fairness, caring,
respect, citizenship.

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BRANCHES OF ETHICS

 01. Normative Ethics

 02. Meta Ethics
 03. Applied Ethics
 04. Moral Ethics
 05. Descriptive Ethics

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01. NORMATIVE ETHICS :
(LARGEST BRANCH)
 Classifies actions as right and wrong.
 how individuals can figure out the correct moral
actions that they should take
 norm = standard – It is the attempt to find a single
test or criterion for what constitutes moral behaviour
and what does not.
 bridges the gap between meta-ethics & applied
ethics – how to judge right from wrong.

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02. META ETHICS
 seeks to understand the nature of ethical properties
and judgments
 where the ethical notions came from and what they
mean?
 investigates whether our ethical principles are
merely social inventions ?
 focuses on universal issues, the will of God, the
role of reason in ethical judgments

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03. APPLIED ETHICS :

 applies normative ethical theories to specific

controversial issues.
 applying theories from philosophers to ethics
in everyday life.
 medical ethics, engineering ethics, legal ethics,
political ethics, environmental ethics

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04. MORAL ETHICS :

 questions how individuals develop their morality,

why certain aspects of morality differ between
cultures and why certain aspects of morality are
generally universal.
 Moral ethics rarely change within a culture / religion

 not related to professional work

 influenced by society culture and religion.

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05. DESCRIPTIVE ETHICS :

 More specific in its approach.

 focuses on how human beings actually operate in
the real world rather than theorizing on how they
should operate.
 Study of people's views about moral belief

 Analyses peoples moral values, standards and

behavior
 based on data and facts

 Ask what actually is.

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LAW AND ETHICS
 Law → A set of rules and regulation, created by the
government to govern the whole society.
 Ethics cannot be legislated, it has to come through
conviction and self-discipline.
 Ethics and laws are independent of each other.

 What is legal may not be ethical and vice-a-

versa, Gambling, drinking alcohol.
 Both laws and ethics are necessary for a stable
and functioning society.

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PERSONAL ETHICS
 Personal ethics involve one's morals and values.
 They are instilled during childhood by parents,
family and friends.
 deep-rooted principles – how one follows it
determines the kind of person he is
 personal ethics refer to the ethics that a person
identifies within respect to people and situations
that they deal within every day.

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PROFESSIONAL ETHICS :(BUSINESS ETHICS)
 Refers to the ethics that a person must follow in respect to
their interactions and business dealings in their
professional life.
 Attempts to apply general(common) moral principles to
business activities in order to resolve or to clarify the
moral issues developed in business.

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06. DEVELOPING AN ETHICAL CODE

 An individual's ethical code has its roots in his

childhood.
 come from variety of resources – family, religion,
community, school, friends.
 over the course of time, his experience and changing
circumstances drive him to return and reshape his
ethical code multiple times.
 business ethics = personal ethics code + workplace
experience.
 Business ethics also change
 a company's business code is different from person's
ethical code.
 business ethics can be quantified more easily. 19
ADVANTAGES OF PROFESSIONAL ETHICS :

(1) Attracting and retaining good employees.

 Talented individuals at all levels want to be
compensated fairly for their work and
dedication.
 career advancement within the
organization – based on the quality of
work not on favoritism.
 People wish to join the organization with
high ethical values.
 Trustworthy, reliable, environment, team
work, productivity and employees growth 19
support.
ADVANTAGES OF PROFESSIONAL ETHICS :
(2) Investor Loyalty :
 Investor loyalty and trust come from a
company promoting an ethical culture which
provides a foundation for efficiency,
productivity, and profits.
 When shareholders/investors see a company
that does not behave with integrity, they are
less likely to invest into the company.
 Investors are much aware of ethical
environment, efficiency, productivity and profits.
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ADVANTAGES OF PROFESSIONAL ETHICS :
(3) Customer satisfaction :
 It is a marketing term that measures how
products or services supplied by a company
meet a customer's satisfaction is important.
 Company should evoke trust and respect
among customers for enduring success
through good ethical practices.

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ADVANTAGES OF PROFESSIONAL ETHICS :
(4) Avoid legal problems :
 If a company's management in pursuit of profit,
may not fully comply with the environmental
regulations or labour law, safety hazards or
using substandard raw material, the penalties
can be severe, legal fees and fines are severe.
This resulting negative publicity can damage
company's reputation.
 Highest ethical standards take time to train
every member of the organization about the
conduct
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ADVANTAGES OF PROFESSIONAL ETHICS :
5) Better for society :
 beneficial for the company – through its
behavior, impact and environmental foot
prints.

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THANK YOU

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References: Textbooks
1. “Ethical and Social Issues in Information Age”, by Joseph Migga
Kizza, 6th Edition, Springer International Publishing AG 2017.,
Chapter 4.
2. “Ethics in Computing, A concise module”, by Joseph Migga Kizza,
6th Edition, Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2016.
3. “Contemporary Issues in Ethics and Information Technology”, by
Robert A. Schultz, IRM Press 2006.
4. “Professional Ethics and Human Values”, by R.S. Naagarazan, New
Age International Publishing 2006.
5. “Engineering Ethics Concept and Cases”, by Charles E.Harris,
Jr.Michael S.Pritchard, Michael J.Rabins, 4th Edition, CENGAGE
learning 2009.
6. “Professional Values in Information Technology”, by Frank Bott, The
British Computer Society (BCS) 2005.
7. Related documents from open source, mainly internet.