ETHICS PRELIM REVIEWER

What is Ethics?

A branch of Philosophy and a social science and academic discipline that aids in understanding and
adapting situations that affect lives.

It is an inquiry into some standard to guide one’s action, or as a tool to understand a given condition.

Ancient Greek word ēthikós (ἠθικός),

"relating to one's character", which itself comes from the root word êthos (ἦθος)

meaning "character, moral nature“.

Latin as ethica

French as éthique, from which it was transferred into English.

Ethics seeks to resolve questions of human morality by defining concepts such as:

 good and evil, right and wrong

 virtue and vice, justice and crime
as a field of intellectual inquiry:

Moral philosophy also is related to the fields of:

moral psychology
Descriptive ethics
Value theory

Rushworth Kidder:
states that "standard definitions of ethics have typically included such phrases as 'the science of
the ideal human character' or 'the science of moral duty'“.

Richard William Paul and Linda Elder

define ethics as "a set of concepts and principles that guide us in determining what behavior
helps or harms sentient creatures"

Paul and Elder

state that most people confuse ethics with behaving in accordance with social conventions,
religious beliefs and the law and don't treat ethics as a stand-alone concept.

PHILIA- means love or strong desire for a particular object

SOPHIA- means wisdom or correct application of knowledge
“LOVE OF WISDOM”

PHILOSOPHY- science that studies beings in their ultimate causes, reasons and principles
through the aid of human reason alone.
all things that exist:
material or immaterial

Ethics or Moral Philosophy is a branch of Philosophy that "involves

Systematizing
Defending
Recommending concepts of right and
wrong behavior".

Ethics and philosophy

Greece is traditionally considered the birthplace of philosophy
Early Greek thinkers realized they needed more than what poets and storytellers could tell
about the world around them.

These Greek wise men were also recognized as “first natural scientists” because of their efforts
to understand the inner workings of nature through theoretical experiments.

PHILOSOPHERS:
Socrates
Appeared in 15th century B.C.
Though not the first one, yet still recognized for being the first to redirect the focus of
philosophy from natural world to the human person.
Roam the street of Athens to teach the importance of critical inquiry beginning from his
assumptions about human beings.

PLATO
He took place after his teacher Socrates was executed.
Enhanced the ethical orientation of philosophy, that is, to live according to a certain idea or
form of what life ought to be.

ARISTOTLE
The student of Plato, who carried on what Socrates and Plato started as evidenced in the
famous Aristotelian work “Nicomachean Ethics” – that happiness is the end of human
endeavour.
For him, a happy life is not just merely an at of doing particular tasks but also knowing what are
these for.

Thales of Miletus – postulated this primal matter to be water.

 Anaximander – a student of Thales, said this substance was unidentifiable and called
it “apeiron” (infinite
Anaximenes – a student of Anaximander said it was air.
Anaxagoras – another Greek Philosopher, traced all natural movements to the ordering power
of a cosmic mind or “nous”

Pythagoras – described their pursuit as “philo sophia”.

Philosophy – is a rational critical thinking of more or less systematic kind about the
conduct of life, the general nature of the world, and the justification of belief.

Philosophy – is a rational critical thinking of more or less systematic kind about the
conduct of life, the general nature of the world, and the justification of belief.

is the love or pursuit of wisdom, the search for basic principles

is the sum of all man’s beliefs and views about theworld which guide his actions.

is the science of the things by their ultimate principles and causes, as known by natural
reason alone.

is the science of the things by their ultimate principles and causes, as known by natural
reason alone.

is a human search for meaning, an intellectual quest that goes beyond the
boundaries of concrete knowledge, towards the realm of the abstract where the
inquisitive mind finds some satisfaction and wonder.

is the never-ending search for the total meaning of our experiences. It is a discipline that attempts to
look for answers to man’s inquisitive mind that begins in wonder and ends in
awe.

Philosophy is concerned with basically four (4) areas:

EPISTEMOLOGY

LOGIC

METAPHYSICS

ETHICS
Epistemology (the study of knowledge) It is concern withknowledge and problems of knowing. is the
branch of philosophy concerned with knowledge. Epistemologists study the nature of knowledge,
epistemic justification, the rationality of belief, and various related issues.

Epistemology deals with the following questions:

What is knowledge?

What are the truth and falsity, and to what do they apply?

What is required for someone to actually know something?

What is the nature of perception, and how reliable is it?

What are logic and logical reasoning, and how reliable is it?

What’s the difference between knowledge and belief?

Metaphysics (the study of nature of reality) ONTOLOGY) It is concerned with the nature of being itself
its origin and essence. is the branch of philosophy that examines the fundamental nature of reality,
including the relationship between mind and matter, between substance and attribute, and between
potentiality and actuality. 

Metaphysics deals with the following questions:

Is there really cause and effect in reality, and if so, how does it work?
What is the nature of the physical world, and is there anything other than the physical, such as
the mental or spiritual?
What is the nature of human beings?
Is there freedom in reality or is everything predetermined?
Logic (the science of correct thinking)
Logic asks the following questions
What is correct reasoning?
What distinguishes a good argument from a bad one?
How can we detect a fallacy in argument?
What are the criteria in determining the validity of an argument?
What are the types of logic?

Ethics (the study of morality

Ethics deals with what is right or wrong in human behavior and conduct. It asks such questions
as:
What constitutes a person or action being good, bad, right, or wrong, and how do we know
(epistemology)?
What part does self-interest or the interest of others play in making moral decisions and
judgements?
What theories of conduct are valid or invalid and why?
4. Should we use principles or rules or laws, or should we let each situation decide our morality?
5. Are killing, lying, cheating, stealing, and sexual acts right or wrong, and why or why not?

Axiology – (teleology)
It is concerned with the problem of purpose and value. It is divided into two:
ethics (deals with the problem of good and evil, right and wrong and their bearings on morality)
aesthetics (deals with the problem of beauty and value as applied to arts.

The reason for this choice is that the nature of man is composed of six aspects:

Physical – concerned of metaphysics

Mental – concerned of epistemology
Moral – concerned of aesthetics
Spiritual – concerned of epistemology
Social – concerned of aesthetics
Emotional – aesthetics
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ethical – comes from the Greek word “ethos”, meaning character. Ethics, then seems to pertain
to the individual character of a person or persons
Moral – comes from the Latin word “moralis”, meaning customs or manners morality seems to
point to the relationships between human beings.

Ethics refers to standards of conduct, standards that indicate how one should behave based on
moral duties and virtues, which themselves are derived from principles of right and wrong.

MORAL RELATIVISM- Values are determined by the society we grow up in, and there are no
universal values. Moral values are simply customs or conventions that vary from culture to
culture.

SELF INTEREST THEORY

Human beings are always and everywhere selfish. Even if there are objective moral values, we
are incapable of living up to them.
 Definitional argument – we are selfish when we do what we want to
do, and we always do what we want to do.
 Evolutionary argument – humans are naturally selfish programmed biologically) to survive.
 Hidden benefits argument- selfish benefit to helping others.
 Fear of punishment argument –what if I get caught

THEORIES OF ETHICS

While it may be that some values are relative and that people are often selfish, we do not have to
conclude that all values are relative or that people are always selfish. An ethical theory attempts to
provide a set of fundamental moral principles in harmony with our moral intuitions.

Religious Ethics – an authoritative rule book to tell us what rules to follow.

Duty Ethics - Fulfill your obligations. Duties and rights are two sides of the same coin.

Utilitarianism – There is one and only one supreme moral principle – that we should seek the
greatest happiness of the greatest number. Maximize happiness. Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart
Mill (1800). We care about morality because we care about human happiness

Kant’s Approach To Ethics – Can your actions be consistently generalized? Ask yourself “What if
everyone did that?”. According to Kant, if something is wrong, it is always wrong! In Kant’s view,
happiness does not equal morality. Only a good will has ultimate moral value. Moral rules should
be universal.

According to Bertrand Russell (1872-1970), “To be without some of the things you want is an
indispensable part of happiness.”

Special pleading – rationalizing to ourselves

 The golden rule - treat others the way you wish to be treated

Veil of ignorance - imagine the situation from both points of view

Ethical Dilemmas

Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development

Although it has been questioned as to whether it applied equally to different genders and different
cultures, Kohlberg’s (1973) stages of moral development is the most widely cited. It breaks our
development of morality into three levels, each of which is divided further into two stages:

Pre-conventional Level (up to age nine): ~Self Focused Morality~

1. Morality is defined as obeying rules and avoiding negative consequences. Children in this stage
see rules set, typically by parents, as defining moral law.

2. That which satisfies the child’s needs is seen as good and moral.

Conventional Level (age nine to adolescence): ~Other Focused Morality~

3. Children begin to understand what is expected of them by their parents, teacher, etc.
Morality is seen as achieving these expectations.

4. Fulfilling obligations as well as following expectations are seen as moral law for children in this
stage.

Postconventional Level (adulthood): ~Higher Focused Morality~

5. As adults, we begin to understand that people have different opinions about morality and
that rules and laws vary from group to group and culture to culture. Morality is seen as upholding
the values of your group or culture.

6. Understanding your own personal beliefs allow adults to judge themselves and others based upon
higher levels of morality. In this stage what is right and wrong is based upon the circumstances
surrounding an action. Basics of morality are the foundation with independent thought playing an
important role

INTEGRITY- reflection

The Three Main Branches of the Philosophical Study of Ethics

 Meta-ethics
 Normative Ethics
 Applied Ethics

METAETHICS
is a branch of analytic philosophy that explores the status, foundations, and scope of moral
values, properties, and words

Normative ethics

is the study of what makes actions right or wrong, what makes situations or events good or
bad and what makes people virtuous or vicious.

Examples: “murder is wrong” “giving to charity is good, but not ethically mandatory”

Applied ethics

refers to the practical application of moral considerations. It is ethics with respect to real-
world actions and their moral considerations in the areas of private and public life, the
professions, health, technology, law, and leadership. Deals with difficult moral questions
and controversial moral issues that people actually face in their lives

The difference between normative ethics and applied ethics

Normative ethics - studies what features make an action right or wrong.

Applied ethics - attempts to figure out, in actual cases, whether or not certain acts have
those features.

The Goal of Axiology

Axiology studies what makes things good (or have value) or bad (or have disvalue)

A distinction is made between: Intrinsic good: good in and of itself (inherently good)

Extrinsic good: good because it can be used to obtain other things that are good (instrumentally
good)

a) E.g., having money is extrinsically good

b) If money could not be used to obtain other things, money would have no value

Much of axiology investigates what things are intrinsically good

a) Many believe that pleasure has intrinsic value

b) It is good whether or not it leads to anything else

c) Does anything else have intrinsic value? knowledge? friendship? love?

d) Some things might be both intrinsically and extrinsically good

Some things can be both intrinsically good but extrinsically bad (e.g., the pleasure taken in unprotected
sex)

The Goal of the Normative Ethics of Behavior

Primary question: What makes actions right or wrong?

An important distinction:

an act type is a category of actions

an act token is a specific action performed by a specific

person on a specific occasion

Ethics and Critical thinking

Critical – in relation to the thinking process

Critical thinking is used in this context to refer to the challenge of making individuals critics of their own
thoughts. is not confined to the ability to analyze a given issue.

It can be used as a tool that can provide better understanding of the close
connection between acting and thinking.

A critical thinker

is someone who has acquired the disposition and the skills to be his or her own critic.

Richard Paul and Lina Elder (2014).

they defined critical thinking as a mode of thinking, about any subject, content or problem – in which
the thinker improves the quality of his or her thinking skills by skillfully taking charge of the structures
inherent in thinking and imposing intellectual standards upon them.

Thinking in ordinary mode

such as when one thinks of what to eat or what to include in a schedule for
the next morning is described as first- order thinking.It is the kind of thinking that makes
people aware of a particular object of thought.

Egocentrism is the tendency to think about the world entirely from their own personal perspective

Egocentric behaviors are less prominent in adulthood, the existence of some forms of egocentrism
in adulthood indicates that overcoming egocentrism may be a lifelong development that never
achieves completion

Adults appear to be less egocentric than children because they are faster to correct from an initially
egocentric perspective than children, not because they are less likely to initially adopt an egocentric
perspective

Concepts Egocentrism

1. Narrow concepts -A lack of differentiation between some aspect of self and other

- The tendency to see reality as centered on oneself

2. Broad concepts - The inability to differentiate subjective and objective perspectives

- It encompasses realism ,animism ,artificialism

EGOCENTRISM AND DEVELOPMENT

Four stages of egocentrism and development

1. The sensory motor period

2. Preoperational thought

3. Concrete operation

4. Formal operation

Adolescent Egocentrism

The characteristic of adolescent thinking that leads young people (teenagers) to focus on
themselves to the exclusion of other

A young person might believe that his or her thoughts, feelings and experiences are unique, more
wonderful or awful than anyone else

Characteristics of an egocentric person

1. Selfish

2. Self assertive

3. Self interested thinking

4. Superior

5. Self serving bias

SIGNS OF SELF ABSORBED PEOPLE:

1. They are always on the defensive. They do not see the world from another person’s eyes. They
would rather see it from theirs and protect their flaws and image with everything they’ve got.
2. They don’t see the big picture. A self-absorbed person thinks the world is just about them. Thus,
the world, from their point of view, is a place comprising them and perhaps a few persons
around them who they can control. How the world affects other people really doesn’t concern
them
3. They are imposing. They frequently use words like “should” or “must.” They want to dominate
in any relationship because they see relationships as a tool for getting what they want and
making themselves the center of attention.
4. They feel insecure sometimes. They are not complete. They always have a missing gap in their
world. And you may be the person they try to use to fill those gaps
5. They always think they are superior
6. They consider friendships a tool for getting what they want. Don’t assume that they are overly
concerned with the friendship that they have with you. This is why they have so many friends
and are not overly concerned with the number of friends they have: they view friends as tools
for getting what they want
7. They do not have long lasting relationships. Since their relationships are built around the idea of
quantity and using people as tools to get what they want, they do not have long lasting
relationships or quality ones
8. They do not have a real sense of empathy. Since their display of sympathy or compassion is
usually conditional, it is difficult for them to understand the depth of true empathy or what this
concept really mean
9. They hide their insecurities behind a cloak of success. The truth is that no matter what sort of
success they have, they will always feel inadequate internally. While they may appear successful
or confident based on appearances and external achievements, internally, they have fears
relating to self
10. They devalue others. Constructive criticism is okay, but selfabsorbed people always take
criticism too far and use it as a weapon to allow them to devalue others
11. They hide who they are. They will present the best and most captivating part of their personality
to you. As they are so self-absorbed, they do not want you to see the hidden elements that
make them feel secretly insecure. This can lead to them coming across as pretentious and them
failing to be vulnerable in relationships
12. They are extremely selfish. Every human is selfish. But there are certain occasions when you
have to make exceptions and take actions without expecting anything in return. This is not so for
the self-absorbed person
13. They think they are great and the world out there is wrong. They do not self-heal. If they have
been hurt, they would rather rebuke the world for this rather than self-heal.

FORMATION AND TRANSFORMATION OF SELF

Jean Piaget - As a psychologist, he focused on the human subject’s cognitive development or the
development of his or her ability to know
Piaget theorized that the human ability to know evolves in stages and has distinct peculiarities
appropriate for each particular stage
This is the different from the notion of premodern thinkers who presumed that the human
ability to know is good to go right from the start
Pre-modern thinkers took for granted that the human person, along with his or her abilities, is
subject to a developmental process
This development is always from simple to complex, from the very few to multiple. Piaget’s
theory, while centered on knowing, has important implications for understanding the self. It
suggests that self-knowledge happens as a process and is integral to the history of a person
His View: An individual like Victoria is not expected to know herself right away. She needs to
acquire first the necessary capacities for her to gain insights about herself, capacities that are
likewise evolving. For Piaget, what she underwent is not a crisis but is a normal course of human
development
 LAWRENCE KOHLBERG
While Piaget highlighted a person’s cognitive development, he concentrated on a person’s
moral development. - Like Piaget, he believed that a person proceeds to moral maturity in
gradual stages. In other words, one does not become a moral person at once.
The moral quality of a person depends on the quality of his or her moral reasoning which itself
undergoes transformation. Therefore, one is not expected to resolve a particular dilemma if it
involves a level of complexity that is not appropriate for his or her moral stage
Another crucial insight from Kohlberg is that moral reasoning can be shaped by education. In
Kohlberg’s theory, one can find balance between nature and nurture, between reality and
possibility

GEORGE HERBERT MEAD

One of the influences of Kohlberg’s theory of development.
Mead studied psychology and sociology, and traces of these disciplines are notable in his work
Social experience is central to Mead’s concept of the development of the self.
It requires an environment where interactions with other selves are possible, particularly,
interactions that allow shared meanings. Immersion in such a world enables the self to create
itself and, in doing so, motivates an individual to shape his or her world for the better

Self-image: is the mental picture, generally of a kind that is quite resistant to change, that
depicts not only details that are potentially available to objective investigation by others (height,
weight, hair color, etc.), but also items that have been learned by persons about themselves,
either from personal ..

It’s not what you say out of your mouth that determines your life, it’s what you whisper to
yourself that has the most power! – Robert KiyosakI

Your self-image is not something that is based on reality; in fact, far from it. In actuality, your
self-image is built upon your perception of reality and that is influenced by how you believe
you’re being viewed by society and other people

Self-esteem is the judgment of opinion we hold about ourselves. It’s the extent to which we
perceive ourselves to be worthwhile and capabla human beings

Your Personal Identity “Who Are You?”

Personal Core How would you describe yourself in one sentence

Roles Where have you taken on responsibilities in your life?

Family History Where have you come from

 Learning What have you learned and what are you hoping to lear

Values What is really important to you?

Strengths What skills and talents do you have

Basic Psychological Needs

Belonging - A sense that someone truly cares about you. That you are in a mutual and loving
relationship with another person.

Recognition A sense that you are acknowledged for what you accomplish and who you are. To feel
significant, that you make an impact.

Freedom The need to have choice in your life, to have a sense of control over the decisions that
direct your behavior. To be free from a sense of external control

Self-Esteem The need to feel competent & confident. The sense that you can achieve results, make
good decisions, and you will stand by your principles

Fun The need to have joy and laughter in your life. The sense that we can experience elation and
light

Safety The need to feel physically and psychologically safe. Free from emotional and physical threats
or harmheartedness

PRELIM: Review: ETHICS

Lesson I
Ethics and Philosophy
= Meaning / Definitions
= moral psychology
=Descriptive ethics
=Value theory
=Four areas of philosophy
Epistemology
Logic
Ethics
Methaphysics
=Greek words

Philosophers”
1. Socrates
2. Plato
3. Aristotle
4. Rushworth Kidder
5. Richard William Paul and Linda Elder
6. Thales of Miletus
7. Anaximander
8. Anaximenes
 9. Anaxagoras
10.Pythagoras

Key Terms
1. Physical – concerned of metaphysics
2. Mental – concerned of epistemology
3. Moral – concerned of aesthetics
4. Spiritual – concerned of epistemology
5. Social – concerned of aesthetics
6. Emotional – aesthetics
7. Ethical – comes from the Greek word “ethos”, meaning character. Ethics, then seems to
pertain to the individual character of a person or persons.
8. Moral – comes from the Latin word “moralis”, meaning customs or manners morality
seems to point to the relationships between human beings.
9. Unethical – means wrong.
10. Immoral – means bad
11. Axiology – (teleology)
12. Ethics - (deals with the problem of good and evil, right and wrong and their bearings on
morality)
13. Aesthetics- (deals with the problem of beauty and value as applied to arts.

Lesson 2
1. Ethics and Morality
2. Moral Relativism
3. Self Interest Theory
-Definitional argument
-Evolutionary argument
-Hidden benefits argument
-Fear of punishment argument
4. Religious Ethics
5. Duty Ethics
6. Utilitarianism
7. Kant’s Approach To Ethics
8. Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development

Lesson 3
1. Main Branches of the Philosophical Study of Ethics
2. The difference between normative ethics and
applied ethics:
3. The Goal of the Normative Ethics of Behavior
(Analyze some practical issues and situations)

Lesson 4
1. Egocentrism
2. Concepts Egocentrism
3. Four stages of egocentrism and development
4. Characteristics of an egocentric person