Lesson 1

ETHICS AND ITS TENETS

At the end of the discussion, the learners can:

1. Distinguish moral standards between non-moral standards
2. Identify the concept of Moral Dilemmas
3. Analyze samples of Moral Dilemmas and the effect on how people behave and decide for
their lives

What is Ethics?
Ethics is a communal standard that a community sets for its people. It is a system of moral
principles that can affect the decision making and way of life of an individual. It deals with what
is beneficial for every individual and also for society. (Ethics: a general introduction, n.d.). It
also answers the question of “what humans ought to do?” (Velasquez et. al., 2010).

Ex. In Christianity, they follow the Ten Commandments because it was set for the
Christian community which can also be beneficial for its followers. It is also for the good
of their community if they follow these rules.

Importance of Ethics (Juneja, n.d.)

Ethics is important in our community just based on the definitions given above. Here are five
importance of Ethics by Prachi Juneja. Keep in mind that its importance does not just ends with
these five.

● Satisfies the Basic Human Needs - Having honest, fair, and ethical characteristics is a
basic human need that every human being should have and should experience wherever
they are. Let’s say for example, every student deserves a fair and honest service, whereas
the teachers also deserve an ethically driven institution.
● Creates Credibility - Having ethical principles can make a person credible for what they
are doing. Credibility is very important, especially to professionals because they are the
providers in terms of service and others. For example, it is perceived that teachers are
fair, honest, and only follow the facts when it comes to their service. Having these
attitudes can make their students believe in them and also can help them achieve a higher
position in their institution.
● Unites people and leadership - Being ethical is the most important quality that a leader
should have. If a leader is driven by their ethical principles, then the people they lead
would believe in their capabilities. Ethics bring people together especially in achieving a
common goal.
● Improves decision making - The decision that we make is driven by our own values.
Having ethics can help a person to enhance their decision making skills. It makes us
analyze every situation and weigh every option we can choose. Always remember that
whatever your destiny is or wherever you are right now is a product of your decisions
from the past.
 ● Secures the Society - Ethics is the foundation of the laws in our society. It is basically
the guiding principle in formulating these policies that could help in securing the
community.

Implications of Ethics (Colby, 2018)

Here are some of the implications of Ethics by Joel Colby. The reporters also added one
implication which is Education that was not stated in the article.

● Leadership - In leadership, one of the ethical implications is that they are chosen
because they are ethically driven both of their authority and personal life.
● Law - The ethical implication that everyone is equal in the eyes of the law, and with that
personal biases should not be tolerated in exercising these laws.
● Education - The ethical implication that education should always be based on facts and
will help the students in enhancing, not just their knowledge, but also their moral agent
skills.

MORAL STANDARDS

What do you mean by moral standards?

Moral standards are aligned and are compatible with the Universal Laws, which are so-
called ethics. These are a set of rules and statements that help an individual identify the right and
wrong in a given society. In each society, there are authorities that stand out on these matters.
Such rules are being implemented by them for us individuals to follow. These are deemed
important for any individual to get social acceptance and help direct the right path for a person.
Moral standards are those of a responsible person that is capable of differentiating between right
and wrong
This indicates what the "right" and "wrong" way to behave is, for instance, that one
should be fair and not unfair to others (Haidt & Kesebir, 2010). They are usually influenced and
overpowered by several factors, such as religion, society, work culture, etc. Piaget believed that
children move through different levels of morality as they develop and mature and that parents
imbibe these standards of being moral.
Ex. Keeping promises to your parents that you will go home before or exactly 10:00 in
the evening. When they call you and ask “ Where are you?” you will definitely not lie that you
are still at the party eating with your friends.

Foundations of Morality
The foundations of Morality was based on The Moral Foundation Theory by Jesse Graham,
Jonathan Haidt, and Brian A. Nosek. They presented a framework of morality which does three
things; organizes moral categories, explains each of its roots, and predicts what moral arguments
may carry weight to the listeners. These foundations help to explain the common grounds of
different moral judgments because of the variations of cultures around the world (Prince, 2010).

Five Foundations of Morality

 1. Care/Harm - In this foundation, it is stated that the person's sensitivity was rooted from
their childhood. As time goes by, this sensitivity will grow to a trait of general dislike of
suffering. Under this foundation, society might value kindness and compassion, and
condemn cruelty and aggression. Let’s say for example, a child grew up in their auntie’s
care, without proper care, the child will tend to also not care for others. But, if the child
grew up with proper care and love, the child will tend to care for others.

2. Fairness/Cheating - This foundation happens in an individual's cooperation with

unrelated individuals. It deals with the person's equal treatment to another person or
group's rules. It was also stated that guilt, anger, and gratitude was the result of this
foundation. Let’s say for example, a leader in a group activity was expected to be fair to
their group mates without considering any biases.

3. Loyalty/Betrayal - This foundation resulted from individuals living in kin-based groups.

It can also result in virtues and emotions of trust, patriotism, and even heroism. The
simplest example of it is when it comes to friendship, loyalty is very important to avoid
any conflict.

4. Authority/Subversion - This foundation deals with virtues that facilitate the hierarchical
social structure. It is with the valuing authority and respect that can make our social life
function very well. It is very important in our community because this foundation deals
with how we use our position in society. Let's say for example, valuing authority can help
you to lead your people with effectiveness, and being an ethical follower, you can
pinpoint the strengths and weaknesses of your leader.

5. Sanctity/Degradation - It says that this foundation is the result of the emotion of disgust.
It says that a person who is governed by carnal passions are seen as less than a human but
if those carnal passions are being denied by the person, they are being elevated. An
example of this, if a person who's really religious became more carefree and started to
have a life that is driven by their feelings and emotions.

MORAL STANDARDS

How about No-Morals? Are they Bad?

Non-Moral Standards are standards by which we judge what is good or bad and right or
wrong in a nonmoral way (San, 2017). These are essentially irrelevant rules that have nothing to
do with morality or ethical issues. It is a norm that is not based on "right and wrong," or
activities that are morally vacuous and hence excluded from moral evaluation.The daily activities
of an individual that don’t have a principle of right and wrong are considered Non-Moral
Standards.

Non-Moral is far away from being Immorality. Immorality refers to an individual

thinking and doing something they believe to be wrong and is a violation to moral standards,
moral law and norms. Non-Moral standards are their actions that aren't subjugated to right and
wrong because they don’t have the right or wrong to begin with.

Ex. You are going to choose an OOTD to wear at a family reunion. You're thinking about
wearing an oversized hoodie with pants and a black vest with a white t-shirt inside and a skirt.
But you chose to be comfortable so you wore the oversized hoodie and pants plus a bag that you
saw in front of your table.

MORAL DILEMMA

Is a conflict situation in which a person's judgment causes irreversible moral hurt. There
are some disagreements that are unresolvable. Moral dilemmas can be resolved in some cases,
but one value always takes precedence over the other. A situation in which a person is
responsible for many tasks which are impossible to achieve in one go. Underneath those
obligations are beliefs and values. There is no way to come up with a good response.

A moral dilemma will let an individual have a choice that one can make that causes a
moral harm, which cannot be restlessly repaired. Involving and making a choice between two or
more moral decisions, some of these choices or actions are needed. You will have to compromise
or violate some other moral principles or values in order to take action, and those actions may
break some moral obligations.

Ex. You and your friends made the decision to go boating. Because only two people can
fit on one boat, you decided to go by yourself. The boat of your friends began to leak in the
middle of the river, but none of you know how to swim, and only one person can be saved to go
to your boat, and one person may drown. You had a difficult decision to make because both of
them were arguing about who should accompany you.

Types of Moral Dilemma

According to John Lemmon there are 4 types of moral dilemma. The epistemic and
ontological dilemma, it is between an obligation and duty. A person may have an obligation to
do something but it's not his duty to do so, vice versa. When a person resolves a dilemma, it is by
saying that there are duty-situations and contracted situations, it's different. When we say
epistemic moral dilemma, the situation involves two conflicting moral choices wherein the
person hardly knows which option is morally right or wrong. In terms of ontological moral
dilemma, the 2 or more conflicting moral requirements do not override each other. Also, the
agent can hardly choose from these options (Nyland, 2019).

Examples:
● Sofia is torn between helping her classmates on a Math lesson, or going home early and
help her mother with the chores. (epistemic moral dilemma)
● In a zombie apocalypse situation, Sofia is torn between who to give the last vaccine she
has, to his fiance or to his childhood best friend. (ontological moral dilemma)
 The second type is self-imposed and world imposed dilemmas. This type is distinct
between obligations and interest. You have obligations but chose not to do it because you are
tempted not to do it. But due to non-moral reasons, it is not a moral dilemma if you know your
obligations. When we say self-imposed moral dilemma, the situation is caused by the individual's
wrongdoings. In terms of a world-imposed moral dilemma, it is an event in the world that caused
the moral agent to be in that situation of moral conflict (Nyland, 2019).

Examples:
● A politician who promised his people that he will take care of their natural resources, but
then also received and used aid from a mining company. (self-imposed moral dilemma)
● Timothy has to choose whether he will defend his country from the terror attacks of the
neighbouring country, or be with his family and leave the country for safety. (world-
imposed dilemma)

The third type is obligation dilemmas and prohibition dilemmas. When we say
obligation dilemma, it is a situation where a person feels obliged to choose for more than one
choice. In terms of prohibition dilemma, all the choices are forbidden but then you must choose
one (Nyland, 2019). An example of this is when a person promises to return a gun with the intent
of killing a woman, but the gun owner comes to claim the gun. This dilemma is a choice
situation in which feasible actions are forbidden.

Examples:
● A citizen who is afraid of heights has to save the kid above the tree house who is nearly
falling. He is not obliged to save him because he is afraid of heights. If he is a firefighter
and is not afraid of heights, he is obliged to save the kid from falling from the three
house. (obligation dilemma)
● You wanted to go to a party, but your parents wouldn't let you because it was already too
late. However, you were eager to attend because your closest friends would be present. It
is forbidden to lie to your parents so you want to sneak out but you think it is forbidden to
disobey and break the trust of your parents. (prohibition dilemma)

The 4th and the last type. Single agent and multi person dilemmas. When we say single
agent dilemma, the individual is compelled to act on two or more equally the same moral option
but cannot do both. In terms of multi-person dilemma, an individual requires more than choosing
what is right; the people involved must reach a general consensus (Nyland, 2019). One example
is when a young man is making a decision between joining a resistance or taking care of his old
and helpless mother. Trying to resolve this dilemma, problems can be considered, and new
solutions may arise.

Example:
● You and your family have been starving for days. You wanted to steal but your parents
always tell you to not steal, but you have no choice but to disobey them. You go to the
market to steal some 2 styro meals for your family for them to not starve. (Single Agent
Dilemma)
 ● You and your friends are walking on the sidewalk, and a grandmother is trying to walk
on the pedestrian lane while carrying her heavy loads. You told them to help with
carrying the loads of the grandmother and stop the cars from crossing in the middle of the
street. Stopping the cars and helping the grandmother carry and cross to the other side has
been an agreement with you and your friends. (Multi-person dilemma)
Three Conditions of Moral Dilemma

There are also three conditions presented in moral dilemmas.

1. The first one is that the moral agent must choose the best option and act accordingly.
Ex. Your childhood friends want to go hiking at midnight and want you to sneak out
from your house. You chose not to go and follow your friends because you know it’s not good
to sneak out without asking permission.

2. The second is for a moral dilemma to occur, there must be conflicting options.
Ex. A fireman who can only save one member out of three in a burning studio.

3. The last one is no matter what action is taken, moral principles will always compromise.
Ex. In regards to recent matters in politics, there’s an ongoing war between Russia and
Ukraine. Other countries who will take the side of Ukraine will also be affected. Leaders of
different countries who will take action will sacrifice the safety and privacy of their people. It is
only right to take actions against Russia whose intention is to kill people and start a war. The
actions that will be done by the countries whose sides with Ukraine are part of the moral
principle of one country.

REFERENCES

● YourMorals.org. (n.d.). Moral Foundations Theory. Moral Foundations. Retrieved

February 26, 2022, from https://moralfoundations.org/
● BBC. (n.d.). Ethics: a general introduction. Retrieved February 26, 2022, from
https://www.bbc.co.uk/ethics/introduction/intro_1.shtml
● Colby, J. (2018, June 28). What Are Ethical Implications? The Classroom. Retrieved
February 26, 2022, from https://www.theclassroom.com/ethical-implications-
8258896.html
● Prince, C. (n.d.). Moral Foundation Theory and the Law. Digital Commons. Retrieved
February 26, 2022, from https://digitalcommons.law.seattleu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?
article=1018&context=sulr
● Juneja, P. (n.d.). Importance of Ethics. Management Study Guide. Retrieved February 26,
2022, from https://www.managementstudyguide.com/importance-of-ethics.htm
● Velasquez, M., Andre, C., Shanks, T., S. J., & Meyerk, M. (2010, January 1). What is
Ethics? Santa Clara University. Retrieved February 26, 2022, from
https://www.scu.edu/ethics/ethics-resources/ethical-decision-making/what-is-ethics/
● Nyland, A. (2019, April 13). 6 Types of Moral Dilemmas in Life and How to Resolve
Them. Learning Mind. Retrieved February 26, 2022, from https://www.learning-
mind.com/moral-dilemmas-types-resolve/
● Ellemers, N., van der Toorn, J., Paunov, Y., & van Leeuwen, T. (2019). The Psychology
of Morality: A Review and Analysis of Empirical Studies Published From 1940 Through
2017. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 23(4), 108886831881175.
https://doi.org/10.1177/1088868318811759
● The Basis for Morality. (n.d.). Www.qcc.cuny.edu.
https://www.qcc.cuny.edu/SocialSciences/ppecorino/CISESHV_TEXT/Chapter-3-
Ethics/ch-3-Basis-for-Morality.html
● Moral Standards and Non Moral Standards (Difference and Characteristics). (2021,
September 9). MyInfoBasket.com. https://myinfobasket.com/moral-standards-non-moral-
standards-what-is-difference-characteristics/
● Moral Dilemmas - an overview | ScienceDirect Topics. (n.d.). Www.sciencedirect.com.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/psychology/moral-dilemmas
● Deborah Holt, B. S. (2020). What is a Moral (Ethical) Dilemma?
Viva.pressbooks.pub.https://viva.pressbooks.pub/phi220ethics/chapter/what-is-an-ethical-
dilemma/