Ethics

Foundations of Moral Valuation

Chapter I:
The Ethical Dimensions of Human
Existence
 Table of Contents
Chapter I: The Ethical Dimension of Human
Existence
• Value
• Sources of Authority
• Senses of Self
Chapter Objectives
After reading this chapter, you should be
able to:
• Identify the ethical aspect of human life and the
scope of ethical thinking;
• Define and explain the terms that are relevant to
ethical thinking; and
• Evaluate the difficulties that are involved in
maintaining certain commonly-held notions on
ethics
INTRODUCTION
In August 2007, newspapers reported what seemed
to be yet another sad incident of fraternity violence.
Cris Anthony Mendez, a 20-year-old student of the
University of the Philippines (UP), was rushed to the
hospital in the early morning hours, unconscious, with
large bruises on his chest, back, and legs. He passed
away that morning, and the subsequent autopsy report
strongly suggested that his physical injuries were most
probably the result of “hazing” (the term colloquially
used to refer to initiation rites in which neophytes may
be subjected to various forms of physical abuse).
VALUE
• Ethics, generally speaking, is about matters such as the good
thing that we should pursue and the bad thing that we should
avoid; the right ways in which we could or should act and the
wrong ways of acting.

• Ethics as a subject for us to study is about determining the

grounds for the values with particular and special significance
to human life.
Kinds of Valuation

• Aesthetics – from the Greek word “aisthesis” which

means “sense” or “feeling” and refers to the
judgments of personal approval or disapproval that we
make about what we see, hear, smell, or taste
• Etiquette – concerned with right or wrong actions, but
those which might be considered not quite grave
enough to belong to a discussion on ethics
• Technical – from the Greek word “techne” and refers
to a proper way—(or right way) of doing things
Other Clarifications and Terminology
Ethics and Morals
• “Morals” may be used to refer to specific beliefs or attitudes
that people have or to describe acts that people perform. We
also have terms such as “moral judgment” or “moral
reasoning,” which suggest a more rational aspect.
• “Ethics” can be spoken of as the discipline of studying and
understanding ideal human behavior and ideal ways of
thinking. Thus, ethics is acknowledged as an intellectual
discipline belonging to philosophy.
Other Clarifications and Terminology
Descriptive and Normative
• A descriptive study of ethics reports how people, particularly
groups, make their moral valuations without making any
judgment either for or against these valuations.
• A normative study of ethics, as is often done in philosophy or
moral theology, engages the question: What could or should
be considered as the right way of acting? In other words, a
normative discussion prescribes what we ought to maintain as
our standards or bases for moral valuation.
Issue, Decision, Judgment, and Dilemma
• A situation that calls for moral valuation can be called a moral
issue.
• When one is placed in a situation and confronted by the
choice of what act to perform, s/he is called to make a moral
decision.
• When a person is an observer making an assessment on the
actions or behavior of someone, s/he is making a moral
judgment.
• When one is torn between choosing one of two goods or
choosing between the lesser of two evils, this is referred to as
a moral dilemma.
Reasoning
• What reasons do we give to decide or to judge that a certain
way of acting is either right or wrong?
• A person’s fear of punishment or desire for reward can
provide him/her a reason for acting in a certain way.
• The promise of rewards and the fear of punishments can
certainly motivate us to act, but are not in themselves a
determinant of the rightness or wrongness of a certain way of
acting or of the good or the bad in a particular pursuit.
• Beyond rewards and punishments, it is possible for our moral
valuation—our decisions and judgments—to be based on a
principle.
SOURCES OF AUTHORITY
• Law
– It is supposed that law is one’s guide to ethical behavior. In the
Philippines, Filipinos are constrained to obey the laws of the land as
stated in the country’s criminal and civil codes. The law cannot tell us
what to pursue, only what to avoid.
• Religion
– The divinity called God, Allah, or Supreme Being commands and one is
obliged to obey his/her Creator (Divine Command Theory).
• Culture
– Our exposure to different societies and their cultures makes us aware
that there are ways of thinking and valuing that are different from our
own, that there is in fact a wide diversity in how different people believe
it is proper to act. Therefore, what is ethically acceptable or
unacceptable is relative to, or that is to say, dependent on one’s culture.
This position is referred to as cultural relativism.
SENSES OF THE SELF
• Subjectivism
– The starting point of subjectivism is the recognition that the individual
thinking person (the subject) is at the heart of all moral valuations. From
this point, subjectivism leaps to the more radical claim that the individual
is the sole determinant of what is morally good or bad, or right or wrong.
• Psychological Egoism
– “Human beings are naturally self-centered, so all our actions are always
already motivated by self-interest.”
– It points out that there is already an underlying basis for how one acts.
The ego or self has its desires and interests, and all his/her actions are
geared toward satisfying these interests.
• Ethical Egoism
– It prescribes that we should make our own ends, our own interests, as the
single overriding concern. We may act in a way that is beneficial to others,
but we should do that only if it ultimately benefits us.
DISCUSSION POINTS
1. Identify a list of (a) obligations we are
expected to fulfill, (b) prohibitions we are
required to respect, and (c) ideals we are
encouraged to meet. Discuss whether these
are ethical in nature or not.
2. Come up with a list of common Filipino values.
Consider the strengths and weaknesses of
each of these values.
3. Comment on this statement: “What I believe
must be true if I feel very strongly about it.”
PROCESSING QUESTIONS
1. Imagine that you are a legislator. What rules or laws that
currently prohibit certain acts or practices would you
want to amend or repeal? Also, are there certain acts or
practices currently permitted by the law that you would
want to prohibit? Think of this on the level of your
school, your city, and the nation.
2. Are clothes a matter of pure aesthetic taste, or does it
make sense for clothes to become a subject in a
discussion of ethics? Why? How about other forms of
adornment, such as tattoos and piercings?
3. Is looking after the benefit of your own family over all
other considerations another form of egoism? Discuss.
ANSWER KEY (DISCUSSION POINTS)
1. Identify a list of (a) obligations we are expected to fulfill, (b) prohibitions
we are required to respect, and (c) ideals we are encouraged to meet.
Discuss whether these are ethical in nature or not. *Key words/sample
answers: (a) paying taxes, following the law; (b) courting/expressing
feelings to someone else’s husband/wife; (c) giving back to parents
through monetary support or taking care of them when they are old and
aged
2. Come up with a list of common Filipino values. Consider the strengths
and weaknesses of each of these values. *Key words/sample answers:
hospitality, respect for elders, strong family ties and religions, generosity
and helpfulness, strong work ethic, loving and caring, “utang na loob,”
etc.
3. Comment on this statement: “What I believe must be true if I feel very
strongly about it.” *Key word: subjectivism; personal independence
ANSWER KEY (PROCESSING QUESTIONS)
1. Imagine that you are a legislator. What rules or laws that currently
prohibit certain acts or practices would you want to amend or repeal?
Also, are there certain acts or practices currently permitted by the law
that you would want to prohibit? Think of this on the level of your
school, your city, and the nation. *Key words: law as a source of
authority, deontology
2. Are clothes a matter of pure aesthetic taste, or does it make sense for
clothes to become a subject in a discussion of ethics? Why? How about
other forms of adornment, such as tattoos and piercings? *Key
words/sample answers: Kinds of valuation, aesthetic and ethics
definition, tattoos and piercings in cultural and professional contexts
3. Is looking after the benefit of your own family over all other
considerations another form of egoism? Discuss. *Key words/concepts:
ethical egoism
LESSON SUMMARY
In this Chapter…
• We have established the scope and the rationale for a
discussion of ethics;
• We explored various domains of valuation in order to
distinguish what makes a particularly grave type of valuation a
moral or ethical one;
• We clarified some of the terms that will be used in the study of
ethics; and
• We have also explored a number of problematic ways of
thinking of ethics; some give a too simplistic answer to the
question of our grounds or foundations for moral valuation,
while others seem to dismiss the possibility of ethics altogether.
 Course Syllabus (SAMPLE ONLY)
 

Management Accounting 1
 
COURSE TITLE :
CREDIT UNITS :
PRE-REQUISITE : 
COURSE DESCRIPTION
 
This course is designed to acquaint students with the role of accountant in the management team by providing and assisting in the analysis,
interpretation, and forecasting of business financial information. It covers the discussion of foundation of management accounting, its expanding role in the
organization structure and professional ethics for management accountant; design cost and management accounting system (Job Order and Process Cost
Accounting System); evaluating the changes in business structure, functions and appropriateness of management accounting techniques and methods, basic
interpretation of financial statement, and performance measurement for planning and control such as marginal, absorption, and variable costing; cost behavior;
cost volume profit relationship; advance analysis and appraisal of financial and related information; business planning and budgetary system; and standard costing
and variance analysis.
 
COURSE OBJECTIVES
General Objective: This course will assist the students in the preparation for take-off to the industry where he/she wanted to be a part of after finishing the
baccalaureate degree in accounting.
Specific Objectives:
Cognitive – Identify various management accounting concepts and principles, techniques, methods, systems in combating competition, and total customers’
satisfaction and loyalty.
Affective – Appreciate the contribution of management accounting in business sustainability by recognizing the importance of customers as the prime motivator in
challenging businessmen to offer products and services affordable while maintaining the just and fair return of owner’s investment.
Psychomotor – Familiarize the computational component of management accounting by practicing it, solving it, and applying it soon.
• C. Course Outline and Timeframe
Week Topic
 Learning Plan
Learning Topics Teaching Resources Time Assessment
Outcomes and Allotment
(Can be Learning
copied from Activities
Learning
Plan by
CHED)