MGT 444 Ethical Theories

Moral reasoning

must be logical. Assumptions and premises, both factual and inferred, used to make judgments should be known and made explicit

Factual evidence

cited to support a person’s judgment should be accurate, relevant and complete

Ethical standards

used in reasoning should be consistent. When inconsistencies are discovered in a person’s ethical standards in a decision, one or

more of the standards must be modified

Magnitude of Consequences

the harm or benefits accruing to individuals affected by a

decision or behavior

Probability of Effect

the likelihood that a decision will be implemented and that it will

lead to harm or benefit predicted

Social Consensus

the amount of public agreement that proposed decision is bad or

good

Temporal Immediacy

the length of time that elapses from making a decision to

experiencing the consequences of a decision

Proximity

the sense of closeness that the decision maker has for victims or beneficiaries of the decision.

Concentration of Effect

the inverse function of the number of people affected by a decision.

Sound ethical decision-making

1. Gather the facts

2. Define the ethical issues

3. Identify the affected parties

4. Identify the consequences

5. Identify the obligations

6. Consider your character and integrity

7. Think creatively about potential actions

8. Check your gut

utilitarianism

Maximize the common good

(Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill) 

Rights theory

Freedom from force and fraud

(Robert Nozick)

Justice theory

-Benefit the least advantaged

-Fairness and Equality

(John Rawls)

Social contract

Respect core human rights and dignity, then local norms

(Thomas Hobbes and John Locke)

Objectivism

Rationality and “be all you can be”

(Ayn Rand) 

ethics of care

Relationships, cooperation, dialogue

• all we really need is love

(Carol Gilligan and Nel Noddings)

Universalism

Duty, or ends do not justify the means

Virtue Ethics

Moral character does count

Ethical relativism

When in Rome, do as the Romans Do

Moral Authority

determined by the consequences of an act: an act is morally right if the net benefits over costs are greatest for the majority

rights

A right is a justified claim against another person's behavior - such as my right to not be

harmed by you

Legal rights

are entitlements that are limited to a particular legal system and jurisdiction. In the USA, the Constitution and Declaration of Independence are the basis for citizens’ legal rights- right to freedom of speech for example

Moral and Human rights

are universal and based on norms and values in every society – the right not to be enslaved, or the right to work

Contracts (contractual rights)

provide individuals with mutually binding duties that are based on a legal system with defined transactions & boundaries

Negative rights

refers to the duty others have to not interfere with actions related to a person’s rights – others don’t have the right to constrain “free speech”

Positive rights

imposes a duty on others to provide for your needs to achieve your goals, not just protect your right to pursue them –right to equal educational opportunities for

your child if you are a parent

Principle of Justice

deals with fairness and equality. The moral authority that decides

what is right and wrong concerns the fair distribution of opportunities, as well as

hardships, to all

Compensatory justice

concerns compensating someone for a past harm or injustice

Retributive justice

means serving punishment to someone who has inflicted harm on another

Distributive justice

refers to the fair distribution of benefits and burdens

Procedural justice

designates fair decision practices, procedures, and agreements among parties.

Rights + Power =

Transforming Justice

Social contract

is a set of rules and assumptions about behavior patterns among the various

elements of society

Rand's Objectivism, is founded on three

axioms:

 Reality is real

 Everything has a specific nature

 People possess a consciousness, which causes an awareness of reality

Rand's philosophy

suggests that self-interested behavior is not merely an

economic modeling of human behavior, but an ethical imperative

Ethics of Care

emphasize the roles of Mutual Interdependence and Emotional Response that play an important part in our moral lives

Differences in Men & Women in their Approach to Ethics

 Men tend to embrace an ethic of rights using quasi-legal terminology and impartial principles

 Women tend to affirm an ethic of care that centers on responsiveness in an interconnected network of needs, care, and prevention of harm

Universalism

Duty Based Approach also called Deontological Ethics

 Ends DO NOT justify means

Kant’s Categorical Imperative

places moral authority for taking action on an individual’s duty toward other individuals and “humanity”

 Person should choose to act if and only if she or he would be willing to have every person on earth, in that same situation, act exactly that way

 Person should act in a way that respects and treats all others involved as ends, as well as means to an end

Virtue Ethics (Character-Based Virtues)

 Emphasizes more character in contrast to moral rules (deontology) or consequences of actions (consequentialism)

 Grounded in “character traits” that is “a disposition which is well entrenched in its possessor, something that is at the core of their character to do honest actions or even honest actions for certain reasons.

 Concerned with other actions as well including emotions and emotional reactions, choices, values, desires, perceptions, attitudes, interests, expectations and sensibilities.

 To possess a virtue is to be a certain sort of person with a certain complex mindset

Concepts of Virtue Ethics

Derived from ancient Greek philosophy:

 Virtue, practical wisdom, happiness, flourishing and well being are characteristics of a virtuous person

 The possessor of good character is and acts moral, feels good, is happy and flourishes

 Virtue ethics focuses the type of person we ought to be, not on specific actions that should be taken

 Practical wisdom is often required to be virtuous

Ethical Relativism

 Holds that no universal standards or rules can be used to guide and evaluate the morality of an act

 People set their own moral standards for judging their actions

 “When in Rome, do as the Romans do”

 What may be morally right for one society may be wrong for another

 Benefit is that ethical and cultural relativism recognizes the distinction between individual and social values and customs

Act Utilitarianism

view that an individual action is ethically right it maximizes social utility

Rule Utilitarianism

view that autirule is ethically right if it maximizes social utility

utility

should be interpreted as the absence of pain and experience of pleasure

Implicit contracts

are localized business practices thats reflect local ethical standards, for example the policy regarding giving gifts in a regional area .  Participants who follow them do so with informed consent and can exit the relationship at any time.  They usually are not formally codified in documents  but emerge through the day-to-day interactions of the group

authentic norms

are community/societal level norms generally approved and acted-on within that society.  Authentic norms are potentially acceptable from a moral point of view, however  they are built from the ground up historically within specific regions and communities and have the advantage of providing specific dvice in business ethics

Hypernorms

are principles so fundamental that, by definition, they serve to evaluate lower-order norms, reaching to the root of what is ethical for humanity