Ethical Theories

Ethical Theory

Learning Outcomes

• Discuss various ethical theories.

• Compare the differences between the theories.

Introduction

• Ethical matters: Do we think about them, and do we need to?

• Reasoning: How do we reason in thinking and acting ethically?

• Necessity: Why do we need to?

• Determining right and wrong: How do we know what is right or wrong?

Ethical Theory Defined

• Origin: Root word from Greek 'theoria' meaning a way of seeing (view moral phenomena).

• Systematic Exposition: Ethical theory is a systematic exposition of a particular view about what is the nature and basis of good or right.

• Ethical Judgments: Helps make ethical judgments on any matters that would like to be identified as right or wrong.

• Justification: Provides reasons or norms for judging acts to be right or wrong and attempts to give justification for these norms.

• Ethical Principles: Provides ethical principles or guidelines that embody certain values.

• Decision Making: Provides clear guidelines and principles in making an ethical decision.

Relationship Between Ethical Theory and Ethical Judgment

• Ethical Theory -> Ethical Principle -> Ethical Judgment

Categories of Ethics

• Definition: Ethics is a systematic attempt to understand moral concepts and justify moral principles and theories.

• Western Philosophy: Explained moral concepts using 3 main categories of ethics (Stewart, 2009):

  • Meta Ethics: Causes of right & wrong.

  • Normative Ethics: The study of right & wrong of human behavior.

  • Applied Ethics: Practical ethics based on the right & wrong concept.

Normative Ethics

• Definition: Ethical behavior explained by normative ethics is based on three broad philosophical traditions (Stewart, 2009):

  • Deontology: Duty based.

  • Teleology: Consequences based.

  • Virtue ethics: Character based.

Ethical Theory Classification

• Normative Ethics:

  • Consequentialist: Teleology (Ethical Egoism, Utilitarianism).

  • Non-consequentialist: Deontology (Kant’s Moral Theory, Natural Law), Virtue Ethics.

Deontology

• Origin: From Greek, deon meaning duty.

• Standards: Looks for objective, ultimate, or absolute standards for assessing rightness or wrongness of human actions (Sheeran, 1993).

• Objective Standards: Believes that real, objective standards of morality exist to govern human behavior, discovered using human reasoning (Sheeran, 1993).

• Focus: Concentrates on the nature of action & motive to determine right or wrong action.

• Priority: Obligation and duty in making decisions facing ethical dilemmas.

• Moral Standards: One should subscribe to a set of moral standards regardless of possible consequences of inherently right or wrong action (Pojman, 2012).

• Non-consequentialism: Also known as a non-consequentialism theory.

• Example: Kant’s moral theory.

Kant’s Moral Theory

• Advocate: Immanuel Kant, a German philosopher (1724-1804).

• Base of Ethics: Regards human rationality as the base of ethics.

• Moral Requirements: Based on a standard of rationality known as ‘Categorical Imperative’ (Johnson, 2010).

• Three Formulations of the Imperative (Garofalo & Gueras, 1999; 2003):

  • 'Act according to the maxim that you can will to be a universal law'.

  • 'Treat human beings as an end and not as means only'.

  • 'Each rational and autonomous being must be considered as a legislator in the kingdom of ends'.

• Imperative's Consistent Idea: An action that is willed by all, whereby will is accepted as ethical or vice versa.

• Morality Summed Up: The imperative summed up morality as one hence served as a commandment from which all obligations and duties are derived (Amundsen & Andrade, 2009).

• Duty: The only good reason for doing the right thing is because of duty, thus duty becomes the ‘operational reason’ for an action or the key element of a decision to act (BBC, 2014).

Natural Law Theory

• Aristotle's Development: Aristotle developed ethical philosophy based on nature which emphasized that goals are embedded in natural things as there was an order in nature.

• Natural Beings: Natural beings (humans, plants & animals) had a principle of order within them that directed them toward their goals under the maxim “the good is that at which all things aim”.

• Human Difference: Human differ from other natural beings as they have intelligence.

• Good for Humans: What is naturally good for human is to function well and perfecting their human capacities.

• Ultimate Good: The ultimate good for human – happiness, blessedness, prosperity.

• Judean Christian Tradition: This theory follows a Judean Christian tradition where Thomas Aquinas, based his perspective of natural law on a religious term in which he believed that god created the universe according to plan and thus put into the natures of things their natural orientation.

• God's Intention: Their good is to fulfill their natures as this was intended by god.

• Natural Law as Divine: He held that natural law was part as divine law.

Teleology

• Origin: From Greek, telos meaning goal or end.

• Moral Judgment: Based on a moral judgement on the consequence of action. Thus also known an consequentialism theory.

• Ethical Action: An action is ethical when it produces the greatest benefit compared to any other alternative.

• Utilitarian Theory: One of the most common forms of ethical deliberation focuses on the consequences is the Utilitarian theory.

Utilitarianism

• Advocates: Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mills.

• Consequentialist Theory: It is a consequentialist theory meaning that an action is good, and moral based on the consequences.

• Principle of Utility: The main idea of utilitarianism is the Principle of Utility where an action is considered good when it promotes happiness for the society, right when it maximizes possible good for all persons affected by the action (Stewart, 1991).

• Maximum Happiness: Maximum happiness should be the guide to all actions done by human.

• Famous Phrase: The famous phrase of ‘the end justifies the mean’.

• Act Utilitarian: Emphasised on the greatest benefit an individual gain through his actions. Actions providing the greatest social good is better than the law

• Rule Utilitarian: Emphasised the adherence to rule in order to produce the greatest benefit. Actions is guided by the rule in order to achieve maximization of happiness

Ethical Egoism

• Core Claim: The theory claims that one ought to pursue one’s self-interest exclusively.

• Duty to Others: An individual does not have any moral duty towards others but only towards oneself.

• Principle of Self-Interest: The ultimate principle of conduct is the principle of self-interest, which sums all of one’s natural obligations and duties (Rachels, 2013).

• Helping Others: It does not however forbid one from helping others as long as the act benefits oneself, which makes the act right.

• Long-Run Benefit: Ethical egoism endorses individuals who act for their self-interest for a long-run benefit.

• Self-Care: It promotes doing good thing to oneself and avoid harming oneself.

• Two Groups: It advocates that we divide the world into 2 groups: ourselves and other people (Rachels, 2013). The interest of the first group is far superior that of the second group.

• Category of ethical egoism:

  • Personal ethical egoism – I am acting in my interest, and I don’t care what other people do.

  • Individual ethical egoism – I am acting in my interest, and everyone should too.

  • Universal ethical egoism – Every person, including me, should act in their own interest.

Virtue Ethics

• Origin: Virtue comes from ancient Greek, ‘vir’ referring to strength or manliness and ‘arete’ meaning excellence.

• Focus: It is a theory concentrating on the notion that moral life is about developing good character (McKinnon, 2014).

• Driving Force: The character of a moral agent is the driving force to ethical behaviour and does not depend on the consequences of the action.

• Character Traits: Virtue ethics is about how we ought to act and concerned on the traits of character of a person (Amundsen & Andrade, 2009).

• Moral Qualities: Ethical dilemma can be tackled using specific moral qualities and become a means to improve moral behavior in public service (Lynch &Lynch, 2003) whereby lack of virtue caused unethical behavior in public managers (Lawton & Macaulay, 2004)

• Two elements of virtue according to Aristotle’:

  • Excellence of character: Moral virtue, concerns with how one position himself in acting well.

  • Excellence of mind: Intellectual virtue, concerns with the ability to understand, reason and judge well.

• Human Flourishing: Aristotle assumed that ‘virtue’ is what human required to flourish (Stewart, 1991) which leads to the purpose of life which is to live harmoniously with others (Admunsen & Andrade, 2009).

• Practical Application: Therefore, virtue ethics have a fundamental practical application (Lawton & Macaulay, 2004) and it exists in both action and character of the person.

• Decision-Making: Virtue ethics propose that an ethical decision is not made purely on abstract moral values but related to specific circumstances in which the decision is made (Van Staveren, 2007).