Ethics & company philosphies- businesss ethics

“ Without moral perception, man is

only an animal. without morality,

man as a rational being is a failure.”

The Philosophical

Background of Business

Ethics

- Ramon B. Agapay

Introduction

Business Ethics as an applied branch of General Ethics must be studied from the perspective of Philosophy. This is because Ethics is a part of moral principles, you will not know Ethics without being philosophical.

Ethics and PhilosophyPhilosophy, etymologically came from two Greek words philos, which means love and sophia, means wisdom. (Love of Wisdom)Hence, a philosopher is one who loves wisdom.As a science, philosophy is interested with the meaning of reality including our human experiences. It is a science that seeks to explain the ultimate cause of everything by the use of human reason alone.

Ethics and Philosophy

Ethics is philosophical science that studies the morality of human act. As a science, Ethics is concerned with the analysis of the nature of the human conduct from the point of view of morality.

The two contradictory Principles1. Man believes that there are certain things

that he should not do to anyone.2. Man believes that values are subjective and

incapable of being disputed.

Divisions of Philosophy

1. Theoretical Philosophy – studies the truth to be known, e.g. God, immortality of the soul, origin of the universe.

2. Practical Philosophy – studies truths to be acted upon, e.g. ethics, axiology(study of vales, goodness etc.), semantics(relation between words, phases, signs & symbols), etc.

Divisions of Philosophy

PHILOSOPHYTHEORETICA

LPRACTICAL

CosmologyOrigin of universe

OntologyThe theory of being

MetaphysicsMeta (beyond) physikon

(nature)

PsychologyHuman/animal behavior

TheodicyGod on logical

abstraction

EpistemologyTheory of knowledge

SemanticsWords and its linguistic

formsAxiology

Discourse of value

judgmentAesthetics

Principles of beauty and

artLogic

Reasoning to establish

truth

EthicsFrom Greek word “ethos”

means “Characteristic way of

acting” which is proper to as a

rational being.

Ethics and MoralityMorality

refers to the quality of goodness or badness in a human act. Good is described as moral and bad as immoral. It means conformity to the rules of right conduct.

Ethics refer to the formal study of those

standards and conduct. It is also often called “ moral philosophy”.

Ethics as a Normative ScienceEthics is considered a Normative

Science because it is concerned with the systematic study of the norms of human conduct, as distinguished from formal sciences such as Mathematics, chemistry physics etc..

Ethics is a normative science because it involves a systematic search for moral principles and norms that are justify our moral judgments.

Three Categories of General Ethics

Descriptive ethics maintains objectivity in studying human behavior but it does not provide a clear standard of morality. It simply describes how people act and does not prescribe how people should act.


Involves moral judgment based on ethical norm or theory. This consists both the basic moral principles and values and the particular moral rules that govern people’s behavior, which is right or moral and wrong or immoral.


It does not describe moral beliefs of people, does not evaluate the process of moral reasoning, but simply analyzes the usage and meaning of words.


Ethical relativism claims that when any two cultures or any people hold different moral values of an action, both can be right. An action may be right for one person or society and the same action taken in the same way may be wrong for another reason, and yet, both persons are equally correct.

The Problem of Ethical Relativism and Situation Ethics

Ethical Relativism


Approaches to Moral Differences


There is no Moral Truth

There is no Universal Truth

Deep down, we can find basic Moral

Truth

There is One Universal Moral truth



There is no Moral Truth

There is no ultimate right or wrong. Moral views differ from one person to another. This results to a subjective morality, in which case, what is good for one person may be bad for another.



Each Culture has its own set of rules that are valid for that culture, and we have no right to interfere, just as they have no right to interfere with our rules. This ethical paradigm maintains that there are moral truths that exist but these truths are relative and dependent on cultures and beliefs of people.

There is no Universal Truth



Despite differences, people of different cultures can still agree on a certain moral basics. There are some common ground on basic moral principles. This is called “Soft Universalism”

Deep down, we can find basic Moral

Truth



This view is also known as hard universalism or moral absolutism. This moral paradigm maintains that there is only one universal moral code that everybody must follow. Because this moral code is universal and objective, moral problems, and moral conflicts can be solved through proper moral reasoning.

There is One Universal Moral truth

Deontological vs. Teleological ApproachesTo Ethical Evaluation of the Human Conduct

A

C

T

I

O

N

Motives/Intentions

End of the actor

Means/Action itself

End of the Act

Consequences/Resul

t,

Probable and actual

Non -

Consequentialist

Consequentialist


Deontological Ethics

Also known as non-consequentialist approach is a body of ethical theories that measures and evaluates the nature of a moral act based on the validity of the motive of an act. This means that if the motive or intention of the act is good, then regardless of the consequences, the whole action is good.


Teleological Ethics

Came from the Greek word “tele” which means far or remote. Known also as Consequentialist theory measures the morality of an action based on its consequences and not on the motive or intention of the actor. If the consequence is good, regardless what motive is, the act is always morally good.

The “Moral Sense” in us

The main difference between man and animal is that man has a moral perception. Man has a natural insight to morality, this being a gift of the Creator who gave man a ”Moral Sense”


The Synderesis of Man according to St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274)

This Italian philosopher, theologian, and priest is sometimes called the Prince of Scholastics. He died at the age of 49 and 49n years later he was canonized as the Angelic Doctor of the Church.


The Synderesis of Man according to St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274)

According to Aquinas, the moral sense in man is manifested and expressed in the three different ways:

1. Man is able to distinguish or to know what is good and what is bad.

2. Man is always obligated to do good and avoid evil.

3. Man knows that he is accountable for his actions-good or bad.


Sigismund Schlomo Freud (1856-1953) Theory of the ID, EGO, and the SUPEREGO

He was the Founding Father of Psychoanalysis, which is a major school of psychology. His key points psychoanalytical theory are the following:1. Man must learn to control inborn

desires.2. Man must achieve fulfillment in

ways that are harmonious with others.



Superego – has elements in common with both reason and will power. It basically reflects social rules and values of the society that govern our behavior.

Ego – is the rational self or the conscious self. It is part reason (intellect) but also part will power. It is under constant pressure to fight off the pleasure - seeking desires of the Id.



Id – is the irrational part in us or the unconscious instincts, such as sex and aggression.

For Freud, a healthy personality is a person who has an ego that does an effective job of coping with the urges of the Id and the restrictions of the Superego.

Education

Ethics & company philosphies- businesss ethics