Ethics is concerned with the kind of people we

are, but also with the things we do or fail to

do. This could be called the “ethics of doing.”
  Some people, however, don’t take the time to
consider the ethical dimensions of given
situations before they act. This may happen 
because they have not gathered all of the
necessary information needed, while others
might rationalize excuses, employ defense
mechanisms, or incorrectly gauge the
intensity of the situation.
 -an important topic or problem for debate or discussion.

We need to help students realize that in order to know what to do in a given situation,
they should explore issues carefully–gathering all the relevant facts, considering the
actions involved, and evaluating the potential consequences.
 Once they have clarified these points, their personal values can guide them in making a final
decision. 

 
Decision -the action or process of deciding something or of resolving a question.
 Some common mistakes that decision makers should be aware of
include:

Only hearing and seeing what we want

Placing too great a reliance on the information you

receive from others

Placing too little emphasis on the information you

receive from others

Ignoring your intuition

 This is the
process and
basis for what
we can call
Judgment-the ability to make considered “ethical
decisions or come to sensible conclusions. judgment.”
 Judgment on an ethical issue will usually
depend on two things:

PRIORITIE
VALUES
S
are a person's
or society’s a thing that is
beliefs about regarded as
good behavior more important
and what than another
things are
important.
The leadership development team at Melius have identified six ways to improve personal judgement:

1. Be aware of personal bias. Recognise where your unconscious preferences and motivations influence how
you make decisions.

2.  Consider opposite points of view. Good judgement is about making the best decision rather than ensuring
your viewpoint wins out.
 
3.  Accept your mistakes. Good leaders are self-aware, able to take responsibility for mistakes and to take
negative feedback when required. 

4. Learn from experience. Bank what works and avoid repeating what didn’t.   

5. Avoid flip-flopping. Use instinct where necessary to make a decision and start to take action. 

6. Automate repeat and routine decisions to free your mind for more important decisions.
 Keep a track record of your judgements for what went wrong and right
What is right today may be wrong tomorrow when events have moved on.

make sure you are not just getting what you like to hear or see

Check the evidence and implications of the proposed speed of action

 How credible are they?

 Values are the things that we hold
important for our sense of who we are.
They are expressed in statements such
as “human life and dignity should be
protected,” or “cheating is wrong.” They
develop over time and are influenced by
family, religion, education, peers and a
whole range of experiences, both good
and bad, that have helped shape us.
In some situations, even people who agree on the same
values, will disagree on the decision because a particular
situation brings different values into conflict. This will
require people to prioritize their values. It is sometimes
referred to as an “ethical dilemma,” where there does not
seem to be any solution without compromising one’s values,
or where one’s decision may have negative consequences.
 Dilemma-A dilemma is a tough
choice. When you're in a difficult
situation and each option looks
equally bad, you're in
a dilemma. Dilemma is from a
Greek for "double proposition." It
was originally a technical term of
logic, but we use it now for any
time you have a problem with no
satisfactory solution. In such
a dilemma, choosing one moral will
result in violating another; or, doing
one thing could bring positive
results but is morally wrong. A
common example is “stealing from
the rich to feed the poor.”

An ethical situation presents what I will call an ethical “issue”

when it is possible to ascertain the answer by simply adhering to
a clear-cut guideline in the Code of Ethics. ... Typically,
an ethical dilemma, on the other hand, exists when two or
more ethical principles or standards are conflicting with each
other.
• Example 1
• The menu at the restaurant looked amazing, and Sam wanted to try
everything. But, having a limited budget, he was faced with a choice—to
order the gourmet mac and cheese made with gouda (his favorite cheese);
or to get the bacon and gouda burger. For a gouda-lover, it was quite a
dilemma!

• Example 2
• My mom gave me two choices: do the dishes or clean the bathroom.
Neither sounded like much fun. What a dilemma.
Types of Dilemmas
a. Moral/Ethical Dilemma
One of the most popular themes in literature is the “moral dilemma” or “ethical dilemma,” where a character is faced
with a conflict of morals or ethics. In such a dilemma, choosing one moral will result in violating another; or, doing
one thing could bring positive results but is morally wrong. A common example is “stealing from the rich to feed the
poor.”

b. Chicken or the Egg

This is a classic dilemma about which of two things comes first. If the chicken
came first, where did it come from? Likewise, if the egg came first, who laid the
egg?

d. The Prisoner’s Dilemma

The Prisoner’s Dilemma is a classic conflict and is often depicted in crime stories. It involves two parties each faced
with punishment that will be different based on how the opposite party behaves. It follows this pattern:
•If party A gives up party B, party A will receive the lesser punishment (and vice versa).
•If both parties A and B give each other up, both receive the maximum punishment.
•If neither A nor B gives up the other, both receive the minimum punishment.

e. Sophie’s Choice
Getting its title from the novel of the same name, a “Sophie’s Choice” dilemma involves a choice between two things
that will lead to the death or destruction of whichever isn’t chosen.
 
 In moral philosophy, deontological

ethics or deontology (from Greek: δέον, 'obligation,

duty' + λόγος, 'study') is the normative ethical theory that

the morality of an action should be based on whether

that action itself is right or wrong under a series of

rules, rather than based on the consequences of the

action.  It is sometimes described as duty-, obligation-,

[1]
IN MORAL PHILOSOPHY, DEONTOLOGICAL

ETHICS OR DEONTOLOGY (FROM GREEK: ΔΈΟΝ, 'OBLIGATION,

DUTY' + ΛΌΓΟΣ, 'STUDY') IS THE NORMATIVE ETHICAL THEORY THAT

or rule-based ethics.
THE MORALITY OF AN ACTION SHOULD BE BASED ON WHETHER

THAT ACTION ITSELF IS RIGHT OR WRONG UNDER A SERIES OF

RULES, RATHER THAN BASED ON THE CONSEQUENCES OF THE

action is more important than the consequences.
ACTION.[1] IT IS SOMETIMES DESCRIBED AS DUTY-, OBLIGATION-,
Immanuel Kant
 Deontological philosophies
Kantianism Immanuel Kant's theory of ethics is considered deontological for several different reasons

First, Kant argues that in order to act in the

morally right way, people must act from duty.

Second, Kant argued that it was not the consequences of actions that make them
right or wrong, but the motives of the person who carries out the action.

Kant's three significant formulations of the categorical imperative are:

•Act only according to that maxim by which you can also will that it would become
a universal law;
•Act in such a way that you always treat humanity, whether in your own person or
in the person of any other, never simply as a means, but always at the same time
as an end; and
•Every rational being must so act as if he were through his maxim always a
legislating member in a universal kingdom of ends.
 Although not all deontologists are religious, some believe in the divine command
theory, which is actually a cluster of related theories that essentially state that an
action is right if God has decreed that it is right

The divine command theory is a form of deontology because, according to it, the rightness
Divine of any action depends upon that action being performed because it is a duty, not because
of any good consequences arising from that action. If God commands people not to work
command on Sabbath, then people act rightly if they do not work on Sabbath because God has
commanded that they do not do so. If they do not work on Sabbath because they are lazy,
theory then their action is not, truly speaking, "right" even though the actual physical action
performed is the same.

If God commands not to covet a neighbour's goods, this theory holds that it would be 
immoral to do so, even if coveting provides the beneficial outcome of a drive to succeed or
do well.

Kantianism maintains Divine command

that man, as a rational maintains that God
being, makes the moral makes the moral law
law universal, universal.
Ross's deontological pluralism W. D. Ross objects to Kant's monistic deontology,
which bases ethics in only one foundational principle,
the categorical imperative

Some duties originate from our own previous actions, like

the duty of fidelity (to keep promises and to tell the truth), and
the duty of reparation (to make amends for wrongful acts).

The duty of gratitude (to return kindnesses received) arises from the actions of

others. Other duties include the duty of non-injury (not to hurt others), the duty
of beneficence (to promote the maximum of aggregate good), the duty of self-
improvement (to improve one's own condition) and the duty of justice (to
distribute benefits and burdens equably).

One problem the deontological pluralist has to face is that cases can
arise where the demands of one duty violate another duty, so-
called moral dilemmas
A typical example of epistemic
•An example of deontic
authority in Bocheński's
authority would be "the relation
usage would be "the relation of
between an employer and his
a teacher to his students." A
employee." An employer has
teacher has epistemic authority Contemporary
deontology deontic authority in the act of
when making declarative
issuing an order that the employee
sentences that the student
is obliged to accept and obey
presumes is reliable
regardless of its reliability or
knowledge and appropriate but
appropriateness.
feels no obligation to accept or

obey.
 Deontology and consequentialism

Principle of permissible harm Reconciling deontology with consequentialism

Frances Kamm's "Principle of Permissible Harm"

Various attempts have been made to
(1996) is an effort to derive a deontological
reconcile deontology with 
constraint that coheres with our considered case
consequentialism. Threshold
judgments while also relying heavily on Kant's 
deontology holds that rules ought to
categorical imperative
govern up to a point despite adverse
consequences; but when the
consequences become so dire that
The principle states that one may harm in order to
they cross a stipulated threshold,
save more if and only if the harm is an effect or an
consequentialism takes over.
aspect of the greater good itself

This principle is meant to address what Kamm

feels are most people's considered case
judgments, many of which involve deontological 
intuitions. For instance, Kamm argues that we
believe it would be impermissible to kill one
person to harvest his organs in order to save the
lives of five others.