CHAPTER 2

ETHICAL REASONING

When men are pure, laws are useless; when men are corrupt, laws are broken.

Benjamin Disraeli (1804-1881)

James R. Rest (1941-1999)

A noted researcher and writer in ethical development. Identified a four-component model of how moral behavior occurs.

Rests FourComponent Model of Morality

Moral Sensitivity
The first stage of moral behavior requires that the individual should interpret the situation as moral. It exists whenever ones actions affects others and himself/herself.

Moral Judgment
It requires judging which of the available actions is most ethically justified.

A persons ability to make such judgment depends on his/her stage of moral development.

Moral Motivation
One must have the desire to be a moral person in order to make an ethical decision.
A problem that arises is that we face a variety of relationship with other people and pressures exist both internally in our minds and externally from outside influences that might lessen the desire to act morally.

Moral Character
Once a moral person has considered the ethics of the alternative actions, that person must construct an appropriate course of action, avoid distractions, and maintain the courage to continue. A person of integrity will act out of moral principle, not expediency. A person might know exactly what the right thing to do is and have the desire to do it, but there exists a strong pressure preventing that person from acting in accordance with the moral point of view.

Moral Development

Kohlbergs Stages of Moral Development

LEVEL 1 PRECONVENTIONAL
Stage 1. Obedience to Rules; Avoidance of Punishment Stage 2. Satisfying Ones Own Need Stage 3. Fairness to Others Stage 4. Law and Order

LEVEL 2 CONVENTIONAL

LEVEL 3 POSTCONVENTIONAL
Stage 5. Social Contract Stage 6. Universal Ethical Principles

LEVEL 1 PRECONVENTIONAL
An individual is very selfcentered. Rules are seen as something external imposed on the self.

Stage 1. Obedience to Rules; Avoidance of Punishment

- At this stage what is right is judged by

ones obedience to rules and authority.

Stage 2.

Satisfying Ones Own Need

- The rules and authority are important only if acting in accordance with them satisfies ones own needs.

CONVENTIONAL
An individual becomes aware of the interests of others and ones duty to society. Personal responsibility becomes an important consideration in decision making.

LEVEL 2

Stage 3. Fairness to Others

- An individual not only is motivated by rules but also seeks to do what is in the best interest of others, especially those in a family, peer group, or work organization.

Stage 4. Law and Order - It emphasizes societal norms. Ones duty

to society, respect for authority, and maintaining the social order become the focus of decision making.

LEVEL 3 POSTCONVENTIONAL
An individual looks to basic principles to guide decision making. Integrity would be an important component of deciding what the right thing to do is.

Stage 5. Social Contract

- An individual is motivated by upholding the basic rights, values, and legal contracts of society, in some cases, legal and moral points of view may have conflict. To reduce such conflict, individuals at this stage base their decisions on a rational calculation of benefits and harms to society.

Stage 6.

Universal Ethical Principles

- A person believes that right is determined by universal ethical principles that everyone should follow. The most important ethical principles deal with justice, equality and the dignity of all people. - If a law conflicts with an ethical principle, an individual should act in accordance with the principle.

Carol Gilligan
A noted psychologist and educator, criticized Kohlbergs justice orientation. She said that Kohlbergs Moral Development ignores the care-andresponse orientation that characterizes female moral judgment.
Gilligan believes that women need more information before answering a question.

Ethical Relativism
This theory holds that morality is relative to norms of ones culture. Whether an action is right or wrong , it depends on the moral norms of the society in which it is performed.

Ethical Relativism (cont)

For ethical relativist, there are no universal moral standards standards that can be universally applied to all people at all times.
Most ethicists reject this theory, some claim that while the moral practices of societies may differ, the fundamental moral principles underlying these practices do not.

Moral Philosophy
It is refers to the principles or rules that people use to decide what is right or wrong.
The philosophies presents guidelines for determining how conflicts in human interests are to be settled and for optimizing the mutual benefit of people living together in groups.

Moral Philosophy (cont)

It also provides moral perspective in the form of abstract principles that guide decision making.
TELEOLOGY
Utilitarian point of view that recognizes that trade-offs may be necessary in balancing the harms and benefits to the stakeholders.

DEONTOLOGY
Emphasizes the rights of stakeholders and duties of decision makers to honor those rights.

Justice as Fairness
Justice is usually associated with issues of rights, fairness, and equality. A just act respects your right and treats you fairly.
Formulations of justice theories were dated back to Aristotle and Plato in the 5th century BC.

Justice as Fairness (cont.)

John Rawls (1921-2002)
- An important contributor modern theory of justice. of the

- Rawls uses an innovative conceptual device called the veil of ignorance to develop his theory.
- He argues that valid principles of justice could be agreed on if we could meet for this purpose outside the influence of any society.

Justice as Fairness (cont.)

John Rawls
- ORIGINAL POSITION, not knowing what characteristics one possesses when he/she reappeared from behind the veil.

- Rawls believes on two principles while in the original position:

Each person should be permitted the maximum amount of basic liberty compatible with similar liberties for others.

Social and economic inequalities are allowed only if they benefit everyone.

Virtue Principles
Virtue theory dates back to the ancient Greek philosophers, Aristotle and Plato. Virtue theorists place less emphasis on learning rules and instead stress the importance of developing good habits of character, such as benevolence. It emphasizes moral education because virtuous character traits are developed in ones youth. Thus, adults are responsible for instilling virtues in the young.

Virtue Principles (cont.)

Plato emphasized four virtues which were called CARDINAL VIRTUES: wisdom

courage
temperance, and

justice.

Virtue Principles (cont.)

Alasdair Maclnytyre, a philosopher, stated that the exercise of virtue requires a capacity to judge and to do the right thing in the right place at the right time in the right way. Mintz pointed out that the accounting profession is a practice with virtues inherent in that practice that enable accountants to meet their ethical obligations to clients, employers, the government, and the public at large.

Virtue Principles (cont.)

The virtue enable accounting professionals to resolve conflicting duties and loyalties in a morally appropriate way. It provides accountants the inner strength of character to withstand pressures that might otherwise overwhelm and negatively influence their professional judgment in a relationship trust.

Virtue considerations apply both to the decision maker and to the act under consideration by that party.