Business ethics ethical theory

BUSINESS ETHICS

2. ETHICAL THEORY

2013/2014 Ana Cláudia Campos 1º Semestre

2.1 Normativity of Ethical Theories

2.2 Traditional Ethics

2.3 Contemporary Ethics

2.1 Normativity of Ethical Theories

Ethical theories can be said either

descriptive or normative .

EthicalTheories

Descriptive

Describeethical

phenomena

Normative

Providegeneral rules and principlesof behaviour

A descriptive approach to ethics

attempts to describe the moral systems

of groups or societies.

As such it involves empirical research

on individuals, groups, and societies in

order to uncover moral beliefs.

Research Topics Covered by

Descriptive Ethics

• Values

• Ethical ideals

• Moral virtues

• Wrong and right actions and behaviours

• Moral systems (relativism)…

Disciplines Related to the Study of

Descriptive Ethics

• Psychology

• Biology

• Sociology

• Anthropology

• Cultural Studies…

Ethical theories are said to be

normative if they propose “to prescribe

the morally correct way of acting”.

(Crane & Matten, 2010)

Normative theories of ethics or

«moral theories» are meant to help

us figure out what actions are right

and wrong.

(Gray, 2010) [http://ethicalrealism.wordpress.com/2010/08/20/ethical-theories/]

“Ethical theories are the rules and

principles that determine right and

wrong for a given situation”.


Normative ethical theories attempt to

answer two main questions:

(1) What is the good life for men?

(2) How ought men to behave?

Normative ethical theories might be

interpreted as answers to requests for

advice on how to deal with aspects of

daily living

2.2 Traditional Ethics

Traditional ethical theories developed

mainly in Europe due to the work of

many philosophers, from ancient times

until modernity (e.g.: Aristotle,

Epicurus, Seneca, J. Locke, A. Smith,

J. Stuart-Mill…)

“These traditional theories have their origins in

modernism, which emerged roughly during the

18th century Enlightenment era. ‘Modern’ thinkers

strove for a rational, scientific explanation of the

world and aimed at comprehensive, inclusive,

theoretically coherent theories to explain nature,

man, and society”

(Crane and Matten, 2010)

Traditional ethical theories are the

normative theories adopting an

absolutist point of view on ethics

(ethical absolutism)

Ethical Absolutism

There are eternal, universally applicable

moral principles to concrete situations and

contexts. Right and wrong are objective

qualities we can rationally determine in

human actions, and so, as such, they exist

outside individuals

TraditionalEthical

Theories

Consequentialists

Utilitarianism Egoism Hedonism

Non-consequentialists

Deontology

(Kant, Ross)

Agent’s Virtue

(Aristotle)

Motivation/Principles/

DutiesAction Outcomes

p. 97

Non-consequentialist ethics Consequentialist ethics

An ethical theory which bases moral

judgement on the outcomes of an

action is called Consequentialist (or

Teleological).

Consequentialist Ethical Theory

General Principle

Of all the things a person might do at

any given moment, the morally right

action is the one with the best overall

consequences(Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy)

Corollaries� Whether an act is right or wrong depends only

on the results of that act;

� The more good consequences an act produces,

the better or more right that act is;

� A person should choose the action that

maximizes good consequences

� People should live so as to maximize good

consequences

Utilitarianism

An action is morally right if it results in

the greatest amount of good/happiness

for the greatest amount of people

affected by the action


“After assessing as best we can the likely

results of each action, not just in the short

term but in the long run as well, we are to

choose the course of conduct that brings

about the greatest net happiness”

(Shaw, 2011)

From an utilitarian point of view,

GOOD/HAPPINESS may be understood as:

� Freedom

� Knowledge

� Life

� Pleasure

� Political Rights

� …

Main Corollaries

� The rightness or wrongness of an action isseparated from the goodness or badness of theagent (worth of action ≠ worth of agent)

� The right moral action is the one that maximizesthe good

� The general principle of utility does not provide arule to decide on the moral worth of an action inface of actual consequences and foreseenconsequences, except that we should do what wehave most reason to believe will bring about thebest consequences of the known availablealternatives

Act Utilitarianism

“The measure of the value of an act is the amount by which it

increases general utility or happiness. An act is to be preferred

to its alternatives according to the extent of the increase it

achieves, compared to the extent the alternatives would

achieve. An action is thus good or bad in proportion to the

amount it increases (or diminishes) general happiness,

compared to the amount that could have been achieved by

acting differently. Act utilitarianism is distinctive not only in the

stress on utility, but in the fact that each individual action is the

primary object of ethical evaluation.”

http://www.answers.com/topic/act-utilitarianism

Rule Utilitarianism

“It maintains that the correct principles of right and

wrong are those that would maximize happiness if

society adopted them. Rule utilitarianism applies the

utilitarian standard not directly to individual actions

but rather to the choice of the moral principles that

are to guide individual action.”

(Shaw, 2011)

Prominent Proponents

J. Bentham(1748-1832)

J. Stuart-Mill(1806-1873)

Egoism

The doctrine according to which the

correct moral action is the one that

meets the self-interest of individuals.

Main Corollary

The most important moral principle is the

principle of self-interest, personal advantage

or gain

� Moral egoism is based on psychological

egoism, according to which all human

behaviour is motivated by self-interest

(=welfare, well-being).

� Self-interest is understood as either:

• one’s desire (self-regarding / not self-

regarding) or

• possession of states independently of being

desired (virtue, knowledge, peace…)

Moral egoists do not necessarily claim:

� that all people should be egoists and act

egoistically (=every individual should pursue

self-interest)

� that seeking pleasure, doing harm to others,

behaving disonestly and so on are good things

in themselves but only as far as doing so brings

us any kind of personal advantage


H. Sidgwick(1838 -1900)

A. Rand(1905-1982)

F. Nietzsche(1844 -1900)

Hedonism

The doctrine that pleasure is the sole

good. (…)

Men not only in fact seek pleasure, but

further they ought to do so since

pleasure alone is good. (…)

(Popkin & Stroll, 1956)

Main Corollaries

� To say "all pleasure is intrinsically good" is not to say

"all pleasure is good, simply."

� Though pleasure is the only intrinsically and ultimate

good, it is not the only thing desirable, other things

are desirable at least as a means to something

(peace, money, education…)

� Some pleasures are not good because they lead to

pain instead of pleasure (taking drugs, getting drunk,

making fun of other people…)


Epicurus(341BC - 270BC)

Aristippus of Cyrene(435BC – 356 BC)

Non-consequentialist Ethical Theory

Any ethical theory which bases moral

judgement not on the outcomes

(consequences) of an action but on its

principle (intrinsic properties) or on the

agent’s character.

Non-consequentialist

Deontology

(Kant, Ross)

Agent’s Virtue

(Aristotle)

An ethical theory which bases moral

judgement on the moral principle (duty)

underlying the action, and thus the action’s

intrinsic features, is called Deontological.

Deontology

Main Corollaries

� Morality is a matter of duty, compliance to a

moral law

� Whether something is right or wrong doesn’t

depend on its consequences

� Actions are right or wrong in themselves

� We have duties regarding our own actions

The ethical theories proposed by I. Kant

and W. D. Ross are called a

deontological philosophies because they

assume the moral value of an action to

depend on the agent’s intention relative

to it (namely, complying to the moral

principle) rather than its consequences.


I. Kant(1784-1804) W. D. Ross

(1877-1971)

“Kant believed that moral reasoning is not

based on factual knowledge and that the

results of our actions do not determine

whether they are right or wrong.”(Shaw, 2011)

� According to Kant, human action is motivated

either by reason or happiness

� So morality depends either on reason or

happiness

� Happiness is conditional because it differs

from individual to individual and it can be

either good or bad

� Reason alone is universal, thus

unconditional, so morality must be based on

reason in order to become truly universal

� Kant named this moral universal reason “the

Good Will” (= the power of rational moral

choice)

� The Good Will is good because it motivates

us to act out of duty, not of inclination, desire

or personal interest/gain

� The Good Will makes us act according to the

moral law, and in order to know it we must

check if it conforms to the Categorical

Imperative.

� The CI is imperative because it is a command. It

commands us to exercise our wills in a particular

way, not to perform some action or other.

� The CI is categorical in virtue of applying to us

unconditionally, or simply because we possess

rational wills, without reference to any ends that we

might or might not have. It does not apply to us on

the condition that we have antecedently adopted

some goal for ourselves.

Kant’s Categorical Imperative

Formula of Universal Law: "Act as if the maxim of your action

were to secure through your will a universal law of nature"

Formula of Humanity: "Act so that you treat humanity,

whether in your own person or that of another, always as an

end and never as a means only"

Formula of Autonomy: “Act as if you were through your

maxims a law making member of a kingdom of ends."

� According to W. D. Ross, there are several prima

facie duties that we can use to determine what,

concretely, we ought to do.

� A prima facie duty is a duty that is obligatory

other things equal, that is, unless it is overridden

by another duty or duties. Where there is a prima

facie duty to do something, there is at least a

fairly strong moral reason in favor of doing it.

� An example of a prima facie duty is the duty to

keep promises. "Unless stronger moral

considerations override, one ought to keep a

promise made.“

� By contrast with prima facie duties, our actual or

concrete duty is the duty we should perform in

the particular situation of choice. Whatever one's

actual duty is, one is morally bound to perform it.

Ross’s Prima Facie Duties (The Right and the Good, 1930)

� Fidelity: obligation to keep a promise

� Reparation: obligation to repair the harm

� Gratitude: obligation to recognize a granted benefit

and express it

� Justice: obligation to fairly distribute the good

� Beneficence: obligation to do good to someone

� Self-improvement: obligation to make yourself a

better person

� Non-maleficence: obligation to not harm anyone

The Agent’s Virtue

According to a Virtue Theory, the central

moral concept is that of the morally good

character or morally good disposition. It

analyzes the rightness or wrongness of

individual choices indirectly in terms of the

character or dispositions of the agent making

the choices

“Virtue ethics contends that morally correct

actions are those undertaken by actors with

virtuous characters. Therefore, the formation

of a virtuous character is the first step towards

morally correct behaviour.”


Main Corollaries

� Moral virtue is simply a matter of performing well

in the function of being human

� Practice is very important to achieve excellence

� The motivation for being good is not based in a

divine legislator or a set of moral laws but rather

in the same kind of perception of excellence that

might be found in anything else that exists to

perform a function

� We can only be held responsible for actions we

perform voluntarily and not for cases involving

physical compulsion or ignorance.

� The best measure of moral judgment is choice,

because choice is made voluntarily by means of

rational deliberation.

� People always choose to aim at the good, but

they’re often ignorant of what is good and so aim

at some apparent good instead, which is in fact a

vice.

Aristotle(384 BCE – 322 BCE)

"So it follows, since virtue of character itself is a

mean state and always concerned with pleasures

and pains, while vice lies in excess and deficiency,

and has to do with the same things as virtue, that

virtue is the state of the character which chooses the

mean, relative to us in things pleasant and

unpleasant…" (Eudemian Ethics, Book II, Chapter 10)

� Virtue is, in a moral sense, a product of habit

� Virtue is a mean state or a middle ground

between two other states, one involving excess

and the other deficiency

� The middle ground that virtue encompasses is

representative of an individual's ideas of

pleasure and pain

� A portion of this is inherited naturally and another

portion is expectation towards punishment.

“According to Aristotle's ethical theory, the

virtuous person exhibits the joint excellence of

reason and of character. The virtuous person

not only knows what the good thing to do is,

she is also emotionally attached to it. In

addition, these two excellences, or virtues, are

intimately connected, so that the one cannot

be had without the other.”

http://ndpr.nd.edu/news/24181-the-virtue-of-aristotle-s-ethics/

2.3 Contemporary Ethics

Contemporary ethical theories and

approaches developed mainly in the

western world from early 20th century on

These new approaches to ethical thinking

and theorizing mirror changes in how people

think about societies and their relations with

cultural/intellectual achievements, such as

philosophical thinking…..

Since scientists and philosophers started

criticizing modernist views on knowledge,

scientific, universal truths, and human

progress based on reason, the path was

open to alternative ways of thinking about

ethics…

Traditional ethics have been considered:

� Too abstract, objective and impersonal

� Too rational

� Too reductionist

� Too imperialist

ContemporaryEthical Theories

EthicalRelativism

PostmodernEthics

AnalyticalEthics

Others

…

Ethical Relativism

“The theory according to which right and wrong are

determined by what one’s society says is right and

wrong. (…)

For the ethical relativist there is no absolute ethical

standard independent of cultural context, no

criterion of right and wrong by which to judge other

than that of particular societies. In short, what

morality requires is relative to society.” (Shaw, 2011)

“Ethical relativism is the theory that holds that morality is

relative to the norms of one's culture. That is, whether an

action is right or wrong depends on the moral norms of the

society in which it is practiced. The same action may be

morally right in one society but be morally wrong in another.

(…) The only moral standards against which a society's

practices can be judged are its own. If ethical relativism is

correct, there can be no common framework for resolving

moral disputes or for reaching agreement on ethical matters

among members of different societies.”

http://www.scu.edu/ethics/practicing/decision/ethicalrelativism.html

Some problems with ethical relativism:

� It undermines any moral criticism of the practices of

other societies as long as their actions conform to their

own standards;

� There is no such thing as ethical progress: although

moralities can change, they cannot get better or worse;

� It makes no sense for people to criticize principles or

practices accepted by their own society; whatever a

society takes to be right really is right for it; reformers or

minorities can never be right in moral matters

(Shaw, 2011)

Postmodern Ethics

“Postmodern ethics is an approach that locates

morality beyond the sphere of rationality in an

emotional ‘moral impulse’ towards others. It

encourages individual actors to question everyday

practices and rules, and to listen to and follow their

emotions, inner convictions, and ‘gut feelings’ about

what they think is right and wrong in a particular

situation”. (Crane & Matten, 2010)

Postmodern ethics emphasize the following in terms

of ethical reasoning and analysis:

� Holistic approach: in ethical judgement and decision making,

there is no separation between private and professional

realms

� Examples rather than principles: ethical reasoning is not

embodied in rules and principles but in people’s experiences,

narratives and inner convictions

� Think local, act local: ethics is about local rules applicable to

single issues and contexts

� Preliminary character: since ethical decisions go far beyond

rationality, ethical reasoning is a constant learning process

Analytical Ethics

“Analytical approaches to ethics have

concentrated on meta-ethics. They tend (…)

not to answer moral questions or to address

substantive moral problems directly but

rather to be concerned with the status of

ethical judgements and the character of

moral reasoning.”

http://www.tlrp.org/capacity/rm/wt/standish/s3_ethics.html

“A term for any analysis of moral concepts, but as a

distinct approach it starts with G. E. Moore 's

Principia Ethica (1913). It claims that the

fundamental task of ethics is not to discuss

substantive moral questions and to seek solutions

for them, but rather to examine the meaning of

moral terms such as “good”, “ duty”, “right”, “ought ”

and to make them as clear and precise as possible.”

http://www.blackwellreference.com/public/tocnode?id=g9781405106795_chunk_g9781

4051067952_ss1-116

“It then evolved into the linguistic analysis of moral

judgments, their types and their functions. This

development was represented by Ayer 's account of

morality, Stevenson 's emotivism , and Hare 's

prescriptivism…”

“Another dimension of analytic ethics is to examine moral

reasoning and the basis for distinguishing moral

judgments from other value judgments. This is

represented especially in the work of Stephen Toulmin.

Analytic ethics can be viewed as synonymous with meta-

ethics . In the 1960s, as the distinction between meta-

ethics and normative ethics came into question, analytic

ethics as a distinctive approach also lost favor. Many

moral philosophers now believe that ethics should

investigate both moral terms and moral questions.”

Others…

� Feminist ethics (Maier, 1997, Borgerson, 2007)

� Ethics of discourse (Habermas, 1990)

� Contemporary virtue ethics (MacIntyre, 1984)

Further Readings

Blackburn, S. (2009). Ethics: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford University Press

Blackburn, S. (2003). Being Good: A Short Introduction to Ethics, Oxford University

Press

Borgerson, J. L. (2007). On the Harmony of Feminist Ethics and Business Ethics,

Business and Society Review , 112(4), 477–509

Copp, D. (ed.) (2006). The Oxford Handbook of Ethical Theory, Oxford University

Press

David Gottlieb, P. (2009). The Virtue of Aristotle's Ethics, Cambridge UP

Hare, R. (1952). The Language of Morals, Oxford

Maier, M. (1997). Gender Equity, Organizational Transformation and Challenger,

Journal of Business Ethics, 16(9), 943-962

Russell, D.C. (ed.) (2013). The Cambridge Companion to Virtue Ethics , Cambridge

University Press

Singer, P. (1979). Practical Ethics, Cambridge

Spiritual

Business ethics ethical theory