Theories, Practices, and Ethics of Leadership - Assignment Example

Theories, Practices, and Ethics of Leadership 1. Evil is behavior that is morally objectionable or disagreeable. This morally objectionable behavior may cause the erosion of values and morals in a given society. Evil can also be defined as one which can cause or causes destruction, harm or even misfortune. This kind of evil may make people to disregard societal ethics, morals and values as they look for ways to destroy, harm and cause misfortune to others. Evil may also be described as one that causes suffering and insecurity. This kind of evil may cause people in society to despair and lose hope and meaning in the things that make life worth living: values, ethics and morals (Northouse, 2007). 2. Some of the behavioral patterns, characteristics and shadows which fuel evil include our own individual insecurities. These insecurities are normally caused by our ignorance of our cultures and the cultures of other people. These insecurities may also be due to lifestyles, whereby people engage in evil activities in order to live in a certain way. The human need for respect and recognition may also push some people to be insecure and thus engage in evil activities to satisfy these needs. Insecurities may also be caused by low esteem. Some people normally do evil things in order to feel satisfied and boost their self esteem. The need for power and strength also fuels evil. This may come in the form of oppression and suppression on the basis of race, religion, financial power, political affiliation, gender and job opportunities. For example, one might result to oppression of a minority race in order to strengthen himself politically or financially. Acts of deceit and defensiveness may also fuel evil. The evil that may stem from deceit or defensiveness includes refusal to listen to feedback or other people’s views, anger, pessimism and blaming others for things they are not responsible for (Baumeister, 2001). 3. a) Dreadful pleasure: this is when someone knowingly and enjoyably inflicts pain or suffering on another person in order to hide one’s fear. For example, one might have a fear of being vulnerable, so he does things to make other people live in fear. b) Deception: this is when one becomes absorbed with himself and makes himself look like he is without any faults. These self-righteous people are very conscious of their personal appearances, and will attack anyone who discovers their dark side. For example, one might pretend to be God-fearing and holy, but deep inside he is not as righteous as he wants to look. He may pretend to do good things when in the company of other people, but turn to evil deeds when no one is watching. c) Bureaucracy: Many evil things are disguised in bureaucracy. For instance, violence and wars may arise as a result of bureaucratic tendencies in leadership. Technology that was essentially meant for good and noble purposes may be turned to do evil. Some generals in the army may use their bureaucratic powers to attack their so-called enemies using nuclear weapons. Bureaucracy gives rise to administrative evil. For example, a president may use his position to carry out heinous activities such as fraud, corruption, genocide, wrongful imprisonment and oppression, all in the name of leadership d) Sanctioned destruction: sanctioned destruction is when one gives permission in the form of overt or disguised sanctions for an individual or a group of individuals he despises to be attacked. A good example of this form of evil is when a radical Islamist gives orders for other people to be bombed (Northouse, 2007). e) Choice: on makes his own choice to be either good or evil. This choice is normally dependent on an individual’s end game or goal. One has the power and ability to choose to do evil. For instance, when a person is filled with hatred for others, the decisions he makes will culminate in a final decision to cause harm to those people (Kanungo and Mendonca, 1996). 4. a) Dialogue is one of the ways through which the cycle of evil can be broken. For instance, the leaders of Southern Sudan and Northern Sudan decided to dialogue to put to an end years of bloodshed caused by hatred between residents of the two regions. Embracing forgiveness is also a way of curtailing the cycle of evil. For instance, Egypt and Israel were always in disagreement which led to many years of war until leaders of the two countries decided to put the past behind them and forgive each other. b) Understanding the needs of others is also a way of stopping the cycle of evil. For example, a serial killer who may be killing for the sake of pleasure might realize that other people value their lives and so he decides to stop killing (Neiman, 2004). 5. They are humble. By being humble the leaders are able to make good and sound judgments at all times, thereby deterring any evil. They give accolades and recognition or praise when and where it is due. By showing recognition to those who deserve it, the leaders remove any form of hatred that may give rise to evil deeds in society. They also practice collective success practices. This means that their leadership style seeks to bring good to the society, thus helping deter evil. These leaders practice virtue ethics. Virtue ethics help deter evil since the leaders themselves follow morally upright lives and they make morally good decisions and choices. Such leaders also are strong but not combative. This means that they show courageous leadership by their wisdom, but they steer clear of violence as a means of showing their power. This deters evil by creating a conducive environment for everyone to live in, no one feels victimized or discriminated against (Northouse, 2007). 6. Virtue ethics are those that are characterized by high moral characters and equally high moral choices (Adams, 2009). 7. a) Moral sensitivity: this demands that the individual identifies what the ethical problem is and then goes on to acknowledge that it does exist b) Moral judgment or reasoning: this involves deciding on the right course of action and alternatives that might help solve the current problem c) Moral motivation: must have the courage and drive to do what is morally right and not succumb to evil temptations d) Moral action: must have the willpower to act and act in the right way without giving up or yielding to evil intentions (Johnson, 2009). 8. Hardship serves to weaken the power of evil. Hardships help in the preparation for evil as it tests an individual’s strength to deal with unexpected or potential loss or difficulties. By going through hardships, one is able to do self-examination which is necessary for making the right decisions (Baumeister, 2001). 9. When people regard their culture as being more important than other, it may erode morals, ethics and values since no one will respect or even understand the other person’s culture. Prejudice inhibits healthy social interactions, and this may give rise to activities that are not morally or ethically right (Baumeister, 2001). 10. The globe research program was attempting to identify different cultural dimensions around the world. The research was carried out to find out how differences in leadership approaches are as a result of cultural differences. The other objective of the project was to find out how different cultures view others’ leadership behavior (Kanungo and Mendonca, 1996). 11. a) Non-cooperative: a non-cooperative leader is one who does not like listening to other ideas or feedback. This may bring about evil activities in society as some people might try to rebel using unconventional means (Baumeister, 2001). b) Dictatorial: a dictatorial leader will try to oppress people through any means he gets. This may lead to acts of violence which may cause further suffering to society (Johnson, 2009). 12. Forgiveness is letting go of past misdeeds and living in a friendly manner with one’s former enemies. Forgiveness breaks the cycle of evil by removing the reasons why people had to act in an evil manner. Many are hesitant to embrace forgiveness because of lack of trust and because they might loose the power they had over their enemies (Adams, 2009). 13. a) Utilitarianism: this school of thought advocates for the practice of doing the greatest good that will benefit the greatest number of people. In other words, the benefits of the best decisions made far out way their disadvantages. For a society, utilitarianism enables the majority to benefit fully from the opportunities they get. For example, free medical care in a country will help cure many diseases, but there are a few who will have to pay for it. b) Kent’s categorical imperative: advocates for the idea that choices should be made based on consciences, or what is accepted as the universal truth. Since evil has no conscience, then it has no room in Kent’s categorical imperative. This imperative categorically indicates that anything not ethical is e\wrong. For instance, a person will not steal or kill because he knows in his conscious that it is wrong to do so. c) John Rawl’s justice and fairness concept: this concept advocates for the use of equal justice for all. This is to say that all people have equal rights. A just society will ensure that morality, values and ethics prevail at all times. For instance, some people will not be taxed more as others escape the taxes. d) Communitarian: this concepts shifts from focusing on the individual and focuses on the community. Communitarian concept seeks to attain a common good. This is useful in society as it minimizes the occurrences of selfish and other evil tendencies. For example, inmost democracies, all citizens are obligated to undertake civil responsibilities for the good of their respective countries. e) Altruism: this concept champions for a universal value or moral standard for all cultures. It encourages people to have compassion for others, therefore deterring any evil thoughts. For example, when everyone cares about what his neighbor is going through, there will be very little suffering in the world. Some developed countries practice altruism by offering financial and material aid to poor countries, thus lessening the hardships that people in these countries have to go through. f) Ethical Pluralism: this concept requires one to apply multiple aspects of ethics and morals in his day to day activities. This is important in society as everyone will be trying to live in a morally upright manner, thus driving away evil. For example, social workers have to practice communitarian and altruism in order to achieve common good for people from different cultures. They also have to avoid ethnocentrism for them to understand how best to help members of society (Kanungo and Mendonca, 1996). References Adams G.B. (2009). Unmasking administrative evil. New York: M.E. Sharpe Kanungo, R.N and Mendonca, M. (1996). Ethical dimensions of leadership. London: Sage Publications Baumeister, R.F. (2001). Evil: Inside human violence and cruelrty. Boston, MA: W.H Freeman Publishers Neiman, S. (2004). Evil in modern thought: An alternative history of philosophy. New York: Princeton University Press. Northouse, P. G. (2007). Leadership, Theory And Practice, 5th ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. Johnson, C. E. (2009). Meeting the Ethical Challenges of Leadership, 3rd ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. Read More