A Framework for Thinking Ethically - Essay Example

As ethics cannot be defined on the basis of feelings, science, cultural norms and laws it is difficult to identify the ethical standards. Experts have recommended five sources that are likely to help in developing ethical standards. The first one is the Utilitarian approach in which ethical action is expected to produce ‘the least harm’ or ‘the best. The second approach which is ‘the rights approach’, an action that respects and best protects the moral rights of all those who are involved, is ethical. In the justice approach, all individuals are treated equally by an ethical action. The common good approach says that ethical reasoning is based on the interlocking relationships that exist in society. The fifth approach i.e. the virtue approach suggests that ethical actions should be consistent with specific ideal virtues which help the process of development of humanity. One may find it difficult to identify the ethical standards even after using all these approaches together (Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, Santa Clara University).

Ethical decision making requires enough sensitivity to various ethical issues as well as a method that is already practised for exploring different ethical aspects. A framework is developed for making ethical decisions. According to this framework, the ethical decision can be made by following few steps. The first of these is to identify the ethical issue which is followed by the collection of facts regarding the issue. Once this is done, alternative actions are needed to be evaluated by asking few questions that would be based on the five approaches that are already discussed. Finally, a decision can be made and tested. Based on its outcome, further modifications can be made to make it more ethical (Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, Santa Clara University).