Personal Ethics Development - Research Paper Example

Personal Ethics Development Personal Ethics are the morals, as they represent behavioral expectations of any responsible individual. These are the main beliefs parents try to instill in children, and what society expects of one another without needing to communicate the expectation in any way. In other words, these behaviors are learned through the teachings of our parents, teachers, spiritual leaders, and/or friends. Ethics determine how a person responds to any situation. A person with ethics is a person that makes the right decision for the right reason. Parents, religious leader, educators, peers and experiences contribute to the development of personal ethics in any individual. Often parental teaching is substantiated with religious teachings. Catalano (2006) discusses eight concepts involved in ethics. These principles are the basis of most ethical dilemmas. The principles are: * Autonomy, * Justice, * Fidelity, * Beneficence, * Non-malfeasance * Standard of best interest * Obligations. Each principle is important in preventing and resolving ethical problems. These values and beliefs are not usually considered legally binding, but characterize someone as "a good person." A "good person" uses the standards listed above to make decisions regarding voting practices, business and professional practices, and personal social practices. Although, in most cases, there isn't a legal consequence for behaving unethically; there can be consequences socially. (Catalano, 2006, 15) Ground rules of my personal ethics The ground rules of my personal ethics are like many others in this world. You do not lie, cheat, or steal. These are the building blocks of any ethic or value system but life does not deal with absolutes. There will always be exceptions to the rules thus values will constantly evolve. I believe the ground rules of ethics are the moral principles and values that are set or established by our society as a whole. Here within this valley of ethical ambiguity lay the true makings of personal ethics. Personal ethics are also known as values. They represent what an individual anticipate about something from anything present in his surrounding. Personal Ethics Development is something that was tried by our parents on us and we try to infuse it in our generations. Like any other thing there are some rules of my Personal Ethics too. Those are as follows Thinking about others’ well-being To give respect to others’ independence and space Credibility & sincerity To give respect to the law Fundamental impartiality; being justified Discourage others from taking undue advantage of others Generosity: to perform good To protect others from harm I try not to judge anyone for their choices or actions. I believe in attempting to understand and accept rather than obliterating the possibility of developing any type of relationship. I do have a keen sense of what is right and wrong however, I know how it feels to be condemned for simply having different morals. I will verbalize my opinion if asked or confronted on a personal level because I will not push my morals upon others. I will not expect them to automatically change their beliefs by a monologue. I believe everyone has their own path to follow and no one has the right to treat someone with disrespect for them. The most influential source that developed my personal values was my parents. My mother’s value system is very similar to my own however; my father’s is very rigid. My father is a very strict man and ruled with a tyrannical fist. He has never uttered a word of an apology for anything he has ever done and doubtful if he ever will. I know now as an adult that the strict upbringing that my sister and I received is called psychological and physical abuse. My father didn’t drink alcohol or take drugs; he was violent and tended to have a temper. His violent outbursts were the same intensity whether I didn’t do the dishes correctly or if I didn’t come home until 4 a.m. There was no gray in the scale in his ethics or his temper. There is a myriad of dysfunction in my childhood but I have harnessed negativity and modeled my own ethic system by knowing how not to behave. Relationships are founded on trustworthiness and dependability. Integrity is a significant characteristic to possess in society. Without these characteristics, people generally have difficulty in relationships, both personally and professionally because others expect everyone to conform to conventional behaviors. A good example of this is the request for references for a job interview. (Nelson, K., & Trevino, 2004, 4) Religion is a powerful motivating force. The first step is to teach a person what is expected behavioral standards. This may involve helping the child memorize the Ten Commandments or other scriptures that illustrate moral behavior (flash.net, 2005). Examples in literature similar to The Holy Bible provide parents and teachers a basic pattern of acceptable behavior standards. The Ten Commandments are the rules set by God from which we can develop general principles of behavior and ethical standards. These principles help us understand the characteristics of right, moral behavior (flash.net, 2005). Various incidents or stories of the people discussed in The Holy Bible can be used to illustrate the appropriate behavior or the consequences of inappropriate conduct. According to Christian and like faiths it is wrong to violate the guidelines of The Ten Commandments. Many people equate values and religious beliefs with ethical behavior. A person can have very high values, honesty, loving, and giving with no having any spiritual beliefs in God or deliverance at all. As people go through life, they have different experiences that may affect values in a positive or negative manner. A person that is taught to believe that God can heal all sickness if they pray, may loose faith if the prayer isn't answered. The converse is true if the person is cured of the illness. The person then believes that the power of prayer is worth continuing throughout life. God becomes a central part of the development of the permanent values of the person's belief system. References Catalano, G.D. (2006) ‘Peace, Justice, and the Earth’. Pg. 10-25. Nelson, K., & Trevino, L. (2007). ‘Managing Ethics’: Straight talk about how to do it right (3rd Ed.). New York: Wiley, pg 1-5. Website: The W. Maurice Young Centre for Applied Ethics, University of British Columbia www.ethics.ubc.ca Web site: The Johns Hopkins University Ethics Board http://www.jhu.edu/ethics/ Read More