Eulaine D.

Bartolata

BSSW II-B

Ethics

PREPARATION:

Dilemma is a situation where a person is forced to choose between two or more conflicting
options, neither of which is acceptable. Involves human actions which have moral implications,
they are called moral dilemmas.

1. What are Moral Dilemmas?

Moral Dilemma is a situation in which a person is torn between right and wrong. A moral
dilemma involves a conflict with the very core of a person’s principles and values. The choice
the person makes may leave them feeling burdened, guilty, relieved, or questioning their values.
A moral dilemma often forces the individual to decide which option he or she can live with, but
any outcomes are extremely unpleasant no matter what. Moral dilemmas are often used to help
people think through the reasoning for their beliefs, actions, and are common in psychology and
philosophy.

Three conditions that must be present in moral dilemmas:

1. The person or the agent of a moral action is obliged to make a decision about which course of
action is best.

2. There must be different courses of action to choose from.

3. No matter what course of action is taken, some moral principles are always compromised.

Types of Moral Dilemmas

 Epistemic moral dilemmas involve situations wherein two or more moral requirements
conflict with each other and that the moral agent hardly knows which of the conflicting
moral requirements takes precedence over the other. In other words, the moral agent here
does not know which option is morally right or wrong.
 Ontological moral dilemmas, on the other hand, involve situations wherein two or more
moral requirements conflict with each other, yet neither of these conflicting moral
requirements overrides each other. This is not to say that the moral agent does not know
which moral requirement is stronger than the other. The point is that neither of the moral
requirements is stronger than the other; hence, the moral agent can hardly choose
between the conflicting moral requirements.
 Self-imposed moral dilemma is caused by the moral agent’s wrongdoings.
  World-imposed moral dilemma means that certain events in the world place the agent in a
situation of moral conflict

 Obligation dilemmas are situations in which more than one feasible action is obligatory.

 Prohibition dilemmas involve cases in which all feasible actions are forbidden.

2. Provide 3-5 examples of Moral Dilemma

 You are an eyewitness to a crime: A man has robbed a bank, but instead of keeping the
money for himself, he donates it to a poor orphanage that can now afford to feed, clothe,
and care for its children. You know who committed the crime. If you go to the authorities
with the information, there's a good chance the money will be returned to the bank,
leaving a lot of kids in need. What do you do?
 You are an inmate in a concentration camp. A sadistic guard is about to hang your son
who tried to escape and wants you to pull the chair from underneath him. He says that if
you don’t have any doubt he will not only kill your son but some other innocent inmate
as well. You don’t have any doubt that he means what he says. What should you do?
 Lindsay is a deeply religious person; hence, she considers killing humans absolutely
wrong. Unfortunately, it is found out that Lindsay is having an ectopic pregnancy. As is
well-known an ectopic pregnancy is a type of pregnancy that occurs outside the uterus,
most commonly in the fallopian tubes. In other words, in a ectopic pregnancy, the fetus
does not develop in the uterus. Now, if this happens, the development of the fetus will
definitely endanger the mother. Thus if Lindsay continues with her pregnancy, then there
is a big possibility that she will die. According to experts, the best way to save Lindsay’s
life to abort the fetus, which necessarily implies killing the fetus. If we do not abort the
fetus, then Lindsay as well as the fetus will die. In this example of a moral dilemma,
Lindsay is faced with two conflicting options, namely, either she resorts to abortion
which will save her life but at the same time jeopardizes her moral integrity or does not
resort to abortion but in dangers her life as well as the fetus. Indeed, Lindsay faced
through the huge moral dilemma.
 You're involved in a two-car crash on your way to work one morning in which you
accidentally hit and kill a pedestrian. As you get out of the car, you are intercepted by a
tearful woman who seems to think that she hit and killed the pedestrian. You're not sure
why she thinks she hit the person, but she is convinced. There's only you, the woman, and
the person you hit on the road; there are no witnesses. You know that whoever is deemed
responsible will probably be sent to jail. What do you do?

Source:https://philonotes.com/index.php/2018/06/10/moral-
dilemmas/?fbclid=IwAR160g_xPaLWQ3HQTTaNgIPA-_wCfm0GjtGe-dzmlXOgk2s1nKjg6o4_FUk