INTRODUCTION

ETHICS – deals with the principles of ethical behavior in modern society at the level of a person, society and in interaction
with the environment and other shared resources.

IMPORTANCE OF ETHICS

1. Empowers professionals to foster moral values through their work.

a. To develop mental judgment
b. To understand the world
c. For the student to have a proper sound judgment
2. Give a sense of justification in one’s judgment.
3. Helps ensured that decisions at work are based on purely subjective factors.

IMPOTANT RULES TO SOCIAL BEING

1. Human lives in a community of people.

2. Human have to work together to survive.
3. Human is effective if there is a system.
4. Guide human activities.

CONSEQUENCES OF A LIE

1. No one will believe in you once you tell the truth.

2. Liar will always tell a lie to cover his/her past lie.
3. Liar cannot immediately change himself/herself because its already a habit.

LESSON 1: WHY DO YOU NEED TO STUDY ETHICS AND THE IMPORTANCE OF RULES
MORAL EXPERIENCE – is any encounter wherein a person understands that the values he or she believes to be important
are either realized or thwarted. This concept of moral experience, however, asserts that the encounter is not limited to
situations fraught with ethical questions, but the moral experience happens even in mundane everyday settings wherein
you take action based on your moral standards.

AIM FOR STUDYING ETHICS

Understanding your moral compass in order to develop better judgment.

END GOAL FOR STUDYING ETHICS

For the students to become a person who makes sound judgments, sensitive to the common good.

RULE – a statement that tells you what is or is not allowed in a particular situation.

LESSON 2: MORAL VS. NON-MORAL STANDARDS

MORAL STANDARDS – is a code of what is right or wrong without reference to specific behaviors or beliefs. Moral
standards deal with matters that the person thinks have serious consequence.

CHARACTERISTICS OF MORAL STANDARDS

1. Moral standards involve behaviors that seriously affect other people’s well-being – it can either profoundly
injure or benefit a person or persons. For example, lying, stealing, and killing are actions that hurt people. While
treating people with respect and kindness uplifts them.
2. Moral standards take a more important consideration that other standards, including self-interest – for
example, because trust is important to you than revenge to expose your friend’s terrible secret even though she
offended you.
 3. Moral standards do not depend on any external authority but in how the person perceives the reasonableness
of the action – for example, you will not copy your classmate’s answers during the exam not because your teacher
will fail you if you do, but because you personally believe cheating is wrong and demeaning to you as student.
4. Moral standards are believed to be universal – thus, when you truly believe an act is wrong you also will not
agree or consent when other people commit what you consider a wrongful act. On the other hand, if you believe
an action is morally right, then you will support other people doing such acts.
5. Moral standards are based on objectivity – this means what you consider as right of wrong does not depend on
whether the action advances the interest of a particular person or group, but your action depends on a universal
standpoint where everyone’s interest is counted as equal.
6. Moral standards are associated with vocabulary that depicts emotion or feelings – for example, when you go
against your moral standards you will say you feel guilty, remorseful, or ashamed.

NON-MORAL STANDARDS – can be considered as relative standards by which something or someone is judged as either
good or bad. The rules of non-moral standards vary because these rules depend on the guidelines agreed by a particular
group.

OTHER RULES IN LIFE

1. Etiquette – is a set of rules on how an individual should responsibly behave in the society.
2. Policy – is a clear, simple statement of how an organization plans to handle its services, actions, or business.
3. Law – is a rule created and enforced by the government and its agencies to maintain order, resolve disputes, and
protect a person’s liberty and rights.
4. Commandment – is a rule that is to be strictly observed because it was said to be set by a divine entity, such as
those in the Ten Commandments.

LESSON 3: MORAL DILEMMA

DILEMMA – is a situation in which a difficult choice has to be made between two or more alternatives, especially equally
undesirable ones.

A MORAL DILEMMA IS A SITUATION WHERE:

1. There are two or more actions that you can possibly do.
2. There is a moral reason(s) for doing such actions.
3. You cannot do all the possible actions presented to you. You only need to choose one.

THREE LEVELS OF MORAL DILEMMA

1. Personal Moral Dilemma – is when your decision in a situation where there is moral conflict is the cause of either
your own; that of another person; or a group of people’s potential harm.
2. Organizational Dilemma – is when a member or members of the organization is in a situation where there is a
moral conflict, and the decision will potentially harm either some members of the group or the entire organization.
3. Structural Moral Dilemma – is when a person or group of persons who holds high-level positions in the society
faces a morally conflicting situation wherein the entire social system is affected.

LESSON 4: FREEDOM
St. Thomas Aquinas – “The fundamental difference between animal ethics and human ethics is that animals behave
instinctively while human behavior is rational.”

INSTINCTIVE BEHAVIOR – is a hard-wired, inborn, characteristic response to specific environmental stimuli; an example is
the altruistic behavior of social animal.

RECIPROCAL ALTRUISM – where the animal will provide for another animal’s need because it expects the similar act in a
similar manner at a later time.
RATIONAL BEHAVIOR – is a decision-making process where the person acts in ways that best achieve his or her needs in
accordance with his or her set preferences, priorities, and principles. Rational Behavior is tied to moral standards.

THE FOUNDATION OF MORALITY

C.S. Lewis – “Though each ship must sail well on its own, each must also coordinate with the other ships at all times to
stay in formation and avoid collisions.”

WHY IS FREEDOM CRUCIAL IN YOUR ABILITY TO MAKE MORAL DECISIONS?

Personal aspect of morality – is about developing virtue so that thinking morally, performing moral acts, and choosing to
do what is good becomes a habit.

Virtue – is your thought or behavior guided by, and displays, high moral standards. Virtues are habits developed through
learning and practice.

Freedom – is the foundation of moral acts.

THE HUMAN PERSON AS A FREE BEING

Human Being – is more that its biological components. Human being is a person endowed with characteristics that are
material, spiritual, rational, and free.

Human Person – is a being with inborn properties that he or she uses to direct his or her own development toward self-
fulfillment.

PHILOSOPHICAL INSIGHT ON FREEDOM

1. Freedom is a Gift – (Gabriel Marcel) freedom is the ability to act significantly. Freedom is the ability to make
significant choices and, it is a gift given to us by God.
2. Freedom is Complementary to Reason – Aristotle considered freedom and reason as necessary faculties for
consciously making sense of things.
3. Freedom is Absolute – the human person is “absolutely free”. Animal also have a notion of freedom. When they
are caged, animals will try to escape from their cages. this kind of freedom is called freedom from restrictions. It
is a primitive kind of freedom. It is freedom for mere survival.
4. Freedom Demands Responsibility – Jean-Paul Sartre said “you are free” because he believed a person always has
a choice. Even though individuals must make their own choices because they are free, these choices (though freely
made) also have consequences to it. These consequences to freedom are something that the person must endure.
Responsibility follows freedom. Lao Tzu advocated that a person can and should choose to act, but his or her
actions should be that which would result in harmony. The exercise of one’s freedom is not absolute. The person
is free to do anything: but it is not without consequence of one’s actions. Responsibility, as a moral quality serves
as a voluntary check and balance of one’s freedom.

CHAPTER 1: THE MORAL AGENT

LESSON 1: HOW CULTURE SHAPES HUMAN BEHAVIOR
CULTURE – is a complex phenomenon. It contains nearly all aspects of shared human experiences.

Emile Durkheim (Father of Sociology)

“Culture has the power over individuals to create beliefs such as belief in God. He added that with more people holding
to same beliefs, social order is also strengthened.”

Edward Tylor (Father of Cultural Anthropology)

“Culture is the way of life of a group of people that “includes their knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, customs and any
other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society.”

Karl Marx (Father of Communism)

“Culture served to justify inequality because the ruling class determines what is right and wrong while the rest merely
follow.

ELEMENTS OF CULTURE

1. Symbol – can be anything that a group of people find meaningful.

2. Language – is a complex symbol that enabled human beings to communicate either verbally or writing.
3. Beliefs – are assumptions or convictions held to be true by an individual or a group of people.
4. Values – are culturally acceptable standards of behavior. It is what a person considers important or beneficial in
life.
5. Norms – is an informal guideline by a particular group of people or social unit about what is considered normal or
correct/incorrect social behavior.

3 CRITICAL ELEMENTS THAT JOINTLY INFLUENCE THE HUMAN PERSON’S MORAL DEVELOPMENT

1. Native Traits – what we might call genetic characteristics

2. Early Childhood Experience
3. Environmental/Cultural Surroundings – Plato implied that if a person’s cultural surroundings reward conformity
to agreeable norms it would lead the person to behave much better and quell undesirable conduct. Plato insisted
that a child’s cultural surrounding should “express the image of a noble character”; that role models should display
the conduct of a proper human being because the behavior of the adults serves as the child’s moral foundation
as he or she grows and develops.

LESSON 2: CULTURAL RELATIVISM

CULTURAL RELATIVISM explains why one behavior or practice is completely acceptable by a particular group of people,
while it is taboo in another. It refers to the idea that values, knowledge, and behavior of people must be understood within
its own cultural context, and not by the standards of other cultures. Hence, all moral and ethical standards (or the
judgment of what is right or wrong) is valid and there is not “one” standard that is “better” among all others.

Philosopher and university professor Dr. James Rachels (1941-2003), in his book The Elements of Moral Philosophy, laid
out five claims of cultural relativists as to why right or wrong is only a matter of cultural standards. These claims are:

1. Different societies have different moral codes.

2. The moral code of a society determines what is right or wrong. There is no objective standard considered better
that others.
3. There are no universal moral truths.
4. The moral code of a particular society has no special status. It is but one among many.
5. It is arrogant for one culture to judge another culture. There should be tolerance among cultures.

The ADVANTAGES of Cultural Relativism

1. It warns us from assuming that our preferences are the absolute rational standard.
2. It teaches us to keep an open mind and to be more amenable in discovering the truth.

The DANGERS of Cultural Relativism

1. We cannot call out societal practices that promote harm.

2. We cannot justifiably criticize our own culture’s harmful practices.
3. The idea of social progress becomes doubtful.
LESSON 3: UNIVERSAL VALUES
3 UNIVERSAL VALUES SHARED BY ALL CULTURES

1. Caring for the young

2. Murder is wrong
3. Tell the truth

LESSON 4: THE FILIPINO WAY

10 FACTORS OF FILIPINO CHARACTER by former Chairperson of CHED Dr. Patricia B. Licuanan

1. The Home Environment – Filipino children are taught to value family and give it primary importance.
2. The Social Environment – The Filipino social environment is characterized by depending on one another to
survive. This dependence on relationships and the struggle for survival make Filipinos group oriented.
3. Culture and Language – depict openness to foreign elements with no basic consciousness of our cultural core. The
Filipino colonial mentality such as the importance of the English language in our educational system, the wider
following of Hollywood movies, foreign soap operas/TV shows, and foreign songs/singers over Filipino movies,
shows, and music is a manifestation of our attachment to foreign elements.
4. History – is regarded as the culprit behind our colonial mentality. Unfortunately, most Filipino elite are of no help
in setting an example of overcoming colonial mentality because they are even more westernized in their ways.
Present day media on the other hand reinforced these colonial influences.
5. The Educational System – is also instrumental in molding the strengths and weaknesses of the Filipino character.
Schools are highly authoritarian. Early on, children learn that well-behaved and obedient students are praised and
rewarded. This teaches passivity and conformity.
6. Religion – taught us optimism and resilience. However, it also instilled in us a fatalistic attitude. Since religious
communities are also highly authoritarian, this further reinforced our being passive and a conformist.
7. Economic Environment – the hard life drove Filipinos to work hard and take risks, such as leaving our families to
work abroad. This further developed our ability to survive.
8. The Political Environment – and government structures and systems are fraught with problems. For instance, the
fact that political power is mainly in the hands of the elite and the absence of a strong government presence
enhance the Filipino’s already extreme family centeredness. The economic and political environments are among
the elements that developed the culture of corruption in the Philippines.
9. Mass Media – reinforce our colonial mentality? What did you notice with the ads, the music, movies, fashion, etc.
shown on TV, aired over the radio, printed in the newspapers/magazines, or went viral online? These were greatly
based on American pop culture. The emphasis on the superiority of an imported brand of product through mass
media is, in fact, part of a Filipino’s daily life.
10. Leadership and Role Models – any person with authority is looked up to. Thus, when our leaders violate the law
and when there is lack of accountability for leaders who break the law, the Filipino mindset is hugely affected in
a negative way.

STRENGTHS OF THE FILIPINO CHARACTER

1. Pakikipagkapwa-Tao – is demonstrated in the Filipino’s openness, helpfulness, and generosity; in the practice of
bayanihan or mutual assistance; and the famous Filipino hospitality.
2. Family Orientation – Filipinos also possess a genuine love for family. This love is not just for one’s spouse and
children but also to parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins (even very distant ones), and even to ceremonial
relatives. This love is shown through giving honor and respect to parents and elders, care for the children,
 generosity towards kin, and the personal sacrifices that a Filipino endures for the welfare of the family. This strong
family orientation gave Filipinos a sense of belonging and security.
3. Joy and Humor – Filipinos are also cheerful and fun loving. Our various fiestas and social gathering demonstrate
the Filipino joy and humor. We can laugh at those we love and hate, and can make jokes about our good or bad
fortune. Even in the most trying times, Filipinos will always find a reason to smile or laugh. This pleasant disposition
contributed to our ability to overcome life’s challenge.
4. Flexibility, Adaptability and Creativity – Filipinos are also tremendous in adjusting and adapting to any
circumstances. We can improvise and make use of whatever is at hand to create and produce. Our flexibility,
adaptability, and creativity are reasons why many Filipinos thrive in various parts of the world.
5. Hark Work and Industry – this trait is most noticeable in our willingness to take risks and work in other countries.
6. Faith and Religiosity – this can be related to our bahala na mindset. There is actually a positive side to this fatalistic
trait. For Filipinos the bahala na attitude could serve as a “kickstarter” or a “pampalakas loob” to move him or her
into action.
7. Ability to Survive – all these Filipino traits mentioned contribute to our ability to survive. The salawikain or proverb
“matutong mamaluktot habang maikli and kumot” aptly depicts our survival instinct. We can endure, make do,
and get by on so little while looking forward to the coming of better days. This trait is the reason why Filipinos
continue to carry on even through our harsh economic and social circumstances.

WEAKNESSES OF THE FILIPINO CHARACTER

1. Extreme Personalism – is another element that led to the prevalence of graft and corruption in the country.
2. Extreme Family-Centeredness – is manifested in our political system where political dynasties lord over our
elected government posts starting from the barangay level all the way up to the national positions.
3. Lack of Discipline – is characterized by our idiomatic expression “Ningas Cogon”. Projects start out with full
enthusiasm and interest, but no sooner was it started that enthusiasm and interest just as soon died down.
Another related characteristic is “Filipino Time”. Filipinos are known to be always late – we arrive late or we start
late.
4. Passivity and Lack of Initiative – Filipinos have very high respect for authority. Unfortunately, this also led to
general passivity and lacking initiative. For instance, there is strong reliance on leaders and government to solve
the nation’s problems but ordinarily Filipinos also do not feel the need to initiate or contribute to the solution.
5. Colonial Mentality – is connected to our general feelings of inferiority, where we think foreigners – especially
Westerners, are superior.
6. Kanya-Kanya Syndrome – is related to the Filipino traits of extreme personalism and extreme family-
centeredness. Personal and in-group interests are supreme and the drive to fulfill these interests in completely
insensitive to the common good. Kanya-Kanya Syndrome dampened our sense of community and cooperation –
and we trample on each other’s rights as a result. The expression crab mentality, where we tend to pull others
down to climb up, exemplify the kanya-kanya syndrome.
7. Lack of Self-Analysis and Self-Reflection – is the expression that Filipinos are “madaling makalimot” or have a
short memory. This means, as a nation, we easily forget the mistakes we made; hence we make the same mistakes
again. This is one reason why traditional politicians or “trapos” are always re-elected into office.

LESSON 5: HOW IS MORAL CHARACTER DEVELOPED

MORAL – is concerned with the principles of right and wrong behavior or the goodness and badness of the human
character.

CHARACTER – is defined as the mental and moral qualities distinct to an individual (Merriam-Webster). But in Philosophy,
it denotes to the moral dimension of a person.

MORAL CHARACTER – refers to the existence (or lack of) virtues such as integrity, courage, fortitude, honest, and loyalty.

MORAL CHARACTER AS DISPOSITION

Moral Characters – are those dispositions or the tendency to act or think in a particular way for which a person can be
held morally responsible. Thus, moral character traits are rational, informed, stable, and reliable dispositions.

CONFUCIAN TRADITIONS

Four Beginnings – were considered as seeds of human personality that will naturally unfold to become human activities.

Personality – “an achieved state of moral excellence” (Confucian). A given human condition (Western).

THE FOUR BEGINNINGS IN CONFUCIAN TRADITIONS ARE:

1. The heart of compassion, which leads to Jen. Jen – means goodwill, sympathy towards others, and
generosity.
2. The heart of righteousness, which leads to Yi. Yi – means righteousness and the respect of duty, that is
respect your position as guardian towards nature and humanity.
3. The heart of propriety, which leads to Li. Li – deals with outward behavior such as etiquette, customs,
and rituals.
4. The heart of wisdom, which leads to Zhi. Zhi – means wisdom, and this wisdom is a product of practicing
Jen, Yi, and Li in one’s life.

ARISTOTLE & VIRTUE ETHICS

VIRTUE ETHICS – is an approach that reduces the emphasis on rules, consequence, and particular acts. Instead, virtue
ethics focus on the quality of the person.

PROPER FUNCTIONING – where everything has a function and the thing that performs as intended is call good when it is
able to fulfill this function.

DOCTRINE OF THE GOLDEN MEAN – the principle of being virtuous. That moral behavior is the one that is in the middle
of two extreme behaviors (or what he called vices).

EXTREME BEHAVIOR – it meant the act was either excessive of deficient.

VIRTUOUS MAN – is the kind of man who is able to satisfy both inclinations and rational desires because his or her
inclinations and desires are aligned. Wants to do what is good and does it because he/she derives pleasure from choosing
and doing what is moral.

EUDAIMONIA – “happiness”, “well-being” or “good life” and that this is the goal of human life. Aristotle believed that to
achieve eudaimonia you need to practice the virtues in your everyday activity all through your life.

LESSON 6: STAGES OF MORAL DEVELOPMENT

LAWRENCE KOHLBERG – was 20th century developmental psychologist and moral philosopher.

KOLHBERG’S THEORY – holds that moral reasoning, which is the basis for ethical behavior, has identifiable developmental
stages and each become more adequate at responding to moral dilemmas as the person progresses from one stage to the
next.

LEVEL I: PRE-CONVENTIONAL MORALITY – (children) judgment at this level is solely focused on the self.

Stage 1: Punishment-Obedient Orientation – this is also called the ‘pre-moral’ stage where decisions and actions
are determined by immediate physical consequence and not the true moral value.

Stage 2: Reward Orientation – as children grow older, they begin to see that there is actually room for negotiation
because other people have their own goals to meet and wants must be satisfied too.
LEVEL II: CONVENTIONAL MORALITY (Tyranny of the They) – (adolescents & adults) is to reason in a conventional
(something that is generally accepted) manner. It is accepting the rules and standards of one’s group. This means decisions
and the morality of his/her actions are based on society’s views and expectations.

Stage 3: Good Boy/Good Girl Orientation – the child tries to seek approval from other people by living up to their
expectations. He/She also now understands the concept of loyalty, trust, and gratitude as well as become interested in
motives and intentions behind a particular decision or action.

Stage 4: Authority Orientation – individuals have reached adulthood and they usually consider society as a whole
when making judgments. The focus at this stage is following the rules, maintaining law and order, doing one’s duty, and
respecting authority.

LEVEL III: POST-CONVENTIONAL – (principled level) it is marked by a growing realization that people are unique and are
an independent part of the society. Therefore, the individual’s own perspective is more significant over what the rest of
the society thinks and that this would sometimes lead to disobeying the law to follow personal principles.

CHAPTER 2: THE ACT

LESSON 1: FEELINGS AS INSTINCTIVE AND TRAINED RESPONSE TO MORAL DILEMMAS
HUME AND THE PHILOSOPHY OF THE MIND

DAVID HUME (1711-1716) famously placed himself in opposition to most moral philosophers, ancient and modern, who
argued to regulate actions using reason and that reason has dominion over feelings or emotions.

HE IS BEST KNOWN IN ETHICS FOR ASSERTING 4 THESES:

1. Reason alone cannot be a motive to the will, but rather is the “slave of passion's”.

2. Moral distinctions are not derived from reason.

3. Moral distinctions are derived from the moral sentiments: feelings of approval (esteem, praise) and
disapproval (blame) felt by spectators who contemplate a character trait or action.

4. While some virtues and vices are natural, others (including justice) are artificial.

THEORY OF THE MIND – humans have what he called passions (which he used to describe emotions or feelings).

CLASSIFICATION OF PASSION

1. Direct – the direct passions are caused directly by the sensation of pain or pleasure; the passion that “arises
immediately from good or evil. From pain or pleasure” that we experience or expect to experience.
2. Indirect – passion are caused by the sensation from the pain or pleasure derived from some other idea or
impression. Other indirect passions are humility, ambition, vanity, love, hatred, envy, pity, malice, and
generosity.

SCHELER AND THE PHILOSOPHY OF FEELINGS

MAX FERDINAND SCHELER – was an important German Ethical philosopher distinguished for his contributions in
phenomenology, ethics, and philosophical anthropology. As a phenomenologist, Scheler sought to know what comprised
the structures of consciousness, including that of mental acts such as feeling, thinking, resolve, etc. – as well as the
inherent objects or correlates of these mental acts such as values, concepts, and plans.

STRATIFICATION MODEL OF EMOTIVE LIFE

1. Sensual Feelings – involve bodily pleasures or pain.

 2. Vital Feelings – are the life functions such as health, sickness, energy, fatigue, etc.

3. Psychic Feelings – are about aesthetics, justice, and knowledge

4. Spiritual Feelings – deal with the divine. Spiritual feelings are directed to a particular special object or a higher
being that he attributed to as the Divine. (the most important)

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN RENPONSES BASED ON REASON AND ON FEELINGS

DR. JAMES RACHEL'S – asserted that in moral reasoning, you could not rely on your feelings no matter how powerful
these feelings may be morally right supported by rational arguments.

AN ARGUMENT IS REASONABLE IF:

a) The facts are correct.

b) The moral principles are correctly applied.

c) Each individual’s well-being is treated equally important.

WHAT IS THE ROLE OF FEELINGS IN DECISION-MAKING

Moral Compasses are also powerfully influenced by feelings.

HUME claimed that in any given situation a person would act based on emotions rather than reason. Reasoning in moral
decisions is preceded by an initial intuition or gut-feel.

TWO ELEMENTS IN MORAL JUDGMENT (Alfred Jules Ayer 20th century philosopher)

1. Emotive – element in moral decisions meant expressing positive feelings towards a particular act.
2. Prescriptive – comes in such as saying, “Be kind to others. The prescriptive element , in a sense, is an
instruction or prescription of a particular behavior.

WHY FEELINGS CAN BE OBSTACLE TO MAKING THE RIGHT DECISIONS

THREE CENTRAL FEATURES

1. Its Non-Deliberate Nature

2. Its Partial Nature
3. It Is Capricious

The Non-Deliberate Nature of Feelings

Deliberate – means the act was intentional, planned, with conscious effort.

Non-Deliberate – is the contrary term that denotes spontaneous actions. It is doing something without thinking
through.

Non-Deliberate Nature of Feelings by Philosopher Aaron Been Zeev

1. Responsibility entails free choice; if we are not free to behave in a certain manner, then we
are not responsible for this behavior.
2. Free choice entails an intellectual deliberation in which alternatives are considered and the
best one is chosen.
3. Since intellectual deliberation is absent from emotions, we cannot be responsible for our
emotions.

The Partial Nature of Feelings

 The Law of Concern – where emotions give focus only on matters of personal interest.

Two Aspects in the Partial Nature of Emotions

1. Decisions based on feelings focus only on a narrow area.

2. It reflects personal and self-interest perspectives.

Emotions – influence our attention. Thus, it governs what attracts and hold attention. Emotions make us
preoccupied with specific matters and we become oblivious to everything else.

The Second Partial Nature of Emotions – is that it draws its perspective from personal interest. It addresses
subjective concerns and takes action primarily to satisfy such concerns.

The Capricious Nature of Feelings

The third problem with emotions is that it rises up for arbitrary reasons. Aspects or situations that have nothing
to do in moral situations could rile up your emotions, and this emotion will certainly influence your subsequent
moral judgment.

HOW EMOTIONS HELP IN MAKING THE RIGHT DECIONS

EMOTIONS are the foundation of all our cognitive and behavioral processes; and emotional responses often guide a
person in making beneficial choices without any conscious reasoning.

There are at least three ways that feelings, especially negative feelings, help in making the right decisions:

1. It signals the need to adjust behavior.

2. It can help us learn from our mistakes.

3. Emotional responses can be reshaped as time pass by.

COUNTERFACTUAL THINKING – is a psychological concept about the human tendency to create possible or alternative
scenarios other that what had actually happened.

LESSON 2: REASON AND IMPARTIALITY AS REQUIREMENTS FOR ETHICS

WHY SHOULD HUMAN BEINGS BE MORAL?

Here are some compelling reasons:

a. It is enlightened self-interest – “I will be better off”

b. It is the traditional law – “Because some authority says so”
c. It is responsibility – “It is expected of me”
d. It is what is fair and equitable – “It is about fairness and justice”; but most of all,
e. People have shared human needs, goals, desires, and/or objectives; and these are better met when people treat
each other in a manner that promotes what is right and good.

IS REASON A REQUIREMENT FOR MORALITY?

REASON – is the power of the mind to think, understand, and form judgments by a process of logic.

IMMANUEL KANT – argued that reason alone is the basis for morality, and once the person understood this basic
requirement for morality, he or she would see that acting morally is the same as acting rationally.

– morality alone shows that a person must decide what to do. You, as a person, are able to think and
reflect on different actions and then choose what action to take.
MORAL DECISION – means mere desires did not force you to act in a particular manner. You acted by the power of your
will.

IS IMPARTIALITY A REQUIREMENT FOR MORALITY?

IMPARTIALITY – it is a broad concept, but it is also identified as a core value in professional codes of ethics. Impartiality is
commonly understood as a principle of justice. It denotes that decisions should be “based on objective criteria rather than
on the basis of bias, prejudice, or preferring to benefit one person over another for improper reasons”.

JAMES RACHELS – an impartial choice involves basing your decision on how all the persons in the situation will be affected,
and not to the advantage of a particular party that you favor.

MORALITY (Rachels) – “at the very least is the effort to guide one’s action based on the most logical choice (reason) while
giving equal importance to the interests of each person affected by your decisions (impartiality)”.

ETHICAL DECISION-MAKING – requires interpretation of the situation, application of your values, and estimating the
consequences of your action.

THE 7 STEP MODEL FOR ETHICAL DECISION-MAKING

1. Gather the Facts – do not jump to conclusions. Ask questions (who, what, where, when, how, and why). There
may be instances when facts are hard to find or are not available because of the uncertainty that surround ethical
issues. Nevertheless, gather as many facts as you can. Clarify what assumptions you are making.
2. Identify the Stakeholders – identify all the persons involved and will be affected in an ethical situation. Who are
the primary stakeholders? Who are the secondary stakeholders? Why are they stakeholders in the issue? Get the
proper perspective. Try to see the situation through the eyes of the people affected.
3. Articulate the Dilemma – once you have gathered the facts and identified the stakeholders, it is important that
you express the ethical dilemma. What are the competing values? The purpose of articulating the dilemma is to
make sure that you understand the situation and the moral conflict you are facing. Awareness and comprehension
are important in making the right decision, especially when there are lives that will be affected.
4. List the Alternatives – think creatively about potential actions, as there may be choices you neglected. This will
help ensure that you have not been pushed back into a corner. For example, you may already have solution A and
solution B. Try to brainstorm and come up with solution C that might satisfy the interests of the primary parties
involved.
5. Compare the Alternatives with the Principle – in decision-making, specify the relevant values that you want to
uphold in making your decision. Then compare whether your alternative actions are in line with your values.
Identifying the values and comparing your action with these values are important because it will help identify if
your alternative action is illegal or unethical, thus making this action easy to discard.
6. Weigh the Consequences – when considering the effects of your actions, filter your choices to determine if your
options will violate ethical values. Determine how all the stakeholders will be affected by your decision.
7. Make a Decision – remember, deliberation cannot go on forever. You must avoid “paralysis by analysis” or the
state of over-analyzing (or overthinking) a situation so that a decision or action is never taken, in effect paralyzing
the outcome. There is no easy, painless decision to a moral dilemma. However, it is also important that the
decision you make reflects the value you want to uphold.

LESSON 3: MORAL COURAGE

MORAL COURAGE – is the courage to put your moral principles into action even though you may be in doubt, are afraid,
or face adverse consequences. Moral courage involves careful deliberation and mastery of the self. Moral courage is
essential not for only a virtuous life, but also a happy one because integrity is essential to self-esteem.
MARK JOHNSON – acting morally often requires more than just strength of character. It is important to have “an ability
to imaginatively discern various possibilities for acting within a given situation to envision the potential help and harm that
are likely to result from a given action”. This ability is called moral imagination.

MORAL IMAGINATION – is “ability in particular circumstances to discover and evaluate possibilities not merely determined
by that circumstance, or limited by its operative mental mode or merely framed by a set of rules or rule-governed concerns”.

WILL – is the mental capacity to act decisively on one’s desire. It is the faculty of the mind to initiate action after coming
to a resolution following careful deliberation. Within Ethics, will is an important topic along with reasion because of its
role in enabling a person to act deliberately.

WILL (Aristotle) – the soul in living creatures is distinguished by two functions, the judging capacity which is a function of
the intellect and of sensation combined, and the capacity for exciting movement in space.

WHY IS THE “WILL” AS IMPORTANT AS REASON?

Aristotle believed that “will” is the product of intellect and sensation; and that “will” gave the person the capacity for
“exciting movement in space”.

FOUR CARDINAL VIRTUES

1. Prudence – this virtue is an exercise of understanding that helps us know the best means in solving moral problems
in which we encounter in the concrete circumstance. Knowing the best means, and without acting carelessly
without thinking, will incline us to apply them immediately with certainty. It is like a one-step-backward-and-two-
steps-forward technique. If we encounter moral dilemma, we do not rush into conclusion without considering the
pros and cons of our act, and more so what is right and what is wrong. If we do so, then there is a big possibility
of committing an immoral act than moral one.
2. Justice – this habit is an exercise of the will to give or render the things, be it intellectual or material, to anyone
who owns it. If a thing belongs to you, then everyone should respect it and not own it, or if it belongs to someone,
then we must not treat it as ours.
3. Fortitude – this habit is an exercise of courage, to face any dangers one encounters without fear, especially when
life is at stake.
4. Temperance – this habit is an exercise of control in the midst if strong attraction to pleasures. The key word is
moderation. Getting indulged into strong pleasures has undesired consequences, either excess or disorder.
Becoming beautiful or handsome is not a bad idea, but if one is willing to spence thousands of pesos in order to
achieve it is already vanity.