2025 Norms
Ethics
SPC BSN Mr. Wendell Burgos
A norm is a rule, standard, or measure.
According to Richard Gula,
 A norm is something by which an act or
conduct is measured as good or bad, right or
wrong, moral or immoral
 A norm is the criteria of judgement about the
sorts of person we ought to be and the sorts
of person we ought to perform.
Norm/s of Morality
 The standards of right and wrong in human
actions
 Standards that indicate the rightfulness or
wrongfulness, the goodness or evilness, the
value or disvalue of human conduct
Types of Norms
1. Technical 3. Ethical
2. Aesthetics 4. Societal
Technical Norm
 Concerned with the techniques of how certain
things pertaining to survival, among others,
should be done or not done and because of
these, every community then prescribes
certain proper ways of working and doing
things
Aesthetic Norm
 Refers to the typical perceptual forms
regarding color, shape, space, movement,
sound, feeling and emotion, touch and texture,
taste, scent and odor which are considered by
the community as ‘ennobling’, ‘cathartic’,
‘heightening man’s existence’ or ‘beautiful
because they represent a certain free play
and celebration of human spirit
Ethical Norm
 Refers to some ideal vision of a human
person, an ideal stage or perfection of his/her
being, which serves as the ultimate goal and
norm
 “Non-negotiable”
 All other norms – technical, societal,
aesthetics – are to be subordinated to this
moral or ethical norm
Societal Norm
 Refers to the certain manners or ways of
behavior recommended or prescribed, for the
group cohesion and for strengthening the
bonds that keep the community together
(Etiquette, GMRC).
pg. 1: Transer I Rhenier G. Patriarca
First Semester
The Moral Dimension of Human Existence
 The experience of morality is part of every
person’s life
 “obligations”
 “perform or avoid certain actions”
Questions…
Does the whole human experience fall under the
ambit of morality?
Are all areas of human life covered by ethical
evaluation and judgement?
Are all human conduct and enterprise subject to moral
praise and condemnation?
Are there some aspects in human experience not
within the domain of ethics and morality?
Fr. Michael Moga, SJ
First Position
 A-Morality
 Morality is understood as occupying just one
area among the many diverse areas in human
life
Second Position
 All of the human life is under the domain of
morality
Third Position
 The Middle Ground
o Morality is not just limited to a few
select areas of man’s life but is found
in life where the focus of human
experience is a moral obligation of
value, when we are concentrating on
what should be done
o There are also other situations in life
when morality is more in the
background.
o While morality is not explicitly thought
about, it serves as a horizon or
context which gently and implicitly
guides us
o Human existence is too rich and
complex to confine ourselves to a
single or few dimensions only
Characteristics of Moral Principles
Reasonability
 Moral judgements must be backed up by good Values are enduring beliefs about what is good and
reasons or arguments desirable or not.

Impartiality Example: Helping the poor is good.

 Should be neutral when it comes to the
question as to who are recipients Characteristics of Moral Standards:

Prescriptivity 1. Deal with matters we think can seriously injure

 The practical, or action-guiding nature of
morality
 The commanding aspect of morality
Overridingness
 Moral standards must have hegemony
 This means that they should reign supreme
over all the other standards or norms of
valuation, whatever they may be
 Morality over legality; morality over
technicality; people over dogma
Autonomous from Arbitrary Authority
 Should stand on their own logic independent
of the arbitrariness of the majority
Publicity
 Moral rules and principles must be made
public if they are to serve as clear guidelines
to our actions
Practicability
 Should not be impossible to achieve or else
they are not for men but for angels
or benefit humans, animals, and the
environment
2. Not established or changed by the decisions
of authoritative individuals or bodies
3. Overriding, that is, they take precedence over
other standards and considerations, especially
of self-interest
4. Based on impartial considerations
5. Associated with special emotions and
vocabulary
Non-moral standards refer to standards by which we
judge what is good or bad and right or wrong in a non-
moral way.
 Non-moral standards are matters of taste or
preference
Examples: standards of etiquette, the law, standards
of aesthetics.
Moral Standard Non-moral Standard
Do not harm innocent Do not text while driving
people

Universalizability
 A moral rule or principle must be applicable to
everyone, without exception, provided, of
course, that all people are in a relevantly
similar situation or context

Moral standards are norms that individuals or

groups have about the kind of actions believed to be
morally right or wrong, as well as the values placed
on what we believed to be morally good or orally bad

Moral standards normally promote “the good”, that

is, the welfare and well-being of humans as well as
animals and the environment

NORMS + VALUES = MORAL STANDARDS

Norms are general rules about actions or behaviors.

Example: Killing innocent people is absolutely wrong

pg. 2: Transer I Rhenier G. Patriarca