PROJECT: GNS 204 PROJECT

DEPARTMENT: RADIOGRAPHY AND RADIATION SCIENCE

LEVEL: 200

GROUP: GROUP 1

GROUP LEADER: ANUCHA HOPE ( )

1. ABDULAZEEZ BUSHROH OLABISI 2020/32050

2. ABU ROFIAT AYOTOMIWA 2020/32051
3. ADEBISI ARAMIDE AISHA 2020/32052
4. ADELEKE FAVOUR TIRENIOLUWA 2020/32053
5. ADENIYI SODIQ AREMU 2020/32054
6. ADERETI EMMANUEL AYOMIDE 2020/32055
7. AKINJOGBIN RHODA DOLAPO 2020/32056
8. AKINROYE DORCAS OLAOLUWA 2020/32057
9. AKINSOLA AYOMIDOTUN OLAWALE 2020/32058
10. ANUCHA HOPE 2020/32059
 INTRODUCTION

Both morality and ethics loosely have to do with distinguishing the difference
between “good and bad” or “right and wrong.” Many people think of morality as
something that’s personal and normative, whereas ethics is the standards of “good
and bad” distinguished by a certain community or social setting. For example, your
local community may think adultery is immoral, and you personally may agree
with that. However, the distinction can be useful if your local community has no
strong feelings about adultery, but you consider adultery immoral on a personal
level. By these definitions of the terms, your morality would contradict the ethics
of your community. In popular discourse, however, we’ll often use the terms moral
and immoral when talking about issues like adultery regardless of whether it’s
being discussed in a personal or in a community-based situation. As we can see,
the distinction can get a bit tricky. Ultimately, the distinction between the two is as
substantial as a line drawn in the sand.
 MEANING OF ETHICS AND HOW IT IS DIFFERENT FROM
MORALITY.

According to The English dictionary, Ethics is defined as "the study of principles

relating to right and wrong conduct". It goes ahead to define Morality as "the
recognition of the distinction between good and evil or between right and wrong;
respect for and obedience to the rules of right conduct; the mental disposition or
characteristic of behaving in a manner intended to produce morally good results."
Both Ethics and morals relate to “right” and “wrong” conduct. Though they are
sometimes used interchangeably, they are different: ethics refer to rules provided
by an external source, e.g., codes of conduct in workplaces or principles in
religions. Morals refer to an individual’s own principles regarding right and wrong.

Ethics can be differentiated from Morality under the following headings.

Origin

The etymology of Ethics is gotten from from Old Greek ἠθική (from ἠθικός)
meaning "expressing character". On the other hand, morality is derived from the
Latin word "mōs" meaning "manner or custom".

Perspective

Ethics are objective as they are not influenced by the emotions or prejudices while
morals are subjective since they are based upon a person's feelings or intuition, not
upon observation or reasoning and coming more from within the observer than
from observations of the external environment.

Flexibility and Consistency

Ethics are very consistent within a certain context, but can vary greatly between
contexts. For example, the ethics of the medical profession in the 21st century are
generally consistent and do not change from hospital to hospital, but they are
different from the ethics of the 21st century legal profession. An individual’s moral
code is usually unchanging and consistent across all contexts, but it is also possible
for certain events to radically change an individual's personal beliefs and values.
Conflicts between Ethics and Morals

One professional example of ethics conflicting with morals is the work of a

defense attorney. A lawyer’s morals may tell her that murder is reprehensible and
that murderers should be punished, but her ethics as a professional lawyer, require
her to defend her client to the best of her abilities, even if she knows that the client
is guilty.

Euthanasia as a case study

The practice of intentionally and painlessly killing a human being or animal for
humane reasons, especially in order to end great suffering or poor quality of life.
Euthanasia is the most difficult part of a medical practitioner's job. Euthanasia can
be discussed ethically according to the ethics of the medical practition or according
to the moral compass of the medical practitioner himself. Ethically,Euthanasia is
right and justified as it involves the painless killing of patients that are terminally
ill, vegetative comatose, in too much pain or who wants to die. Morally, the
intentional killing of patients who want to die can never be justified, let alone
legalized according to some or why it can be justified according to others.

In most parts of the world, a doctor may not euthanize a patient, even at the
patient's request, as per ethical standards for health professionals. However, the
same doctor may personally believe in a patient's right to die, as per the doctor's
own morality.

Ethical concerns about euthanasia are founded by medical associations and

depends on the society whereas the morality of euthanasia is not so easily decided.
The practitioner, patient, patient's kin moral compass decides whether the action is
right or wrong. Medicine, law and everyday morality distinguish clearly between a
strong prohibition on killing and a very much more equivocal attitude to letting
die. The assumption underlying this approach seems to be that all of us owe a
strong prima facie duty to all others not to kill each other but that we may or may
not, depending on the circumstances and the relationships involved, owe a duty to
each other to preserve each other's lives.
 ETHICAL THEORIES

DEONTOLOGY

The normative ethical position that judges the morality of an action based on the
action's adherence to rules or obligations rather than either the inherent goodness
or the consequences of those actions. This means that a person will follow his or
her obligations to another individual or society because upholding one’s duty is
what is considered ethically correct. For instance, a deontologist will always keep
his promises to a friend and will follow the law. A person who adheres to
deontological theory will produce very consistent decisions since they will be
based on the individual’s set duties.

Strengths of Deontology

1. Deontological ethics create a foundation for human conduct

An example is the Ethic of reciprocity (The golden rule used by philosophers.) The
principle that one should treat other people in the manner in which one would want
to be treated by them. Different versions of what we would call the “Golden Rule”
are found throughout the history of human societies. It is a concept that follows us
in our spiritual lives, our professional careers, and even in our relationships that we
form.

2. Deontological ethics create moral absolutes.

The structure of deontological ethics is black-and-white. There are never any gray
areas as to what is right or what is wrong with me and society. No exceptions to
any moral rules are permitted within this concept.

3. Deontological ethics emphasize the value of every person.

Duty-based systems focus on providing equal respect to all human beings, no

matter where they are from or what they might choose to do. This set of ethics
provides a foundation for all human rights.

4. Deontological ethics provide certainty.

If someone bases their morality from the consequences of the decision, then there
is uncertainty until that information develops. That means every choice someone
makes offers the potential of being right or wrong until the outcomes become
apparent. Deontological ethics take a different approach. This moral theory offers
certainty because it stays concerned with the action itself. If the action is correct
and right, then an individual should do it. If it is wrong, then they should not.

Weaknesses of deontology

1. Deontology contains flaws.

One flaw is that there is no rationale or logical basis for deciding an individual’s
duties.

2. Deontological ethics create a paradox.

There are times when the maximum welfare of a society is forbidden when
following deontological ethics. This structure tasks an individual with saving lives,
but you cannot do this at the expense of your own life. No act of self-sacrifice is
ever listed as being a morally correct decision what is this idea. You could not
harm another person, even if you knew it would save thousands of lives if you did.
At the same time, allowing people to die because you failed to take action is also
not permitted.

Imagine you walk into a building, and there is an active shooter situation. Now
let’s say that you have a gun, and you are trained to use it correctly. It doesn’t
matter what the shooter is doing in that building. Deontological ethics dictate how
you react to the situation. You would not be able to shoot the person to stop down
because it would cause them harm. It would not be permissible to let others die
either. You would need to find a third solution to stay ethically correct.

3. Deontological ethics can be used as supernatural excuses.

4. Deontological ethics do not incorporate self-defense ideas.

UTILITARIANISM

Utilitarianism is a theory of morality that advocates actions that foster happiness or

pleasure and oppose actions that cause unhappiness or harm. It is also a system of
ethics based on the premise that something's value may be measured by its
usefulness and that action should be directed toward achieving the "greatest
happiness for the greatest number of people". When directed toward making
social, economic, or political decisions, a utilitarian philosophy would aim for the
betterment of society as a whole.

Strengths of Utilitarianism

1. It is a universal concept that all of us can understand.

2. Utilitarianism works with our natural intuition.

Weaknesses of Ulitarianism

1. Society does not solely focus on happiness when making choices.

Utilitarianism suggests that the only item of intrinsic worth is happiness, but there
are also other commodities that are worth considering.

2. The ends never really justify the means when considering happiness.

Sydney Elizabeth was only eight years old when she tragically passed away
because of complications from an E. coli infection. A 3-year-old girl was the
recipient of her heart, which is something that Sydney’s parents will always
treasure. She is remembered as being a caring, vibrant soul who never settled for
anything less than being the best. Under the teachings of Utilitarianism, the just
outcome would be to kill healthy people to distribute their organs to those who are
waiting on the transplant list. That’s because the good of the many (as defined by
happiness) always outweighs the good of the few.

3.It forces you to rely on everyone else following the same moral code.

If you abandon the idea of rules, regulations, and laws in society to pursue
happiness, then you are forced to rely on the choices that others make to not bring
harm into your life. A lot of people will say that they believe humans are
inherently good, but the reality is that most people will choose to do something
against their moral character if they believe that they can get away with that
choice.

74% of men say that they would cheat on their significant other if they knew for
certain that they could get away with the activity. 68% of women say that they
would willingly have an affair as well. When there is the absence of a deterrent for
any activity, then people are more likely to make the choice to pursue it. That is
why Utilitarianism might bring happiness to some, but it causes a lot of harm in its
wake.

VIRTUES

Virtues are defined as the accordance with moral principles; conformity of

behaviour or thought with the structures of morality; good moral conduct.Virtue
ethics is a broad term for theories that emphasize the role of character and virtue
in moral philosophy rather than either doing one’s duty or acting in order to bring
about good consequences. A virtue ethicist is likely to give you this kind of moral
advice: “Act as a virtuous person would act in your situation.”

Strengths of Virtues

1. Motivates us to work on morality

2. Recognizes partiality

Weaknesses of Virtues

1. No single & definitive answer to what the virtues are, they are time-
changing.

2. Hard to tell what someone's motives are.

3. Doesn't concern right or wrong action

KANTAINISM

The philosophical system of Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) and his followers; also
called transcendental idealism. A school of philosophy that it views things in terms
of how they appear to the actor rather than how they actually are.
Strengths of Kantian Ethics:

1. Quality of universability. Since Kantian Ethics is universalised to all

humans, it suggests that all humans should be treated equally under the same
ethical system. This provides little discrimination according to race, class or
age etc.

Weaknesses of Kantian Ethics

1. It does not provide us with explanation of what happens when two absolutes
clash.

2. It does not account for the complexities of human life

FEMINIST THEORIES

A social theory or political movement which argues that legal and social
restrictions on women must be removed in order to bring about equality of the
sexes in all aspects of public and private life.

Strengths of Feminist Theories

1. Gave women a voice.

2. Raised awareness of gender issues.

Weaknesses of Feminist Theories

The main weakness of feminist theories is that they are from a woman centered
viewpoint. While the theories also mention social problems not strictly related to
women, it still comes from that viewpoint. This creates a weakness of
perspective,as men and women do see the world differently.
 CONCLUSION

Utilitarianism is our most likely theory to subscribe to as it focuses on the

betterment of the society as a whole. This ethical theory is something lacking in the

21st century. Although Utilitarianism sometimes struggles when approaching the

issue of harm from an emotional perspective, it does work well with our natural

intuition to not harm the people that we care about each day. The average person

does not go walking downtown with a baseball bat, striking people with it because

they think it is a fun activity. Part of the human condition is to go about life

without creating physical harm to others, partially because such a decision could

also create harm in our lives too.

REFERENCES AND NOTES

Euthanasia, withholding life-prolonging treatment, and moral differences

between killing and letting die- Raanan Gillon

The problem of abortion and the doctrine of the double effect. Oxford review
1967; 5: 5-15 (and variously reprinted) – Foot P

Euthanasia -Report of a British Medical Association working party. London:

British Medical Association, 1988.

Guidelines on the termination of life-sustaining treatment and the care of the

dying - a report by the Hastings Center. - Briarcliff Manor, NY. The Hastings
Center, 1987.

Britannica’s article on ethics ©2022 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.