Ethics, Sustainability

and Social Responsibility

STAGE 1
An Ethical Approach
Formative purpose

The student examines the nature and

scope of ethics’ study field that allows
him to discover both moral ethical
actions of people in their context as a
social and personal construction
within a cultural system over time.
 Stage 1 Graphical Representation
Ethical
Theories
Ethics and its
Structure of
Object
The Moral the Moral Act The student
Behavior uses a record Learning
The student Evidence
The student of use and
defines the The student analyze the application
field of study identifies essence of of moral
of Ethics and human acts Study case
the moral act values in the
its object in that have report.
moral meaning in all the various
the field of
in real, elements that contexts
humanistic
everyday life make it up. according to
sciences
ethical
theory.
FIELD AND OBJECT OF STUDY OF ETHICS

All human beings, at one moment of our life, found ourselves

in a situation where we must make a difficult decision, in the
sense that, if we decant for one option, searching for the
greatest good, we cause some prejudice to someone.
Origins of Ethics

•Ethics as discipline, born in Greece. When studying the diverse

philosophical doctrines, we can observe that somehow they try to
explain the human behavior as well as its causes with the goal of
establish how to live better and achieve happiness.

•Socrates (469 BC.-399 BC.), considered the father of Ethics, was

interested in political and moral matters, in the goodness as the
supreme end of any human action and in the soul as the primary reality
of the men.

•Plato (427 BC.-347 BC.), proposed the existence of a spiritual world

and the immortal soul and defended the idea that goodness was related
with the development of virtues such as strength, temperance and
wisdom, among others.
Aristotle (384 BC-322 BC) identified happiness with the virtues and related goodness to a
purpose; He proposed that virtues were of two types: ethical, which dominated the
irrational part of the soul (for example, temperance and justice) and dianoethical,
corresponding to the rational part of human nature (intelligence and prudence).
•Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274), who equated God with absolute happiness and the
supreme good, Ethics, Sustainability and Social Responsibility 10 and proposed that the
means to reach Him was to fulfill one's duties and obey the laws of what is good and what
is bad.
•René Descartes (1596-1650), French physicist, mathematician and philosopher,
established that reason was the only source of knowledge, and this paved the way for
individualism by separating faith from reason.
•Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) proposed that others and oneself should be treated as an
end and not as a mean, recognizing dignity as the unique and essential value of a person.
•Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900), for whom the authentic will to live is the will to power;
and existentialism.
•Jean Paul Sartre (1905-1980), who considered that man is entirely free and responsible
for his actions
Definition of Ethics
The word ethics comes from the Latin ethĭcus, which in turn comes from the Greek ήθικός,
ēthi kós, from έθος, which means "way of doing or acquiring things, custom, habit."

It is a branch of philosophy that has as its object of study the foundations of morality, human
behavior based on what is good or bad.

So, ethics is the “science that studies the goodness or badness of human acts.”

The concept of ethics can be defined from:

•Material object of ethics is human behavior.

•Formal object is the goodness or badness of that behavior.

The field of ethics: At some point, each person must face and resolve them.
These problems, according to Gutiérrez Sáenz are:

•Problem of the difference between good and bad

•Problem of the standard of morality.
•Problem of the end and the means.
•Problem of the universal validity of norms.
•Problem of obligation and freedom.
•The problem of values.
The method of ethics
In ethics, deep knowledge of human behavior is obtained from observation, that is, approaching
human acts by first relying on the physical senses and then giving a value to what is observed to
structure it with the intellect. Next comes the evaluation, which consists of cataloging the act within
various moral categories, that is, issuing a moral judgment.
A moral judgment is a mental act by which a moral value is attributed or denied to a certain act or
situation that we witness.

Element Question

Motivations Why and what for do you want to act?

The elements of a Objectives What result is intended to be achieved?

moral judgment Means How is it going to be achieved?

Consequences Are the effects of this act good for all concerned?
Relationship of Ethics with other sciences:

Human acts do not occur in an isolated context, and their motivations and consequences
constitute the objects of study of other disciplines such as philosophy, morality,
psychology, education, law and economics, among others.

•Ethics is born from philosophy, which seeks to understand the universe and the supreme
causes of its existence through reasoning.
•Ethics with logic, which focuses on reasoning and argumentation.
•With metaphysics, which focuses on the treatment of good as a quality of every being.
•Theology with ethics, does it in the light of reasoning and faith, while ethics does it only
with reasoning.
•Psychology focuses on intrinsic motivations, the functioning and manifestation of
behavior itself, ethics addresses the normative aspect, motivations and consequences in
terms of morality.
Relationship of ethics with other sciences:
•Law is constituted by external positive norms (created by man) and ethics by the
natural norms of customs.
•Sociology with ethics, human acts always occur within a social group, their
consequences not only affect the individual but also the community, and they are
judged as good or bad depending on the norms established by that group.
•Education and ethics have a very important relationship, since both refer to what a
person has to do, but education seeks to make the person do what they have to do
for themselves and ethics shows what they have to do.
•The economy deals with the distribution of resources, and the production,
distribution and consumption of goods and services, aspects that are almost always
guided by particular interests and ambitions, and which are often used to achieve
them morally questionable means. Ethics in this case tries to show the framework of
behavior to value the means by which wealth is achieved and resources are
distributed.
ETHICS OR MORAL
Sometimes the terms “ethics” and “moral” are used interchangeably, BUT:

•Morality refers to the set of principles, precepts, values established and

accepted by a social group at a specific time and place.
•Ethics represents the ideal parameter that should govern people's behavior
based on reasoning about its causes, its adaptation to certain values that are
universal and respect for free will.
•A rule is a guideline that seeks to guide behavior in a specific environment and
situation, failure to comply with which has a specific sanction and is based on a
legal or moral agreement.
•A law is a legal statute whose compliance is not optional; Its objective is to guide
the actions of citizens and grant rights and obligations
•A norm is a pattern of behavior, the application of which is agreed upon and
accepted by a social group, which is consolidated by use and custom, transmitted
orally from one generation to another, and if it is not followed it causes rejection or
disapproval.
Types of standards:
Moral standards. Principles of behavior and values ​that are expected to be assumed
by the members of a group.
Legal norms. They are issued by the State, they imply an external and coercive
obligation
Religious norms. Precepts that have a double dimension for believers: on one hand,
they are commands that come from a divinity, and on the other they constitute a set of
prescriptions to govern their actions.
Social norms. They emanate from the traditions, customs and habits inherited by a
community;
Technical standards. They are those that guide actions to achieve the goal of
technology, which is to produce useful and beautiful goods, with the appropriate
means, without worrying about their goodness or malice or the ultimate goal that can
be achieved with them.
What is morality?

Morality is something that goes beyond that just the system of rules that guide
the behavior of individuals. It involves the realization of the moral in daily life; It
involves a personal attitude, a voluntary and free adherence to what the group
establishes as normal, and the acceptance of those norms as the most
appropriate option for the given time and place, for the common good of all; as
well as the ability to compare these norms with universal ethical principles and
weigh their moral value.
Approaches to morality:

•The acquisition of the virtues that lead to happiness.

•The fulfillment of duties towards what is an end in itself.

•The ability to peacefully resolve conflicts.

•The supportive practice of community virtues.

•Compliance with universal principles.

Moral responsibility

Moral responsibility occurs when the decider is aware of his actions, is free to choose
whether to carry them out or not, knows what will be the consequences of them and still
decides to carry them out, whether they agree with the norms and codes accepted by the
community or not.

Human acts are executed at a rational level, consciously and freely; they are guided by two
eminently human faculties: intelligence and will.

•The moral act is the human act, susceptible to moral assessment since it is executed at a
rational, free and conscious level.

•The immoral act is the human act that is executed rationally, freely and voluntarily against
the precepts and values ​established and accepted by the community.

•The amoral act is the act of man that is executed in an involuntary, unconscious and
instinctive manner, where freedom does not intervene.
Structure of the moral act
The elements that constitute a moral act are:

•Moral subject
•Motivation
•Awareness of the end
•Awareness of the means to achieve the end
•Circumstances
•Decision
•Result
•Consequences
 3) Awareness of the fact of
2) Motives and purposes
1) Moral subject (person with the consummation of the
(what drives to pursue a
moral conscience) moral act (depends on the
goal)
will of the subject)

Elements
of a moral
act: 4) Awareness of the means to
achieve the end
5) Circumstances Choice in
the moral act (result of the
6) The decision in the moral
act (gives the act autonomy
decision) and will).

7) Result of the moral act 8) Consequences

Moral dilemma
It is a situation in which: a moral agent is required to perform one of two (or more)
actions; it can do one or the other, but not both (or all).
There are seven steps to resolve a moral dilemma:

1. Situate yourself responsibly facing the problem.

2. Identify well the case with regard to the people, the situations, the dilemma and the
consequences of each option.
3. Predict and compare the consequences of each option.
4. Evaluate them in light of the moral principles and values ​of the person facing the
decision.
5. Ask and answer these questions:
a) Which option gives you more goods?
b) From which option do lesser evils arise?
1. Decide according to conscience.
2. Take responsibility for the decision.
Examples of moral dilemmas:
https://educrea.cl/los-dilemas-morales/
http://www.loyolaandnews.es/loyolaandpsico/dilemas-morales-cotidianos/
ETHICAL THEORIES
An ethical theory is a proposal that attempts to analyze the causes of
moral behavior. Ethical theories do not immediately seek to answer
questions such as: what should we do? Or how should a good society be
organized? But rather, why do we choose a particular moral conception
over other conceptions?

Franz von Kutschera classifies ethical theories into cognitivist and non-
cognitivist.

1. Cognitivists conceive the moral aspect as another area of ​human

knowledge.
2. Non-cognitivists, they consider that the moral sphere is not part of
knowledge, so it is not possible to speak of true or false propositions
in the moral field; moral statements are only commands or
prescriptions and as such do not need to go through a verification
process.
1.5 ETHICAL THEORIES
COGNITIVIST THEORIES
Eudemonism. According to Aristotle, the essence of man consists
of matter (the body) and form (the soul), and identifies the notions of
good and end. Happiness is the ultimate good, understood as one's
own good, perfection and the realization of potentialities.
Utilitarianism. Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill, are the
representatives of this current, in which it is thought that everything
that produces pleasure is good and that which produces pain is bad,
and that the best action is the one that produces the greatest
happiness and well-being for the greatest number of people.
Ethics of rights. It seeks to defend individual freedoms or
guarantees.
Deontological ethics. It is also known as ethics of duty and was
proposed by Immanuel Kant. The main characteristics of this theory
are rationalism, a prioriism and formalism.
Ethics of Rights

Each person has the legitimate right to build his or her own life within the
parameters established by socially established norms and laws. Its character is
deontological since it is based on the discernment of what constitutes the duty of
each person, and universal, since collective consensus is required. Here Gilmar
Antonio Bedin highlights his classification of human rights:

a) First generation rights. Individual civil and political rights

b) Second generation rights. Economic, social and cultural rights
c) Third generation rights. They emerged in the mid-20th century from the need
for cooperation between groups and nations to face global problems; they are the
collective rights of people or society.
d) Fourth generation rights. They arise in response to technological advances and
changes in contemporary society.
NON-COGNITIVIST THEORIES
Emotivism
It is a current that is based on the idea that a moral judgment is the expression of
an emotion; that is why the truth or falsity of moral judgments is based on the
feelings they awaken in each person. One of its representatives is David Hume. For
him, morality has to do with what is mandatory, what must be done, and what is
mandatory is what comes from experience and not from reason. For example, when
someone who really likes classical music tells another person that that type of
music is “good,” hoping that the other person will validate that statement.

Prescriptivism
This theory establishes that morality is that which is presented as a prescription or
mandate with a universal nature. It was defended by Richard M. Hare, and
proposes that an imperative or ordinance is a rule that must be followed. An
example could be the 10 Commandments.
Axiology
Axiology is a branch of philosophy that studies values, analyzing why something is
considered valuable.
Max Scheler is one of the main axiologists of the 20th century. He proposed that
value is the quality of an object to attract the attention and inclination of the people
who perceive it and that this quality is independent of the objects (goods), which are
only carriers of value. According to Scheler, values ​have the following characteristics:

1. They are ideal.

2. They are alogical, that is, they are not captured by reason.
3. They are a priori content, they do not depend on experience.
4. They are objective, they occur regardless of whether they are known or
estimated.
5. They are transcendent.
6. They are materials, they have a concrete and positive content.
7. They are independent of the assets, the latter are only repositories of value; if
the asset is destroyed, the value prevails.
8. They are hierarchical; that is, they have relations of superiority and inferiority
with other values.
Axiological ethics focuses on values ​and the way in which they influence
human behavior in all contexts. Max Scheler proposed a hierarchy of values
​table, which is always measured in pairs of opposites.

a) Values ​of pleasant and unpleasant. They correspond to the sensitive

sentimental function and are related to suffering and enjoyment, for example,
comfort, security and wealth.
b) Vital values. They are those that are included in the concept of “well-being”, the
qualities included between the noble and the vulgar, which are related to the
quality of life, for example, the feeling of health or illness, vigor, energy, joy,
sadness, and related values ​such as courage, etc.
c) Spiritual values. They are related to spiritual feeling and love and hate; they are
divided into three subgroups: aesthetic values ​(the beautiful and the ugliness),
values ​of what is just and unjust (e.g. compliance with a law) and knowledge
values ​(truth-falsehood).
d) Religious values. They are the values ​of the holy and the profane. Regarding
the values ​of the holy, they are the feelings of happiness and despair in relation
to the proximity or distance of the holy: faith, disbelief, veneration, adoration, etc.
He also proposed a set of criteria on which it is possible to base the
ordering of the different classes of values:

1. Duration. A value that lasts longer than another is superior: there are
values ​that only make sense as long as they are permanent.
2. Divisibility. A value is superior as less can it be divided.
3. Foundation. Fundamental value is higher than grounded value, for
example, intelligence grounds scientific knowledge.
4. Satisfaction. The value that satisfies the most is superior,
understanding satisfaction in the intellectual and spiritual order.
5. Relativity. The value that is related to the higher levels of the object
or person is higher.
Characteristics of values ​according to Gutiérrez Sáenz:

1. Bipolarity. They are always considered in pairs or binomials that are two opposite
poles: goodness-badness, beauty-ugliness, etc., and to catalog them and give them
weight he proposes the development of different scales:
a) Bipolar: Only a positive pole and a negative pole, for example, when we try to
determine whether a proposition is true or false.
b) Multiple positive and negative values. It considers the two opposite poles, but
admits the possibility of nuances between them, for example, to evaluate sports skills;
it is neither good nor bad, but skills can be perfected to different degrees.
c) Central normality. There are two opposite poles, but greater weight is given to an
intermediate value that is considered normal. For example, a person can be thrifty, but
if he is too thrifty he is considered miserly, and if he is not, he is considered spendthrift.
d) Absolute zero. There are no negative values, there are no bad or ugly things, for
example, the Kelvin temperature scale, where the lowest point is zero and from there
all the readings are positive.
Characteristics of values ​according to Gutiérrez Sáenz:

2. Preferability: They attract the attention or inclination of those who perceive

them, and who prefer things that contain greater value. For example, if a
person values ​intelligence, they will seek to associate with others who embody
this value.
3. Transcendence. Values ​are given in a perfect way only in their essence,
but when they are incarnated in human beings or things they exist in an
imperfect way. For example, ideal justice is far removed from the application of
justice in the real world.
4. Hierarchization. They keep a certain order in relation to the preferences
and characteristics of the human being; man (in terms of human nature) is the
point of reference, and values ​are ordered by their ability to perfect it; a value
is more important insofar as it perfects man as a human being.
Characteristics of values ​according to Gutiérrez Sáenz:

The ranking characteristic is divided into four categories, which are:

a) Subhumans: they perfect man in his lower strata, in what he has in common
with other beings, for example, skill, strength, pleasure, health, among
others.
b) Inframoral humans: all the values ​exclusive to man: economic (wealth,
success), noetic or knowledge (truth, intelligence, science), aesthetic (beauty,
grace) and social (cooperation, prestige).
c) Morals: these values ​have two characteristics:
● They depend only on free will, that is, each person forges their virtues
and is responsible for their moral behavior.
● They perfect man as a person. For example, honesty.
a) Religious. They perfect man at a level higher than the powers merely human
means to reach God, for example, holiness and charity, among others.
The virtues

Virtue is an acquired and stable quality that inclines the will towards honest acts, as
well as facilitating their performance. Virtues can be natural and supernatural.
Among the natural ones are:

a) Prudence. It is the virtue of reason, man knows what to do or what to avoid.

b) Justice. Give each one what belongs to; it can be commutative (relations between
particular persons (for example, contract of sale), distributive (governs relations between
the ruler and the governed) and legal or social (between the individual and society).
c) Strength. Firmness of soul to overcome the difficulties of life.
d) Temperance. Moderate sensible pleasures.

The supernatural or theological virtues are those that unite the believer directly
with God: faith (accepting everything that God has revealed not by verifiable
evidence but by his authority), hope (having confidence in God's designs and trusting
in his promises) and charity (loving others the same way you love yourself).
Moral life and its impact in various contexts

Religious context. The adherence to moral values ​is reflected in all aspects of an individual's
life. First, we will see how it is related to religion, defined as: “the virtue of man by which he
relates directly to God.”
Family context. The family environment is analyzed from marriage, which Gutiérrez Sáenz
defines as: “The permanent union of a man and a woman for the procreation and education of
children”
Economic-social context. In this section three points are addressed; work, wages and
property rights.
● Work is a human value. It is not degrading to man, as the ancient Greeks and Romans
believed; neither is receiving a salary for doing it. On the contrary, not working is what
denigrates man.
● Salary. To assign it fairly, the quality and quantity of the work, the economic situation of
the company and the needs of the worker must be considered. The latter will also receive
benefits, such as social security and bonuses, in addition to the right to participate in the
company's profits.
● Right of property. The reasons to defend the right of ownership of personal and
productive assets is that man needs to own what he is going to consume, the solidity of
the family, savings and the development of higher activities
Moral life and its impact in various contexts

Professional context
A profession is defined as: “personal activity carried out in a stable and honest
manner at the service of others and for one's own benefit, driven by one's own
vocation and with the dignity that corresponds to the human person.” The choice of
profession must be free, in accordance with the individual's own qualities and
circumstances that make him or her suitable for an activity, that is, the vocation;
and it must have as its purpose the common good, but also the personal benefit
and the intellectual, moral and physical capacity of the individual.

Environmental context
Our behavior with respect to the environment shows that it is necessary to expand
the scope of morality and reorder our scale of values ​to include those that guide us
to seek solutions to the global challenges that are a consequence of the misuse
that human beings have made of ecosystems and natural resources.
UNIVERSAL ETHICAL PRINCIPLES
The ethical principles proposed aim to condense the universal principles common in the most influential cultural
traditions. They are:
1. Principle of the common origin of humanity and the natural and moral legal order of the
universe.
2. Principle of dignity and equality.
3. Principle of freedom, responsibility and creativity.
4. Principle of reciprocal interactions or law of giving and receiving.
5. Principle of moral growth and development through three stages.
6. Principle of the three levels of morality.
7. Principle of individual purpose and purpose for the whole.
8. Principle of the progressive elevation of human value.
9. Principle of progress through cooperation focused on a common purpose.
10. Principle of order.
11. Principle of meaning.
12. Principle of the three great universal goals or aspirations of humanity.
Bibliography:

Arciniega, Ivonne (2024). Ética, Sustentabilidad y

Responsabilidad Social, primera edición, Ediciones de
Laurel.
 ANNEX: Support resources
Ethics course
• https://youtu.be/aE0C3fUb8uc

Difference between ethics and morals

https://psicologiaymente.com/psicologia/diferencias-etica-moral
https://youtu.be/R4AQDCo6mx0

Ethical and moral dilemmas

https://educrea.cl/los-dilemas-morales/
http://www.loyolaandnews.es/loyolaandpsico/dilemas-morales-cotidianos/
https://youtu.be/gKcTw1wZ1nQ