FACULTY OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY

Department of Petroleum & Geological Engineering

PEG 1102- Life Skills for Technicians

Lecture 03: Values Clarification and

Moral Reasoning
1
2
 Learning Outcomes
1.0 “Who stays” exercise.
2.0 What are values
3.0 The effect of values on moral reasoning
4.0 Why value clarification

3
 2.0 What are values
 Values are what we deem important and worthy in life.
They inform how we spend our time and energy.

 Your values are your ideas about what is most important

to you in your life —what you want to live by and live for.
They are the silent forces behind many of your actions and
decisions.

 Often times, we walk through this world not really knowing

what our values are, which can be problematic. If we don’t
have a clear understanding of what makes us tick, then
we’ll have a hard time trying to change pieces of ourselves
(or authentically responding to others in a healthy manner).

4
 3.0 The effect of values on moral
reasoning
 Moral reasoning applies critical analysis to specific events
to determine what is right or wrong, and what people
ought to do in a particular situation.

 Moral reasoning is a thinking process with the objective of

determining whether an idea is right or wrong.

 In fact, evidence shows that the moral principle or theory a

person chooses to apply is often, ironically, based on their
emotions, not on logic. Their choice is usually influenced
by internal biases or outside pressures, such as the self-
serving bias or the desire to conform.

5
 3.0 The effect of values on moral
reasoning
So, while we likely believe we approach ethical
dilemmas logically and rationally, the truth is
our moral reasoning is usually influenced by
intuitive, emotional reactions.

6
 4.0 Why value clarification
 The goal of "values clarification" is for you to become fully
conscious of their influence, and to explore and honestly
acknowledge what you truly value at this time in your life.

 Values clarification is crucial to making choices that lead to

adaptive living. This is because one’s values, an individual’s
judgment of what is important, useful, and worthy in life,
are central mediating processes for behavior at individual
and societal levels.

 What happens with our moral judgement if our values

aren’t decisive?

7
 4.0 Why value clarification
 We inherit our values from the culture in which we
grew up (and/or currently reside), the type of family
from which we came, the transmission of religious,
political, or social ideologies, and the way we live
through and narrate our experience of this world as
unique individuals.

 Becoming aware of what specifically informs our lives

makes it easier for us to more actively choose how we
want to be, and how to communicate to those similar
to or different than ourselves.