Lesson 2

Communication Ethics
 In this lesson, you will find out that there are different
guidelines in communicating in an ethical manner.
Lesson Objectives:

By the end of this lesson, you should be able to:

1. know how to communicate in an ethical
manner; and
2. apply these ethical principles to the
communication process.
 OUTLINE OF THE LESSON:
A. What is Ethics?
B. What is Ethical Communication?
- Fundamentals of Ethical Communication
- Principles of Ethical Communication
- The 7 C's of Ethical Communication
C. What is unethical communication?
What is the basic goal
of communication?
The goal of communication is to
convey information—and the
understanding of that information—
from one person or group to another
person or group.
What is Ethics?
Ethics
noun
1. moral principles that govern a
person's behavior
2. the branch of knowledge that deals
with moral principles
With its simple definition:
Ethics derived from the Greek word
“ethos”, which means “way of living”,
ethics is a branch of philosophy that is
concerned with human conduct, more
specifically the behavior of individuals in
society.
 What is Ethical
Communication?
Ethical Communication
▪ It refers to passing of information
between two parties in a manner
that is accurate, truthful, and
acceptable.
 FUNDAMENTALS
OF
ETHICAL
COMMUNICATION
 FUNDAMENTALS OF ETHICAL COMMUNICATION

1. Openness and Transparency

▪ People who communicate ​honestly,
openly, and authentically​ are more
credible, more often heard, and
considered more trustworthy. ​
 FUNDAMENTALS OF ETHICAL COMMUNICATION

2. Consideration for Any Potential

Roadblocks
▪ When communicating with another
party, truly ethical communication
involves considering any potential factor
that may influence how the receiver
understands.
Examples:
Language Use
▪ It would make little sense to
present a business presentation in
English to a non-English speaking
Chinese audience.
Jargon
▪ When speaking to a layperson, it is ethical
to speak with simple, easy-to-understand
words, while avoiding the use of heavy
jargon, resulting in portions of the
presentation/communication being
incomprehensible to a portion of the
audience.
Language Fluency
▪ Ethical communication takes into account the
level of fluency as well as the language spoken
by listeners so that recipients of the
communication (whether it be spoken or
written) are able to fully understand what is
being communicated.
 FUNDAMENTALS OF ETHICAL COMMUNICATION

3. Development of Relationship
▪ “The most important single
ingredient in the formula of success
is knowing how to get along with
people”. Theodore Roosevelt
 FUNDAMENTALS OF ETHICAL COMMUNICATION

4. Responsible thinking
▪ Teaching them how to think on their
own and create their own effective
plans rather than someone else
doing the thinking for them.
 FUNDAMENTALS OF ETHICAL COMMUNICATION

5. Decision making
▪ Every decision making process produces a
final choice which may or may not prompt
action.
▪ It is the process of identifying and choosing
alternatives based on the values, preferences
and beliefs of the decision- maker.
 PRINCIPLES
OF
ETHICAL COMMUNICATION
 PRINCIPLES OF ETHICAL COMMUNICATION

1. Be Truthful and Honest

▪ Being honest means communicating what

is known to be true (only 100 percent the
facts) to a listener, with no intent to
deceive or present only parts of the truth.
 PRINCIPLES OF ETHICAL COMMUNICATION

2. Active Listening
▪ Hearing someone and listening to them
are two different things. In order for
ethical communication to be effective, it is
necessary for the receiver to pro-actively
listen to the speaker, and to not just hear
what they want to hear, or to hear only
parts of the conversation.
▪ This also means asking
questions when any point is
not completely understood,
for the sake of clarification.
 PRINCIPLES OF ETHICAL COMMUNICATION
3. Speak Non-Judgmentally

▪ Non-judgmental language is using

words that do not put a negative
interpretation to what the person is
sharing.
 PRINCIPLES OF ETHICAL COMMUNICATION

4. Speak From your Own Experience

▪ Experiences are the most important
soil for learning and new ideas to
grow. You can learn from other
people's experiences, too.
 PRINCIPLES OF ETHICAL COMMUNICATION
5. Consider the Receiver’s Preferred
Communication Channel
▪ To effectively communicate with your
listeners, use the most preferred
communication channel, whether that be
face-to-face, email, conference call, phone
call, messenger app, etc.
 PRINCIPLES OF ETHICAL COMMUNICATION
6. Strive to Understand
▪ It is important for listeners to also strive to
fully understand what is being said before
responding.

▪ While asking for clarification or confirmation of a

point is fine, many times questions that
listeners pose have already been answered.
 PRINCIPLES OF ETHICAL COMMUNICATION

7. Avoid a Negative Tone

▪ The ethical communicator knows that it’s not only
important what you say, but how you say it. Tone is one
of the most critical aspects of communication

▪ A listener may miss the meaning altogether if the tone is

wrong, which can lead to unnecessary confrontations.
 PRINCIPLES OF ETHICAL COMMUNICATION
8. Do Not Interrupt Others
▪ Allowing others to speak is important for the
creation of a civil, effective working environment.

▪ Interrupting others results in misunderstandings and

unnecessary conflicts and a breakdown in workplace
communications, which only hinders corporate
progress and creates problems.
▪ Interrupting others not only shows
a lack of respect, but does not
allow the listener to fully grasp what
is being said, which often results
in incorrect assumptions being
made.
 PRINCIPLES OF ETHICAL COMMUNICATION

9. Respect Privacy and Confidentiality

▪ Confidential communication involves

statements (oral, written, or nonverbal) made
in confidence between two people who have
trust in each other and believe that the
communication will be kept in confidence.
 PRINCIPLES OF ETHICAL COMMUNICATION

10. Accept Responsibility

▪ Taking Accountability of actions actually reflects
the maturity of a person, and reflect their desire
to talk about the conflict, and negotiate peace
between them. Thus, acceptance of responsibility
creates an open channel of communication, which
is honest, constructive and understanding.
The 7 C's of Ethical
Communication
1. Clarity
Clear communication ensures that
messages are easily understood,
minimizing confusion and
misunderstandings.
2. Conciseness

Being concise helps deliver information

efficiently, saving time and keeping
communication focused on the
essential points.
3. Completeness

Complete communication provides all

the necessary information, leaving no
room for ambiguity or missing details.
4. Concreteness

Concrete communication uses

specific and vivid language, making
messages more tangible and easier
to grasp.
5. Courtesy

Practicing courtesy in communication

promotes a respectful and positive
work environment, enhancing
relationships and collaboration.
6. Correctness

Correct communication ensures

accuracy in information, maintaining
credibility and professionalism.
7. Consideration

Considerate communication takes into

account the needs, perspectives, and
feelings of others, fostering empathy
and understanding.
 By adhering to these principles, a group or
organizations can create a communication
culture that is transparent, respectful, and
effective. It helps build trust, enhances
teamwork, minimizes conflicts, and promotes a
healthy and productive environment.
Unethical Communication
Example of Unethical Communication

Telling a friend something they

want to hear rather than telling
them the truth is an example of
unethical communication.
Example of Unethical Communication

A politician telling a group of

voters something they want to
hear, but the politician does not
truly care about that specific issue.
Example of Unethical Communication

Lying to cover one's own mistakes.

Gossiping or badmouthing colleagues

Six Forms of Unethical
Communication
1. Destructive Communication

Destructive communication includes

abusive language and use of
information to discredit.
(aggressive, abusive, insensitive)
Example of Destructive Communication:

▪ Rejecting others' viewpoints before you

fully understand their position.
▪ Insulting or ridiculing others' position.
Ignoring or dismissing others' ideas.
Example of Destructive Communication:

▪ Sarcasm
▪ Degrading the other person
▪ Eye-rolling
▪ Name-calling
▪ Mimicking
▪ and other disrespectful language.
Example of Destructive Communication:

▪ behavior attacking receivers’ self-

esteem, reputation, or deeply held
feelings; reflecting indifference
toward, or contempt for, basic values
of others
Example of Destructive Communication:

▪ It also includes the use of “truth” as a

weapon
Example of Destructive Communication:

▪ It also can include silence: failure

to provide expected feedback
2. Coercive Communication
Communication events or behavior
reflecting abuses of power or authority,
resulting in unjustified attack of
autonomy.
intimidating, repressive, threatening
Example of Coercive Communication:

▪ threats or implications of firing or

defunding
▪ exclusion of people or groups from
important discussions or events
Example of Coercive Communication:

▪ sending contradictory messages or

creating no-win or dead-end
situations
▪ abuses of power or authority
3. Manipulative- Exploitative Communication

This represents a cluster of communication

behaviors that definitely merit our
attention.
Examples of Manipulative- Exploitative:

▪ making one-sided arguments against a

person, group, or organization that paints
the arguer as a threat
Examples of Manipulative- Exploitative:

▪ messaging that incites people or groups

based upon cherry-picked information or
misrepresentation.
Examples of Manipulative- Exploitative:

▪ when trying to get someone to believe

something is untrue by lying.
4. Deceptive Communication

▪ behavior reflecting a “willful falsification

of truth in order to deceive, cheat, or
defraud”
dishonest, lying, unfair,
Examples of Deceptive Communications

▪ Include those that cover up indiscretions by

leaving out key information or selectively
presenting only favorable information.

▪ It also includes language which makes bogus

promises or claims.
Examples of Deceptive Communications

▪ Deceptive language uses half-truths to

paint an unwarrantedly flattering picture.
5. Secretive Communication

▪ nonverbal communication behavior,

especially silence and unresponsiveness
▪ the approach used to produce a silent
reaction to sweeping indiscretions under the
rug.
Examples of Secretive Communication

▪ leaving out key information around or improper

conduct

▪ refusing to respond to important questions —

staying silent — around one’s own conduct or a
significant topic.
6. Intrusive Communication

▪ characteristically initiated by message

receivers (i.e., use of hidden cameras, the
tapping of telephones, and the application of
computer technologies to the monitoring of
employee behavior
surveillance, invasive, exposing, and often sensationalizing
Example of Intrusive Communication

Sharing information that was gained through

illegal or immoral means, such as recording or
taking pictures without the subject’s knowledge
or without their consent to share.
How do you respond to unethical
communication?
It's important to assess the
situation and figure out the
best course of action.
 Everytime we communicate, we should
consider consequences of our actions. If
people were more responsible in their use
of communication, there would be less
conflict.
 When regular people do not
use good manners when
communicating, anything from
an argument to a physical fight
can happen.
End of Presentation