LESSON 5: A CRITICAL SURVEY OF THE DIFFERENT NORMATIVE ETHICAL Doubtful conscience moralists recommend that this kind of conscience

end that this kind of conscience should not be

THEORIES COMMONLY USED IN BUSINESS DECISION MAKING followed unless the person has resolved the doubt.

Introduction Scrupulous conscience is one which sees wrong where there is none. It is a conscience
Ethics is NOT only concerned with the study of what is right or wrong on or human which is extremely austere; it is always scared to commit evil.
conduct. As a PRACTICAL SCIENCE, ethics also investigate how man ought to behave in a
very specific and concrete situation by examining his conduct in the light of various norms Lax conscience is the opposite of scrupulous conscience. It is the kind of conscience which
that guide his moral judgment. The word ought that not only implies the moral obligation on fails to see wrong where there is wrong. This conscience categorically needs a right
the part of the actor or doer of such action. education.

A. The Norms of Morality According to the Scholastic Philosophy and Traditional Natural Law
Ethics Ethics considers this as remote norm of morality. It reflects what the thing is in
Morality consists of conformity and non-conformity of the human conduct with norms. In accordance with its nature. According to Traditional Ethics, everything has been made with a
the light of Traditional Ethics, these norms are called the “dictates of reason”. Morality specific nature and a purpose. St Thomas of Aquinas believes that the purpose is always
therefore, is defined as the quality of a thing manifesting its conformity and non-conformity good. A good act therefore, is what befits the nature of man; a bad act is one that does not
with its norms or criteria. R. Gula, defined the norms of morality as, “the criteria of judgment benefits man nature. An action, therefore, is good or bad depending on tis conformity to the
about the sort of persons we ought to be and the sort of actions we ought to perform” These act’s nature in relation to its purpose or end.
are standards that indicate the rightfulness or wrongfulness, the goodness or badness, the
value or disvalue of a thing. Eternal Law
Traditional Ethics considers eternal law or the divine law as the ultimate norm of
THE NORMS OF MORALITY morality. For St. Thomas Aquinas- “the divine wisdom directing all actions and movement.”
CONSCIENCE For St. Augustine- “the divine reason or evil of God commanding the natural order of things
Traditional ethics considers conscience as the proximate norms of morality. It is defined as be preserved and forbidding that it be disturbed. Eternal Law provides for the cosmic order
the practical judgment of reason deciding upon an individual act as good and to followed or where every creature stands different and independent from each other but not apart from the
as evil and therefore, to be avoided. Conscience is the nearest criterion in terms of criterion in unified purpose of creation.
terms of evaluating the human conduct. It tells us further that a thing is good and should be
followed and some things are evil and thus, should be avoided. Kantian Ethics (Immanuel Kant)

TYPES OF CONSCIENCE Kant Moral Rationalism

Antecedent conscience is a judgment before an action is done. Its main functions are to Kant believes that reason is autonomous. For him, reason is “the be all end all” of everything.
command, to advice, to forbid, and to permit. Following this line of thinking, Kant maintained that all truths and all knowledge are derived
from human reason. And therefore, all laws and all moral principles also came from moral
Consequent conscience is a judgment after an act is done. It bears the following effects; reason. According to Kant, reasons commands and we must obey it without questioning. In
inner peace and remorse. effect, Kant is proposing an absolute morality, which for him requires absolute obedience.

True conscience is a conscience in which judges’ things truly are. Knowledge and the sense For Kant morality is;
of responsibility or one’s action help greatly in forming a correct conscience.
 A priori (Not based and not derived from experience)
Erroneous conscience is also called false conscience. It judges things in a distorted manner  It is universal (It applies to everybody)
since it considers bad acts as good and good acts as bad.  It is absolute (Moral laws are complete and fixed)
 Moral laws are immutable (Moral laws cannot be changed)
Certain conscience is a subjective certainly of legality of particular actions to be done of to
be omitted. This is the kind of conscience that moralists recommend to be always followed by Kant Categorical Imperative
man.
Kant was probably best known for his theory about a single, general moral obligation that
explains all other moral obligation we have. This is the concept of Categorical Imperative. To a Utilitarian, the effects or consequences determine the goodness or badness of an
Kant argues that since morality is a product of reason, the obedience to this command is true action. In other words, an act is considered to be moral if it results good consequences,
and binding because it is beyond experience. A categorical imperative generally speaking, is otherwise immoral.
an unconditional obligation, or an obligation that we have regardless of our will or desires.
The two main proponents of the principle are Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart
Mill.
Moral duties can be derived from the categorical imperative which can be
formulated in 3 ways.  Jeremy Bentham

 Formula of Universal Law The term utility according to Bentham has two meanings. By utility, it means that properly in
 Formula of Humanity any objects which tends to produce benefit, advantage, pleasure, good, or happiness. The
 Formula of Autonomy Utilitarian Principle according to Bentham can be coined in the phrase “The greatest good is
the greatest pleasure of the greatest number”. This simply implies that an action is
This theory is saying that we have universal duties, despite one’s subjective imperatives that considered to be good if it gives the person the greatest pleasure or happiness to the majority
seek to fulfil one’s happiness instead of these duties. of people affected by an action. An action is bad or evil if it does otherwise.

Business Application  John Stuart Mill

 Kant introduces the importance of humanistic dimension into business decisions. John Stuart Mill believes that human beings pursue happiness naturally and will avoid pain
Treat human beings not as means to an end, because human beings have ends in or suffering. He concluded that since man naturally seeks happiness and avoids pain, that
objectives. what constitute good moral is happiness and pain constitute moral evil.
 Kant stresses the importance of motives and of acting principles. Business decisions
are based sometimes on personal convictions and principles regardless of the To the Utilitarian, happiness is not merely the happiness of one person but rather the
outcomes or results. happiness of the greater number of people. The amount of happiness becomes great if a
 Kant categorical imperatives gives us the firm rules to follow in moral decision greater number of people experience it. An act that can make many people happy is better
making, rules that do not depend on circumstances or results and that do not permit than an act that gives happiness to only one or few persons.
individual exceptions. No matter what the consequences may be or who does it,
some actions are always wrong. Mill’s utilitarian refers to the mental pleasures when it defines happiness as pleasures,
Happiness pursues mental pleasures and this is what differentiate utilitarianism from
A. Machiavellian Principle (Niccolo Machiavelli) hedonism, Human beings desire greater pleasure because man has faculties more elevated
than those of animals.
“The end justifies the means”

The principle is found in The Prince, refer to gaining and maintaining political power and in C. Moral Positivism (Thomas Hobbes)
the process of creating a strong republic. In modern psychology, Machiavellianism is one of
the dark triad personalities, characterize by a two-faced interpersonal style, a cynical Thomas Hobbes believes that human beings are basically selfish creatures who would do
disregard for morality, a lack of empathy, and focus on self-interest and personal gain. anything to improve their position. According to Hobbes, people would act on their evil
impulses if left alone. In addition, Hobbes felt that like people, nations are selfishly motivated.
For him each country is in a constant battle for power and wealth.

B. Utilitarianism According to Hobbes, governments are created to protect people from their own selfishness
and evil. The best government is one that has a great power of leviathan, or sea monster.
The utilitarian ethics is considered the most important consequentialist theory, whose Hobbes believe in the rule of a king because he felt that a country needs an authority figure to
principle is best explained by the maxim “Do whatever produces the greatest good for the provide direction and leadership. Because the people are only interested in promoting their
greatest number”. The theory also argues that what makes an act right is tis consequences own self-interests. Hobbes believe allowing democracy would never work. Consequently,
and not the motive of the action.
giving power to individual would create a dangerous situation that would start “a war of every
man against every man” and make life “solitary, poor, brutish, and short.” 1. Socrates

Significance Ethical Philosophy

Hobbes moral positivism anticipates the chaotic outcome if laws are not abided. We all Socrates posited 3 special tenets in his moral philosophy;
believe that the purpose of the government is to protect the right of the people, preserve  Virtue is identical with knowledge
justice and enforce the laws. Likewise, it is a must for every nation to have someone who  Vice is identical with ignorance
would manage and administer them. Hence, the creation of laws and the obedience of tis  No one commits an evil act knowingly
subjects are important in the order and maintenance of peace in countries.
Socrates stand on the third tenet states that “no one commits an evil act
knowingly and doing wrong arises out of ignorance.” The reason for this is that sometimes, a
D. Divine Command Ethics person may have knowledge but he deliberately commits an evil act to satisfy his hidden
motive. Thus, a person should not use ignorance to excuse himself in doing evil. But on the
This theory says that there is a divine being, who has set down a finite series of rules that other hand, Socrates stated that a person will commit only moral evil if he lacks moral
adherents claim can provide guidance to most, if not all, moral decisions. An important knowledge.
example is the set of rules known as The Ten Commandments taken from the Judeo-
Christian traditions. A variant of divine theory is a command theory based on non-divine, but
morally exemplary individuals such as the Buddha which means “the enlightened.” In both 2. Plato
cases of the Judeo-Christian religion and the Buddhist religion, the logic of teaching is the
same. There are central moral injunctions that we are supposed to obey upon pain of the Knowing the forms for Plato, there are internal or universal principles and perfect ideas. Plato
divine retribution in the Judeo-Christian tradition, or failure to achieve nirvana in the Buddhist maintained that all things in the physical world are symbols of these perfect Forms in the
tradition. World of Ideas. And since these Forms are symbol, the world is not a true reality.

Analysis of Divine Mandate Theory Divine Command Responses to Analysis Plato also believe that People are intrinsically good. However, they make judgment through
irrational part of the soul. This then results to a moral conflict. People do not choose an evil
Divine Commanded theories assume belief in either divine beings or exemplary individuals. act because they are acting due to ignorance.
This theory and belief can be questioned because not all people believe that God exists.
Will dominates
For the true believer, it is simply a matter of seeing the light. Ideal Setting
Divine Command theories cannot cover all possible case of moral decision. This problem Appetite dominates
often leads to either fundamentalism, which every merely states that the extensions of the
basic rules to other cases are unproblematic, or it leads to differences in interpretation of the Business Application
basic rules and therefore differences in people’s moral laws.
Plato ethical theories can be applied in business. For example, in business decision making,
With enough study and faith, one can come to generally accepted interpretations that extend an outcome is acceptable only if it is done in the light of reasonable process according to
the reasoning behind the basic rules to fit all current situations. It is simply a matter of likening Plato’s concept of a virtuous act. For Plato, the right action, and thus, a moral action is one
the text and admonitions to ourselves. that is guided by reason. In addition, Plato believes that a reasonable and a virtuous action is
one that is not dominated by the evil or the appetite of the person.
Command theory generally have no exception clause, either explicit or implicit. This is a
problem for people living in morally complicated times. It is believed that the very need for 3. Aristotle
exceptions to reveal the truth is a sign of decadent time, and perhaps a greater adherence to
the rules will lead to a more morally sound society. According to Aristotle, we must take the middle way or the mean between two extremes.
Aristotle also rejected all forms of imbalance. We must not only develop our minds but also
our body. Virtue comes from the ability to govern excessive or lack of feelings. Any extremes
G. Virtue Ethics: Socrates, Plato and Aristotle
 would lead to vice. Thus, virtue comes from the mean between these extremes. The Golden instrument of doing well. He also believes that theories must be put into action and should
Mean Principle simply states that “to be happy one must live a life of moderation”. yield desirable and predictable consequences.
This means in everything that we do, we must avoid doing the extremes.

Extreme
Moderate Setting
Extreme

H. Pragmatism of Peirce, James, and Dewey

Pragmatism is a philosophy that attempts to clarify our ideas and to emphasize the practical
usefulness of ideas and beliefs as the criteria for truth. Pragmatism is a philosophy that
bridges the gap between empiricism and rationalism.

As a school of thought, pragmatism maintains the following assumptions;

 Be valid, all theories must be put into practice.

 There must be a close connection between thinking and acting.
 Ideas to regard as true must be useful.
 For ideas to be significant there must be a practical result.

1. Charles Sanders Peirce

Peirce focused his pragmatism on logic and science. For him there must be a connectivity
between idea and action. He said that our ideas are clear and distinct only when we can
translate them into some kind of meaningful action.

Peirce contends by saying that in the logical analysis of meanings- an idea that is useful in
solving difference between two prepositions is significant. For him, if an idea is not useful in
solving problem, then it does not have any significance at all.

2. William James
James focused his Pragmatism on Psychology and Religion. For him, pragmatism is an
inquiry into the practical meaning and events and issues. James argue that a thing is true
only if it works. He contends by saying that “an idea is only true if it does what you want it to
do”. In other words, an idea is true or good only insofar as it has what James called “a
practical cash value”. From James point of view, pragmatism is a philosophy that associates
truth with practical results.

3. James Dewey

Dewey based his pragmatism on ethics and sociology. He called his version of Pragmatism
“Instrumentalism” or “Experientialism”. Influenced by Darwin, he based his ideas on the
concept of evolution and believed that man can achieve moral progress and create an ideal
society through improvement in education. For Dewey, knowledge and practice are