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Utilitarian Ethics
Business Ethics 3825
Case of the Sole emaining Supplier
elevant stakeholders
Internal stakeholders
External stakeholders
Utilitarian ethics: Action plan
Desired aims
Specific Actions
aising the quality control standards
Develop elaborate Standard installation and operation procedures (SIOP)
ight of revoking supply contract unilaterally in case of non-compliance to SIOP
Optimal good achieved
Case of the Sole emaining Supplier
The case of 'sole remaining supplier' is regarding a firm that manufactures heart pacemakers. The pacemaker is a modern device that is used by the heart patients who have a medical problem of skipping heart beats. If regular heart beat (averagely after each 1.2 seconds) does not take place, the pacemaker stimulates the heart and it beats regularly. In its earliest years of invention, patients solely depended upon pacemaker whereas their own heart normal heartbeat was suspended. There were serious reservation in public, doctors, and the supplier company as to the…
References
Driver, J. (2009). "The History of Utilitarianism" The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Edward N. Zalta (ed.). Retrieved from: .
Fries, R.C. (2012). Reliable design of medical devices. CRC Press.
Haider, S.I. (2006). Validation Standard Operating Procedures: A Step-by-Step Guide for Achieving Compliance in the Pharmaceutical, Medical Device, and Biotech Industries. CRC Press.
QI.C.T. Task Force. (2000). Doing what counts for patient safety: Federal actions to reduce medical errors and their impact. 1-87. Washington: Quality Interagency Coordination Task Force.
However, whereas the strict rule utilitarian global conservationist would prohibit jet travel completely, the act utilitarian would certainly consider the corresponding purpose or value of any use of jet power. The act utilitarian would weigh the respective concerns and determine whether or not the proposed benefit or the total amount of "good" associated with the act outweighs the admitted cost in additional damage to the global environment. That analysis could apply to individual acts (such as with respect to the specific purpose of each proposed flight); or it could apply more generally, (such as with respect to the type of travel). Under that analysis, purely recreational travel might be prohibited, but certain kinds of commercial travel might be permissible because they are considered beneficial to the human community (such as fast mail delivery service).
The Ethical Issues Associated with Contemporary Global Warming and Conservation:
Some form of flexible act utilitarianism…
Utilitarian or Retributivist
Death penalty, the capital punishment, was called by Brennan as an "official murder" because of the main fact that it takes life as a form of providing justice to extreme crimes committed by criminals, an "eye for an eye punishment" as others may say.
Justice Brennan, a utilitarian, is against the capital punishment because he believes that death penalty is not reasonable to pay for a crime. This is perhaps because of his personal belief in morality that no human has the right to take away another human's life; that even the worst crime cannot be recompensed by the criminal's life. Brennan even argues that the death of a hundred of people is no worse than the death of one. Justice Brennan believes in punishment but not to death penalty. In his view, punishment is only proper to those who are guilty, but death penalty would be…
Utilitarian and Deontological Considerations
Today, many places of work require their employees to adhere to a prescribed dress code. In basic terms, a dress code is essentially a guide on what employees should or should not wear to work. In this text, I concern myself with utilitarian and deontological considerations in relation to dress code regulations in the workplace.
Workplace Dress Code egulations: Utilitarian and Deontological Considerations
In an attempt to design an appropriate image for their companies, employers routinely demand that employees adhere to a prescribed dress code. For instance, Company A could demand that all its male employees be dressed in a business suit and a tie. On the other hand, Company B. may take a less relaxed approach to dressing and allow its employees to report for work dressed in what is often referred to as 'business casual' wear. Although setting a dress code could help a…
References
Bredeson, D.A. (2011). Applied Business Ethics. Mason, OH: Cengage Learning.
Brooks, L.J. & Dunn, P. (2009). Business & Professional Ethics: For Directors, Executives & Accountants (5th ed.). Mason, OH: Cengage Learning.
Carroll, A.B. & Buchholtz, A.K. (2008). Business & Society: Ethics & Stakeholder Management (7th ed.). Mason, OH: Cengage Learning.
Corrigan, R.H. & Farrell, M. (Eds.). (2010). Ethics: A University Guide. Gloucester: Progressive Frontiers Press.
not committed a crime-- an innocent person. Similarly, it might happen. that the general welfare is promoted by punishing people excessively -- a greater punishment might have a greater deterrent effect. But both of these are, on their face,.violations of justice, which Retributivism would never allow." (Rachels, 135)
The danger presented here is one which threatens under any condition of ethical diversion. In the case of lying, there is an inherent danger that establishing an acceptance of divergence from truth as a moral norm under the pretense that such lying is geared toward sustenance of happiness could open the floodgates for the spectrum of interpretations as to how such happiness may be optimally attained. Herein lay the promise of a breakdown in social order about which Kant initially warns.
Mill's rule of exception, which allows that lying is wrong only 'in general,' is one founded on the intent to disestablish…
Works Cited
Albot, Phillip. (2002). Two Senses of 'Right.' Department of Philsophy: Washington University. Online at http://faculty.washington.edu/wtalbott/phil338/trFCSS&N.html
Kant, I. 1785. Groundwork for the Metaphysics of Morals. Jonathan Bennett
Rachels, James. (1993). The Utilitarian Approach. The Elements of Moral Philosophy, pg. 91-101. New York: McGraw Hill.
Rachels, James. (1993). Kant and Respect for Persons. The Elements of Moral Philosophy, pg. 127-138. New York: McGraw Hill.
To the terrorist in the act his or her life has no value. From their stand point the plane had to crash in a populated place causing maximum damage and consequently chaos. The passengers of the plane have a right to travel safe and be considered in an action that would take their lives and if an alternate was available to destroy the terrorists but save their lives that would be the best alternative. However such an alternative is ruled out in this case. The second is to shoot down the plane, thus killing the passengers, terrorists and seeing to it that the plane crashed with minimal damage to the city below. In other words protect the key installations that the terrorists tried to destroy with the act.
The questions then are threefold: 1. Does taking actions like shooting down planes that deviate from flight plans make it possible to…
The virtue ethics supporter would know that harming innocent animals and people is wrong and that that kind of behavior does not make a good world.
Aristotle believed that the one of the biggest and most important aspects of virtue ethics was reasoning. If one is to take time to reason about the situation with the make-up company, she is to know that one cannot allow animals and people to suffer and die in order to make glow-in-the-dark make-up. As a virtue ethical supporter, the Vice President would understand that values are determined mainly by common sense.
The people in the company do matter, but when it comes to ethics of any sort, whether utilitarian, Kantian, or virtue ethical theories, the people in the company are the last people who should be thought of. Under utilitarian theories, one might consider how not doing the testing will affect the company (loss…
For instance, if people fear going to hospitals, this is not a good thing, an ancillary result of the forced transplants. Therefore agent relativity such as Dr. Tooley's above becomes necessary. In this case, the philosopher compares the world with the transplant and without the transplant. Since it could be argued that the world might be worse with the transplants (for example, the reason stated above), then a utilitarian consequentialist using agent relativity could justify that their refusal to kill the donor to harvest the organs and letting the five patients die would be just ("Consequentialism," 2006). Although not addressed in this author's research on the topic, it would seem the above arguments with regard to the use of agent relativity might allow the forcible removal of a kidney or a lobe of the liver, since the possibilities of health complications are small for the donor.
To recap, this author…
Works Cited
Consequentialism. (2006). Stanford encylopedia of philosophy. Retrieved March 12,
2011, from
Utilitarian perspective on ethics
Utilitarian ethics proposes that actions are considered right or wrong according to the greatest amount of people that they help and/or make happy. The two foremost pioneers of the theory were Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill although Utilitarianism, in some form, always existed started off with hedonism and Aristotle (each of whom advocated different forms of eudemonia / contentment / happiness).
Branches of classical utilitarianism are 'Ideal utilitarianism'; act and rule utilitarianism (where rules are involved); two-level utilitarianism (that differentiates between act and rule); and preference utilitarianism (where the actual act of choosing depends on the preferences of the individual). Still other strands include Negative Utilitarianism (that focuses on what not to do); and motive utilitarianism (where acts are chosen according to those which give the greatest deal of felicity).
A recent case in the news perfectly showcases the principle of utilitarian ethics in practice.…
Rachels, James & Rachels, Stuart (2012). The Elements of Moral Philosophy. McGraw-Hill Higher Education
Hu, J (2004) Yahoo denies family access to dead marine's e-mail. CNet
http://news.cnet.com/Yahoo-denies-family-access-to-dead-marines-e-mail/2100-1038_3-5500057.html
Human ights Violations in the Workplace
Utilitarian Theory and Human ights
Violations of human rights:
Firing a teacher for having IVF treatment at a Catholic school
The basic tenant of utilitarian theory is that policies should attempt to maximize 'the good' for the greatest number of people. It is a theory based upon the principle of maximizing pleasure and minimizing pain for the majority. Upholding human rights includes minority as well as majority rights. Sometimes individual vs. utilitarian theory can be in conflict; however, at other times the philosophy can support human rights.
One of the most fundamental human rights is the right to religious liberty. According to Article 2 of the Universal Declaration of Human ights, "Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social…
References
Catholic school teacher fired for having in vitro. (2006). ABC News. Retrieved:
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/story?id=1949131#.T_V8_JHeL-Y
Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Retrieved:
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/UDHR/Documents/UDHR_Translations/eng.pdf
The question may arise then, would they choose to not spend the money on gas, and be forced to find other ways of transportation. In a utopian society this might ring true, but in real life, other forms of transportation are unlikely to assist in their transportation problem. The truth of the matter is that we live in a mobile society, and those individuals without the capability of being mobile are at a rather complete disadvantage to those parts of society that have the disposable income to weather such events as a raise in gas prices.
Treating third world countries in that same method, would be just like limiting the choices of those lower income individuals by raising gas prices. By restricting their access to advanced technologies (even if they are more polluting) is also limiting their capabilities to expand their research in order to find a solution to the…
Abstract
Once the hub of General Motors, Flint, Michigan is now a town in disarray due to contaminated drinking water. In spite of dozens of class-action and individual lawsuits, the crisis has yet to be resolved fully. The city of Flint and the State of Michigan are both responsible for using lead piping in the town infrastructure, which is the direct cause of the lead contamination. Research definitively shows lead contamination causes innumerable, irreversible, and often fatal health problems. The Kantian, utilitarian, and egoism ethical perspectives all show that Flint residents deserve justice.
Summary of Case
In 2014, the city of Flint, Michigan diverted the town’s water supply from Lake Huron to the Flint River. The EPA and independent organizations like Virginia Tech tested the Flint River water and found “dangerous levels of lead” at point of contact such as in people’s homes (“Flint Water Crisis Fast Facts,” 2017, p.…
References
“Flint Water Crisis Fast Facts,” (2017). CNN. 28 Nov, 2017. https://www.cnn.com/2016/03/04/us/flint-water-crisis-fast-facts/index.html
Glenzain, J. (2017). Nestlé plays $200 a year to bottle water near Flint—where water is undrinkable. The Guardian. 29 Sept, 2017. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/sep/29/nestle-pays-200-a-year-to-bottle-water-near-flint-where-water-is-undrinkable
Moore, M. (n.d.). 10 things they won’t tell you about the Flint water tragedy. But I will. https://michaelmoore.com/10FactsOnFlint/
Ravve, R. (2017). Flint water crisis. Fox News. 3 Nov, 2017. http://www.foxnews.com/us/2017/11/03/flint-water-crisis-michigan-residents-still-unable-to-drink-tap-water-three-years-later.html
stem cell research has been controversial for years. What are stem cells and why do they entail so much interest? Stem cells may be derived from embryonic, fetal, or adult cells and tissues. Potentially, the embryonic stem cells can serve as the machinery to repair, regenerate, and/or replace tissues and organs. In other words, they could prove invaluable in eradicating all illnesses and incurable conditions. Following an ethical perspective, the doctrine of Utilitarianism supports stem cell research.
Utilitarian theory proposes that the desirable consequences of an action justify it for the greater good, and for its short or long-term benefits (osenstand). In the matter of stem cell research, the desirable long-term consequences are those of scientific advancement within the healthcare domain, improved health value for all human beings, and financial preservation for all citizens of the world, that would no longer spend so much currency on medicines if they were…
References
Rosenstand, Nina. The Moral of the Story: An Introduction to Ethics. New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education, 2012.
Retributivist and Utilitarian Theories
WHICH WORKS ETTER?
Retributivist/Utilitarian Theories Justification of Criminal Punishment
The Theories and Their Ideas
Punishment, as a legitimate sanction imposed on a person for a criminal offense, must first consist of 5 elements (anks, 2009). These are an unpleasant experience for the victim; an actual or supposed offense; an actual or supposed offender committed the act; the act is committed by a person rather than as a natural consequence of an action; and punishment must be imposed by an authority whose rules are violated by the offense. enn and Peters (1959 in ean, 1981 as qtd in anks) added the element of unpleasantness as an essential part of the offense intended. The philosophical debate on punishment converges on the two main theories, namely the retributive and utilitarian. These theories eventually led to the development of other theories on deterrence, retribution, incapacitation, rehabilitation, and restorative justice (anks).…
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Banks, C. (2009). The purpose of criminal punishment. Chapter 5. "Ethics and the Criminal Justice System." Sage Publications. Retrieved on April 17, 2012 from http://www.sagepub.com/upm-data/5144_Banks_II_Proof_Chapter_5.pdf
Dubber, M.D. And Kelman, M.G. (2009). Punishment and its rationales. American Criminal Law: Foundation Press. Retrieved on April 17, 2012 from http://www.dubberkelman.com/forms/chapter1.pdf
Haist, M. (2009). Deterrence in a sea lf "just deserts": are utilitarian goals achievable in a world of "limiting retributivism?" vol. 99 # 3 The Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology: Northwestern University School of Law. Retrieved on April 17, 2012
from http://www.law.northwestern.edu/jclc/backissues/v99/n3/9903_789.haist.pdf
They seek pleasure and avoid pain in their assessment of the situation. Therefore, consequentialism is hedonistc and egotism. Using this argument, one could say that utilitarianism is more altruistic than consequentialism. However, utilitarianism is not completely altruistic either. Utilitarianism is neither altruistic nor egotistic. However, it is difficult to call consequentialism altruistic. Some acts might have a hint of altruism, but there are few that consider the consequences of others before direct consequences for ourselves.
Hedonism requires the absence of pain, in most cases. hen one is in pain, either emotional or physical, it is difficult to feel complete happiness. hat is considered pleasure and what is considered pain is up to interpretation. This is an open question to which there are no clear guidelines. Utilitarians are hedonists in that they consider pleasure to be the intrinsic good. They consider pain to be bad. However, this concept can be challenged…
Works Cited
Brink, D. And Copp, D. "Some forms and Limits of Consequentialism." Chapter 14.
A www.ingentaconnect.comThe Oxford Handbook of Ethical Theory, December 2005, pp. 357-380.
Hurka, T. And Copp, D. "Value Theory. www.ingentaconnect.comThe Oxford Handbook of Ethical Theory, December 2005, pp. 357-380.
Such prohibition, Bentham contended, would be a contradiction to the preservation of individual rights. He even goes so far as to signal the necessity for a change in approach to contending with any questions regarding the prescription of rights, here channeled through the words of John Stuart Mill. The remarks seem directed in their derisive tone at the unempirical thinkers espousing the Law of Nature as a singular lens for evaluating human rights.
"Instead of taking up their opinions by intuition, or by ratiocination from premises adopted on a mere rough view, and couched in language so vague that it is impossible to say exactly whether they are true or false, philosophers are now forced to understand one another, to break down the generality of their propositions, and join a precise issue in every dispute." (Mill, 1)
Guided by the central principle that morality may defined as the creation, extension…
Works Cited:
California Medical Association (CMA). (1973). Where We Stand -- CMA Position Papers: Abortion. Western Journal of Medicine, 116(6), 42-59.
Mill, J.S. (1838). Bentham. London and Westminster Review. Online at http://socserv2.socsci.mcmaster.ca/~econ/ugcm/3ll3/bentham/bentham
Rachels, J. (1993). The Utilitarian Approach. The Elements of Moral Philosophy, pg.
91-101. New York: McGraw Hill.
Peer Reply 1:
Rebecca Haynes
I have the same concerns regarding health care costs and who will pay for it. On the one hand, I can understand the predicament: someone has to foot the bill later on down the road, but at the moment people need care and that should not be ignored. Figuring out the best approach so that the greatest common good can be achieved is especially difficult in this type of situation, as there is not a lot of commonality among people anymore, for one.
We are very divided in our beliefs and in our needs, and so just trying to get to a place where we can say for certain that this is the greatest common good over here or that this is it over there—that just seems so unlikely at this point in time. For that reason, I question the validity of the utilitarian approach…
Kant's Theory Of Retribution
Those who act criminally are required by the community to receive a punishment for those acts.
To Kant, retribution is justified when it is an exact compensation for the wrong another person has done. Inappropriate punishment, on the other hand, is something which is arbitrary and more often than not, completely unrelated to the actual effect of the crime. Therefore, it is morally unjustifiable to punish a person, while eye for an eye retribution, while it causes suffering, is justifiable because the harm done is repaid with an exact and related harm.
When it comes to the death penalty, Kant would argue that such a penalty is justifiable only when it is used to redress the taking of a life.
The utilitarian framework can be used to evaluate the legitimacy of the death penalty from the point-of-view of net gain; does the punishment result in a…
Biblical Views of Science, Technology, And Business
One of the more difficult aspects of trying to live a biblically-inspired life is that the Bible is, in many ways, a historical document. It was written thousands of years ago and describes events that are, in many ways, very unlike the challenges faced by modern human beings. This is particularly true in the 21st century, when modern science, technology, and business advances seem to be, at times, in direct opposition to the Bible or biblical teachings. That view ignores the basic underlying premise of the Bible, which is that it is both a historical document and a living document. As a living document, it has the ability to grow with the advances of mankind. In fact, it does not actually grow with mankind; on the contrary, as man's understanding expands to encompass more of the universe, as reflected in advances in science,…
References
Crampton, W.G. 1997. The biblical view of science. Retrieved September 2, 2014 from The
Trinity Foundation website: http://www.trinityfoundation.org/journal.php?id=163
Fooshee, G. 2014. 10 financial principles that are biblical. Retrieved September 2, 2014 from Back to the Bible website: http://www.backtothebible.org/10-financial-principles-that-are-biblical.html
Hibberd, P. Unk. To what extent is utilitarianism compatible with Christian theology? Discuss
Legally, forcing Ford to make costly payments to the families of the victims of its maleficent inaction was good for society as well as for the individuals who were harmed. Companies are less likely to make such criminally negligent risk/benefit calculations when they know the legal system will penalize the organization financially and legally. Only by increasing the hazardous potential of financial loss from acting immorally can the tort system truly protect consumers. Even in utilitarian ethical calculations, forcing Ford to make costly payments to victim's families makes acting as Ford did in the Pinto case 'wrong' even in terms of corporate profitability analysis as the company is potentially harming the profit margins of shareholders as well as unwitting drivers.
Of course, it could be argued that such an ethical rationale is undeniably influenced by the current litigious environment -- few companies would feel, in today's environment that they could…
Works Cited
De George. (2006). The Ford Pinto case. Business ethics, pp.298-299.
Leggett, Christopher. (1999, Spring). The Ford Pinto case. Law & Valuation.
Retrieved September 14, 2009 at http://www.wfu.edu/~palmitar/Law&Valuation/Papers/1999/Leggett-pinto.html
Newton & Ford. (2008). Chapter 4/Issue 15: Was Ford to blame in the Pinto case? Taking sides,
Philosophy
Human nature seems to be delicately balanced between destructive and constructive forces, which may wrestle and be in continual conflict. However, it is possible to resolve the conflicts inherent in human nature to create unity and harmony. Plato pointed out that the body and the soul represent the two opposing forces pulling human nature in different directions, potentially begetting conflict. The body's appetites and desires for pleasure are pitted against the soul's desire for reason. Appetites include the most basic impulses of survival like hunger, thirst, and sex. Other aspects of human nature that can conflict include the aspect of aggression: the "spirited" nature of a human being that is not necessarily destructive but can be if not kept in check. Similarly, the body's appetites are good in the sense that they help keep the body alive, but they need to be tempered by reason to avoid problems. Generally,…
References
Chapter 2: Human Nature. Retrieved online: http://philosophy.tamu.edu/~sdaniel/Notes/chapter2.pdf
West, H.R. "Utilitarianism." Retrieved online: http://www.utilitarianism.com/utilitarianism.html
The morality of the act can be defended by the Utilitarian principle that the number of deaths (250,000+) caused by dropping the weapons of mass destruction over Hiroshima and Nagasaki was less than the deaths that would have been caused by a land invasion of Japan ("John Stuart Mill").
However, despite the considerable improvement and sophistication provided by Mill to the philosophy of Utilitarianism and the practical usefulness of the 'greatest happiness principle' the theory still suffers from serious flaws.
Dr. Ruut Veenhoven, a professor of Erasmus University, Rotterdam, for instance points out in an article that the 'greatest happiness principle' is particularly problematic when applied at the level of individual choice. This is because we cannot usually foresee the consequences of our actions or whether they would produce happiness or pain but paradoxically the Utilitarian theory deems well-intended behavior to be a-moral if it happens to pan out adversely.…
Works Cited
John Stuart Mill." Great Philosophers: Oregon State University Website. 2002. November 6, 2008. http://oregonstate.edu/instruct/phl201/modules/Philosophers/Mill/mill.html
Fox, James. "Utilitarianism." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 15. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. November 6, 2008. http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15241c.htm
Garth Kemerling. "Utilitarianism." Philosophy Pages. February 21, 2002. November 6, 2008. http://www.philosophypages.com/hy/5q.htm#lib
Veenhoven, Ruut. "Happiness as an Aim in Public Policy: The Greatest Happiness Principle."
Mill's basic principle, assess the legitimacy of laws (a) requiring motorists to wear helmets, (b) preventing people from walking naked in public parks, (c) forbidding people to take drugs like cocaine or heroin, or (d) outlawing skateboarding in certain areas.
Mill's "harm principle" as stated in On Liberty could possibly be a legitimate reason to enforce wearing helmets for motorists, outlaw people from walking naked in parks, outlaw cocaine or heroin usage, and ban skateboarding in certain areas. Yet, as Mill (1859) himself states, "The only purpose for which power can be rightfully exercised over any member of a civilized community, against his will, is to prevent harm to others" (p. 21). With that said, one may be able to object to the application of Mill's "harm principle" in so far as it applies to motorists, nudists, drug users, and skateboarders for the simple reason that they are not necessarily…
References
Kadi, J. (1996). Thinking Class. MA: South End Press.
Mill, J. S. (1859). On Liberty. UK: Oxford University.
Act Utilitarianism:
Whereas rule utilitarianism focuses on the relative social benefit of rules, act utilitarianism concerns specific ethics of actions rather than the rules governing those actions. In many respects, act utilitarianism can be considered an extension, or a refinement, of rule utilitarianism, because it provides a method of incorporating useful or beneficial exceptions to general rules that benefit society more than rigid or absolute adherence to rules.
Using the same example of vehicular rules of the road, there are situations that sometimes justify violating those rules, notwithstanding the fact that those rules are generally useful, beneficial, and necessary. In emergencies, the value of violating a rule in specific instances sometimes outweighs the importance of following those rules absolutely without exception. In matters of life or death emergencies, such as fires or the need to deliver a baby, the value of delivering firefighting resources to extinguish fires as soon as…
Moreover, caring for her mother, the other option, would surely: a) create a feeling of being "unfulfilled" which brings with it depression and resentfulness; b) leave her with nothing to look forward to but the dark day when her mother actually passes away; and c) realize after a short time that she is not "a Mother Teresa" and that her live would be diminished (Stuart, 25).
hat does Stuart believe is the right choice for Alice? Stuart asserts that the virtue that carries the most weight in this instance is having Alice care for her mother. Giving up her career for her mother would outweigh the "…virtues of perseverance, love of truth…and self-knowledge" should she decide to go forward with her dissertation (26).
hat Stuart also mentions -- and this is a prime reason for this writer to believe Alice should find a competent person to be a caregiver for…
Works Cited
Hill, T.E.. "Assessing Moral Rules: Utilitarian and Kantian Perspectives." Philosophical Issues,
15(1), (2005): 158-178
Mautner, Thomas. "Act-Utilitarianism." The Penguin Dictionary of Philosophy. Retrieved June 12, 2013, from http://utilitarianism.org . 2008.
Rivera, Lisa. "Sacrifices, Aspirations and Morality: Williams Reconsidered." Ethical Theory and Moral Practice. 10.1 (2007): 69-87.
ecord
Medical Administration Service for File
ationale in Support of Selection of Heart Transplant ecipient
Because time was of the essence in formulating this decision, this memorandum for the record sets forth the decision-making process and that was used to select the most appropriate candidate for a heart transplantation procedure. It was my responsibility as lead surgeon to select the most appropriate heart transplant recipient from a pool of three candidates, each of whom had suffered from several health-related issues that adversely affected their suitability for the transplant procedure. Therefore, in order to formulate as subjective an analysis as possible in a timely fashion, a utilitarian ethical analytical approach was used to identify the candidate that held the most promise of using the gift of additional life from the heart donor to its maximum advantage. The utilitarian ethical analysis showed that of the three potential heart transplant candidates, the 12-year-old…
References
Andre, C. & Velasquez, M. (1989, Winter). Calculating consequences: The utilitarian approach to ethics. Issues in Ethics, 2(1), 37.
Hollingsworth, J.A., Hall, E.H. & Trinkaus, R.J. (1991). Utilitarianism: An ethical framework for compensation decision making. Review of Business, 13(3), 17-19.
Rosen, F. (2003). Classical utilitarianism from Hume to Mill. London: Routledge.
Attitudes
Functional attitude theories hold the central notion that people have attitudes for different reasons. By understanding the different reasons that one has for an attitude and targeting these reasons can be the basis for being able to change an attitude. The basic attitude functions are:
The knowledge function of an attitude refers to the need for people to assign structure, meaning, or order to their surroundings. For instance, in studies of cognitive dissonance people need to assign order to a chaotic situation (incompatible behavior and attitude) and therefore bolster a particular attitude to do so. Advertisers have used this as strategic tactic for years when they target people who have chronic pain, depression, or some other particular condition that results in perceived disorder in their lives. Morals, ethics, and the need to find structure in ambiguous situations serve this function in much the same way. Such attitudes provide a…
Emperor's Club: Kantian, utilitarian, and Aristotelian views
According to Kantian ethical principles, Mr. Hundert should have allowed the grades of his four students to remain as they were, and not altered them. A Kantian ethical schema suggests that a person should behave as if he is setting a law for all time, not merely reacting to the specifics of a situation. A Kantian philosopher would say teachers cannot subjectively change grades simply because they believe that a particular student emotionally 'needs' to win more than another student. Hundert allowed his personal feelings for Bell and Bell's improvement as a student to influence his decision-making, and hurt another student in the process. However, from a utilitarian standpoint, by showing Bell the importance of hard work and moral activity, a great service is done to society because Bell is the child of a powerful man, and will likely grow up to be…
2005, John Ellsworth, father of deceased soldier Justin Ellsworth, made national news when he asked to be granted access to his deceased son's e-mails. Twenty-year-old Justin had been killed in Fallujah on November 13, 2004, by a roadside bomb. The least, Mr. Ellsworth could do, the father felt, was to collect these e-mails that his son had written whilst in Iraq and fashion them into some sort of memorial. Yahoo! refused. They had promised privacy to their clients and they could not break the promise regardless of the situation. It was only after a Michigan probate court ordered them to release the e-mails that Yahoo complied.
The case reveals two types of ethics. Yahoo! On the one hand epitomized the deontological way of thinking that norms of right and wrong exist and cannot be breached regardless of the situation. The judge, however, took the family's happiness into account and, by…
Sources
Ferrera, JJ & Darrow GF (2005) WHO OWNS A DECEDENT'S E-MAILS:
INHERITABLE PROBATE ASSETS OR
PROPERTY OF THE NETWORK? LEGISLATION AND PUBLIC POLICY, 10:281
HU, J. (Dec. 21, 2004) Yahoo denies family access to dead marine's e-mail
Pirate Steel Ethics Case Study
Three issues are the main challenges in this case study. One is the theory of rights, which is particularly imperative in the existence of an organization. This theory claims that all parties should be well represented and has utmost satisfaction. There should be no violation of rights for any of the parties. In this case study, all the parties should have information on the proceedings of the company. This is to avoid any of them being on the dark on matters of the organization. The top-level management has all the right to know the destination of their finances. Violation for this is when there are unreliable reports on the purchases. There should be transparency in all the issues that deal with the top-level management, as they are the most answerable. The investors also have the right to know all the transparent issues for the company.…
References
Battaly, Heather. 2011. Virtue and Vice, Moral and Epistemic. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons. http://public.eblib.com/EBLPublic/PublicView.do?ptiID=792903 .
Hoffmann-Holland, Klaus. 2009. Ethics and human rights in a globalized world: an interdisciplinary and international approach. Tu-bingen: Mohr Siebeck.
Stammler, Rudolf. 2000. The theory of justice. Union, N.J.: Lawbook Exchange.
Robert Nozick's Entitlement Theory asserts that free market exchanges are manifestations of society's respect for people as equal -- an economic phenomenon that is given a moral dimension/explanation. This theory is hinged on three principles: transfer principle, acquisition principle, and rectification principle. The first principle holds the argument that all holdings or properties freely acquired from others are considered justly acquired. In the same vein of argument, the second principle posits that people are entitled to have holdings/properties, so long as they are acquired in a just manner. Lastly, an "injustice" committed can be rectified by giving the property back to its rightful owner (i.e., a property unjustly acquired can be corrected by returning it back to the original owner/first owner).
John Rawls' theory of distributive justice contains within its argument the principles of liberty and difference. In his theory, Rawls argues that the principles of justice determine how the…
Utilitarian Viewpoint of Drones
Ethical Issues
The topic discussed within this document is "Uncharted Territory: When Innovation Outpaces egulation for Private Use of Drones." What is interesting about this topic is that the crux of it revolves about the fact that quite frequently in technological applications, innovations and availability outstrips regulation and user consistency. For the sake of this document, however, this phenomenon will be explored solely through the usage and ramifications pertaining to drones.
The ethical issues pertaining to drones primarily involve privacy. Drones are a means of remotely achieving physical objectives by utilizing small, highly maneuverable objects that are controlled from vast distances. These objects first gained notoriety with their deployment in the United States military, in which they were used to conduct assaults and to obtain intelligence. Although it is highly unlikely that drones will become available for commercial use for the aforementioned purpose, it is worth…
References
Belfiore, M. (2015). Drone makers seek traffic control. www.bloomberg.com Retrieved from http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-04-09/drone-makers-seek-traffic-control
Deloitte. (2014). Live from SXSW: The truth about drones. http://deloitte.wsj.com / Retrieved from
Therefore, the utilitarian would likely object on moral grounds to any late-term abortive procedure that would cause the fetus pain, even if the balance of objective moral good suggests that aborting a seriously defective fetus. Other than the issue of causing pain to the fetus, the utilitarian position would also consider the long-term subjective experience of living with a severe defect, which might also be quite painful on more than one level. With respect to concern for the defective fetus, the utilitarian would likely object to any procedure that caused pain to the fetus during the process; otherwise, the utilitarian would consider late-term abortion in this case, in relation to the harm-benefit analysis to others, provided that the procedure chosen would incorporate the moral need to anesthetize the fetus. Beyond the issue of the fetus' pain, the utilitarian would consider the emotional difficulty and economic harm to the mother and…
Bioethics
Abortion ranks amongst the most widely questionable subjects examined and discussed all through the world today. Is it accurate to say that it is legitimate? Is it precise to say that it is not an ethical decision? These are simply a couple of the inquiries that arise thereto. One thought is that fetus removal is thought to be reasonable when viewed through the utilitarian viewpoint. The discussion that follows will contemplate on that.
Abortion (Debate Basics):
The premature birth deliberation questions if it can be ethically right to bring an end to pregnancy unnaturally (BBC Ethics). Thinker Ted Lockhart offers a practical answer for taking care of moral issues that can help decide whether to go in for abortion (BBC Ethics). Lockhart proposes that we ought to "exercise discretion based on ethically acceptable values" (BBC Ethics). Interpreted in a simplified manner this means that where we need to settle…
References:
1)
"Introduction to the Abortion Debate." BBC. Web. 19 Dec. 2014. .
2)
Singer, Peter. Rethinking Life and Death: The Collapse of Our Traditional Ethics. 1st ed. St. Martins, 1996. Print.
I have a clear written mandate that guides this decision. The other alternatives do not have the same clear, written mandate as the one that I made. hile a utilitarian approach may have yielded a different decision, in my position as a safeguard of public safety I am not obligated to undertake a utilitarian position unless I can do so without compromising my primary mandate. This is something I was able to do with generic drugs that I cannot do with biosimilars, even though it would be expedient for me to ignore the differences between the two products.
There are certainly those who would object with this decision. A utilitarian in particular would have a strong argument that total health outcomes depend not only on drug safety but on availability as well. I would argue, however, that this objection is invalid for a couple of reasons. The most important of…
Works Cited:
Van Arnum, P. (2010). Healthcare reform draws mixed reviews from pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. PharmTech.com. Retrieved December 8, 2010 from http://pharmtech.findpharma.com/pharmtech/Regulation/Healthcare-Reform-Draws-Mixed-Reviews-from-Pharmac/ArticleStandard/Article/detail/662434?contextCategoryId=48563
Utilitarian Abortion Considerations:
The utilitarian perspective applied to the abortion issue would focus on whether
permitting or prohibiting elective abortion would contribute more positively the interests of society Mill, 2003 p160). The principal difference between the utilitarian and deontological perspectives is that utilitarianism is wholly unconcerned with the underlying motivation for decisions. Whereas deontological formalism values the state of mind of the individual, utilitarianism focuses on the ultimate consequences of the act, irrespective of motivation Russell, 2002 p 99).
Within the utilitarian ethical perspective, rule utilitarianism would promote the choice associated with the overall benefit to others and to society if it were adhered to religiously in all circumstances, irrespective of isolated cases in which the rule produced a negative result Russell, 2002 p101-2). For example, in a society where relative birth and death rates were such that the continuation of society were in jeopardy, the utilitarian perspective might require…
(Dershowitz, 2002 p112).
Therefore, the contemporary utilitarian approach to morality in human life is to consider other definitions of "goodness" and "benefit" rather than equating morality with the interests of the greatest number. In many respects, that is the perspective exemplified by the modern American justice system (Dershowitz, 2002 p112). Under that view, the moral rightness or wrongness of elective abortion would seek to weigh the manner in which permitting abortions might benefit society and how that decision would affect all of the individuals directly involved in specific situations. If the initial assumption is that society is benefited by the respect for the autonomous rights of individuals to make personal decisions about abortion without interference from the state, utilitarianism would support the freedom to make that decision.
Under the act utilitarianism perspective, therefore, certain types of abortions (such as in cases of rape, incest, or medical necessity for the life of the mother)
J. Simpson or John Gotti. In both cases, the defendants are entitled to the presumption of innocence only in court; but there is no such "presumption" in the intellectual "court" of one's mind.
A lawyer with integrity would refuse to represent any defendant he believed was probably guilty of horrendous crimes and simply let that defendant be represented by a court-appointed attorney who is obligated by law to represent any defendant who cannot afford a private attorney. If all criminal defense lawyers had high personal ethical standards, the Simpsons and Gottis of the world would find it impossible to retain any defense counsel other than those obligated by law to take their cases.
4. Define and briefly explain ethical dilemma. Of the four categories of dilemmas: discretion, duty, honesty and loyalty, which one applies best to the following situations? Explain your rationale. Also, explain how an officer might analyze the…
Off-duty time does not extend the 14-hour period.
15-Hour on-Duty Limit
May not drive after having been on duty for 15 hours, following 8 consecutive hours off duty. Off-duty time is not included in the 15-hour period.
60/70-Hour on-Duty Limit
May not drive after 60/70 hours on duty in 7/8 consecutive days. A driver may restart a 7/8 consecutive day period after taking 34 or more consecutive hours off duty.
60/70-Hour on-Duty Limit
May not drive after 60/70 hours on duty in 7/8 consecutive days.
Sleeper Berth Provision
Drivers using the sleeper berth provision must take at least 8 consecutive hours in the sleeper berth, plus a separate 2 consecutive hours either in the sleeper berth, off duty, or any combination of the two.
Sleeper Berth Provision
Drivers using a sleeper berth must take at least 8 hours in the sleeper berth, and may split the sleeper-berth time into two…
References
About DOT. (2012). U.S. Department of Transportation. Retrieved from http://www.dot.gov/ .
Ashmore, R.B. & Staff, W.C. (1994). Teaching ethics: An interdisciplinary approach.
Milwaukee: Marquette University Press.
Belz, S.M., Robinson, G.S. & Casali, J.G. (2004). Temporal separation and self-rating of alertness as indicators of driver fatigue in commercial motor vehicle operators. Human Factors, 46(1), 154-156.
advertisements and emerging technology studies are focusing on increasing attention on advertising to children, this has been an issue of concern for decades now (Nurses Association, 2001). One of the main issues of contention is whether to researchers should direct their communication towards children or whether they should communicate with their parents directly. In this regard, the study has focused on utilitarian and deontology theories in putting this issue into perspective.
Concerning young kids, it is reasonable to direct research efforts of snack foods, toys and games to their parents because parents are the main buyers of such products. Nevertheless, researchers are aware that better results can be achieved through directing research messages to children, partly because children do not have the capability to analyze research findings and the underlying messages critically. Similarly, children would want the products regardless of the research findings. While pressuring parents, kids substantially force their…
References
Hill, T.E. (2009). Contemporary ethical theories. New York: Macmillan.
Vaughn, L. (2010). Bioethics: Principles, issues, and cases. New York: Oxford University Press
Cournoyer, B. (2011). The social work skills workbook. Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole, Cengage
Learning.
The utilitarian perspective focuses on the broad impacts of the actions, rather than just how the actions affect specific individuals (Andre & Velasquez, 2010). From the utilitarian perspective, genetic testing has the potential to do great harm to many, and to benefit many. The utilitarian arithmetic points out that the benefits to the companies in utilizing genetic testing is that profits increase. The argument can also be made that wealthier companies provide more jobs and wealthier insurance companies are better able to pay out to those who do receive payments. The counter to the former point is that this employment is theoretical -- not only may it not occur, but it may not occur in the United States. The counter to the latter is that insurance is largely price inelastic, so there is no improvement in coverage likely from handing more profits to insurance companies.
On the harm side, many…
Works Cited:
Andre, C. & Velasquez, M. (2010). Calculating consequences: The utilitarian approach to ethics. Markkula Center for Applied Ethics. Retrieved February 20, 2011 from http://www.scu.edu/ethics/publications/iie/v2n1/calculating.html
Cline, a. (2011). Deontology and ethics: What is deontology, deontological ethics? About.com. Retrieved February 20, 2011 from http://atheism.about.com/od/ethicalsystems/a/Deontological.htm
Miller, P. (2007). Genetic testing and the future of disability insurance: Thinking about discrimination in the genetic age. The Journal of Law, Medicine and Ethics. Vol. 35 (2) 47-52.
Schafer, S. (2001). Railroad agrees to stop gene-testing workers. Washington Post. In possession of the author.
But if it wishes to stand by the stated principles of its founding and the message it attaches to its history, than profiling cannot be allowed to exist.
4) Deontological ethical systems "guide and assess our choices of what we ought to do," as opposed to suggesting what types of people we should be (Stanford, 2007). Another important distinction of deontological viewpoints is their emphasis on the motives and intentions behind an act in regards to that act's ethicality, as opposed to the consequences of that act. One narrow form of deontological ethics is moral absolutism, propagated by such thinkers as Immanuel Kant (Stanford, 2007). According to his view, acts are either moral or immoral in all situations, without any regard to the consequences (Stanford, 2007). Not all deontological viewpoints are this extreme, however it provides the clearest example of the deontological view. According to deontological ethics, acting in a…
References
Fauchon, C. (2004). "Counterpoint: the case against profiling." International social review, Fall-Winter 2004.
Friedman, Barry. (2004). "Policy point-counterpoint: profiling at airports." International social review, Fall-Winter 2004.
Reddick, S. (2004). "Point: the case for profiling." International social review, Fall-Winter 2004.
Stanford. (2007). Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Accessed 22 February 2009. http://plato.stanford.edu
All organizations and business have some form of ethical culture to carry out their goals, which cannot be inconsistent with the aims of utilitarianism. All organizations aim at the pleasure of achieving or creating something. This line of thought can be strictly infused into the awareness of employees during meetings or seminars. The goals of the theory may also be infused into new employees as part of their orientation. Existing employees may be promoted on the basis of their best contribution to organizational goals and the welfare of fellow employees. These are measurable criteria and a source of motivation to other employees.
The utilitarian theory necessarily states that it is an employee's duty to perform and behave in the best possible way to benefit the business, fellow employees, society and himself or herself. Consequently, he or she has the right to expect the same benefits from the organization, fellow employees,…
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Gilani, N. (2011). Utilitarianism in the workplace. eHow: Demand Media, Inc. Retrieved
on November 30, 2011 from http://www.ehow.com/info8785999_utilitarianism-workplace.html
Lamont, J. (2007). Distributive justice. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Stanford
University. Retrieved on November 30, 2011 from http://plato.stanford.edu /entries/justice-distributive
William Styron's novel Sophie's Choice presents an almost unimaginably terrible moral dilemma to the reader. In the novel, the character Sophie and her two children are taken to the Nazi death camp Auschwitz-irkenau during the Nazi purge of the Jews. When entering the camp and being examined by an SS officer that is also a doctor, she tells the doctor that there has been a mistake, that she is not Jewish, but Catholic, and that she should be spared. Allegedly sympathizing with her, the doctor then allows Sophie a "reward," and her reward is to be able to save one of her children -- but she must choose which one is to be saved and which one is to die right there on the spot. There are several ways that one could ultimately view Sophie's decision to save Jan, her elder boy, such as using a Kantian, a utilitarian, or…
Bibliography
Honderich, Ted, ed. The Oxford Companion to Philosophy. New York: Oxford UP, 1995.
Styron, William. Sophie's Choice. New York: Random House, 1999.
The orchestration of all aspects of B2B marketing is significantly more complex and challenging as well, a point shown in the discussions. The researchers did find enough causality to create a model of value-driven marketing, and it does show that only through a continual focus and auditing of customer needs will B2B marketing reach the levels of performance in B2 markets (Leek, hristodoulides, 2012). There are also many limitations of this study, including the lack of an empirically sounds research methodology, more effective sampling frame, and the inclusion of more diverse respondents to better represent the markets of interest. The model has also created a model of causality based on limited data and the transformation of brand value to relationships strength, initially proven with the sample, is tenuous when evaluated from the context of am empirical study. Due to these factors the research needs to be considered anecdotal at best,…
Chang, S., Wang, K., Chih, W., & Tsai, W. (2012). Building customer commitment in business-to-business markets. Industrial Marketing Management, 41(6), 940.
Leek, S., & Christodoulides, G. (2012). A framework of brand value in B2B markets: The contributing role of functional and emotional components. Industrial Marketing Management, 41(1), 106.
Singh, R., & Koshy, A. (2011). Does salesperson's customer orientation create value in B2B relationships? empirical evidence from India. Industrial Marketing Management, 40(1), 78.
Ethical Behaviors of Mattel in the Toy Industry
The ethicacy of corporate behaviors are influenced by a myriad of factors yet most strongly reflect the internal culture, alignment of leadership to vision, and accumulated trade-offs made by management over years of ethical decisions, trade-offs and outcomes. In the study Mattel, Inc.: Global Manufacturing Principles (GMP) - A life-cycle analysis of a company-based code of conduct in the toy industry (Sethi, Veral, Shapiro, Emelianova, 2011) the authors successfully provide insights into the moral and ethical dilemmas of operating a multinational corporation (MNC) that is highly dependent on Global Manufacturing Principles (GMP). The life-cycle analysis of company-based code of conduct also illustrates how creating a solid ethical foundation using a Corporate Social esponsibility (CS) platform is only as effective as the aligning of senior management, vision and mission, and manufacturing, sourcing, supply chain and distribution is (Sethi, Veral, Shapiro, Emelianova, 2011). When…
References
Gordley, J., & Cecil, S. (1998). Good faith and profit maximization. Review of Business, 19(4), 11-17.
Heinze, E. (2010). The meta-ethics of law: Book one of Aristotle's Nicomachean ethics. International Journal of Law in Context, 6(1), 23-44.
Kielsgard, M.D. (2011). Universalism and human rights in the 21st century. Asia Pacific Law Review, 19(2), 155-176.
Machan, T.R. (2004). Aristotle and the moral status of business. Journal of Value Inquiry, 38(2), 217-223.
Introduction
In today’s globalized, interconnected, and interdependent business environment, ethics are more important than ever. Both internal and external operations need to be guided by ethical principles. Ethics are important for the self-interest of the company and its employees, helping to strengthen relationships with clients and prevent conflicts that could damage strategic alliances.
Utilitarian Ethics
Utilitarian ethical frameworks are especially applicable to the modern business environment. The fundamental principles of utilitarianism include maximizing happiness, minimizing unpleasantness, and promoting the greatest good for the greatest number of people (Mill, 2017). Utilitarian ethics also focus more on the consequences of actions rather than on the act itself. In fact, one of the challenges of applying a utilitarian ethical framework to business operations is balancing the need for achieving the most desirable outcome possible while also minimizing the use of means that might be ethically spurious. Because utilitarian ethics are focused on positive…
Please see "Stake Holder: The Taliban" for more information regarding virtue ethics.
The farmers who are growing poppy plants have a logical stake in this moral dilemma as well. If their crops are destroyed they will have no alternative but to join the Taliban to help settle their debts. They are in a precarious position where they are often forced to grow poppies because they are a very lucrative and traditional cash crop. Their history and culture will be severely affected if their livelihood is destroyed as well. If they functioned as utilitarians, the farmers would look for another alternative to growing poppies or perhaps request a government subsidy since their poppy production kills millions worldwide who abuse their drugs. The farmers likely do not have access to this information however, which makes their position even harder to justify.
Stakeholder:
The Afghan People
Utilitarianism- Principle. See "Stakeholder: The United States…
For example, many individuals value freedom and knowledge as things that can bring happiness. So, having their own value, these things are parts of happiness.
Mill believed that everyone's happiness is important. He believed in what he called the 'greatest happiness principle.' According to the greatest happiness principle, a person is ethically required to try to bring about the consequences that would lead to the greatest amount of happiness for everyone affected. More simple stated, if a person can produce more happiness (and/or less suffering) in a certain situation, then he or she is ethically obligated to do so. In more contemporary ethical terms, this is called the requirement to 'maximize happiness. If one was considering doing something for one's own happiness, but that action would cause others suffering, then Mill would have to take both of the sides into account in deciding whether or not the action should morally…
References
Kant, Immanuel. (2009). Fundamental principles of the metaphysic of morals. Merchant Books.
Mill, John Stuart. (2010). Utilitarianism. CreateSpace.
The most convincing interpretation might be that, as she contended, she did not foresee the consequences. Parks stated that "it was not a time for me to be planning to get arrested." (Reader 2005). So, if she was not considering the consequences, then she was not thinking rationally; if she was not thinking rationally, according to Aristotle, then she was not behaving virtuously. Since we should probably use Parks' own words as the best evidence, we should conclude that Aristotle would not consider her a particularly virtuous individual.
Confucius, alternatively, maintained that all human morality was held together by a single concept: ren, or natural humanistic love. Simply put, ren is a love and respect for all things human. To Confucius, a person can only achieve ren if they undergo an attainment of knowledge to the point where they reach a workable grasp of the place for each form of…
Works Cited
Confucius. The Analects. Reader 2005.
Ross, David. Aristotle: the Nichomachean Ethics. New York: Oxford, 1998.
Unknown. "Rosa Parks, 92, Founding Symbol of Civil Rights Movement, Dies." Reader 2005.
Ethical Theories
The three basic ethical theories share a number of similarities, because they each attempt to describe and explicate the ethical decisions made by humans as well as the logic (or illogic) that is used to inform any particular behavior. Utilitarianism offers what is perhaps the most sound ethical theory due to the way it chooses for itself the goal of its efforts, but it is hampered by disagreement regarding the precise execution of the theory. A deontological theory of ethics may be useful for formulating general rules regarding proper behavior, and as such is popular is the workplace, but these rules are not universally applicable and in some cases can actually lead to unethical behavior if followed without fail. Finally, while virtues-based ethics purports to offer individuals instruction for the cultivation of ideal behavioral traits, by definition it cannot offer a universal ethical norm, as it is based…
References
Begley, A.M. (2005). Practising virtue: A challenge to the view that a virtue centred approach to ethics lacks practical content. Nursing Ethics, 12(6), 622-37.
Broad, C. (1930). Five types of ethical theory. New York: Routledge.
Darwall (Ed.). (2003). Virtue ethics. Malden: Blackwell Publishing.
DeConinck, J.B., & Lewis, W.F. (1997). The influence of deontological and teleological considerations and ethical climate on sales managers intentions to reward or punish sales force behavior. Journal of Business Ethics, 16(5), 497-506.
Patents
Ethics in Patents in Amazon One Click
Patents are meant to protect the intellectual property of the people who apply for them. They are given when the process is a unique idea, or it offers an improvement to an existing idea that does not infringe on the original patent and is itself unique. The question is not whether patents themselves are ethical, but whether a business requesting a patent for a process, in its entirety, is ethical. People with different philosophical outlooks would see this case very differently. On the one had rule utilitarian's would see the patent rules and judge based on that criteria whereas a natural rights theorist would have a completely different outlook. This paper looks at the patent application for Amazon's revolutionary "one-click" payment processing through the lens of both a rule utilitarian and a natural rights theorist and determine how a person with that…
Deontological theory might criticize Guido's choice if the initial assumptions included the rule prohibiting lying. However, deontological analysis is only as useful as the underlying rules with respect to which it is applied. Therefore, the solution to the deontological issues raised by the issue presented by the movie is simply to reformulate a less restrictive rule that is incapable of being applied to every situation. Instead of proposing the rule that prohibits lying, the better rule might be to prohibit only lying for immoral purposes.
In fact, the blind adherence to rules under deontological principles often produces distinctly immoral results: it is difficult to imagine the moral purpose of informing a dying patient that a loved one was also killed in the same accident; nor is there a moral purpose for informing a child who is to young to understand the concept that he was adopted. In Guido's case, the…
There are no shades of gray and there aren't times when something is right and something is wrong. Something that is right is always right and vice versa for wrong. That means that killing people is always wrong, no matter what the situation is. The people in the office building may be infected with a virus that can wipe out all of mankind, but that still doesn't make it right for a person to kill another person. Kant believed that people must act in accordance to the maxim that they wish would become a universal law. So that means that if I think it is okay to go in and kill these people, then I must believe that this should be a universal law.
For Mill and Bentham, there is a right and wrong. Depending on the situation, right and wrong can change. Sometimes killing may be okay and sometimes…
Ethics Leadership Analysis
One of the biggest advantages of globalization is that many different companies are able to receive cheap labor to produce a wide variety of products that are sold at numerous retail stores in the United States. However, an ugly facet to what has been happening, is that there are a number of different sweat shops in a host of regions around the world and in some cases within the U.S. itself. Evidence of this can be seen with an investigation that was conducted by the Department of Labor. They found that over half of the companies they were looking at, were breaking numerous labor laws by operating 10,000 of these kinds of facilities illegally inside the nation. At the same time, they discovered that a variety of governments around the world were encouraging these kinds of factories. (Elliot, 2009)
In the case of Kathie Lee Gifford, her…
Bibliography
Youth and Labor. (2011). Department of Labor. Retrieved from: http://www.dol.gov/dol/topic/youthlabor/
Elliot, J. (2009). Santa's Little Sweat Shop. Albimonitor. Retrieved from: http://www.albionmonitor.com/sweatshop/ss-intro.html
Farrell, O. (2009). Business Ethics. Mason, OH: South Western.
National Labor Committee. (2000). Children Found Sewing Clothes for Wal Mart. Harvard Law School. Retrieved from: http://www.law.harvard.edu/programs/lwp/NLC_childlabor.html
Business ethics has become a serious subject of discussion the world over because of the rather intricate complexities attached to it. There are so many different facets to business related ethical problems that everyday something new emerges that needs to be tackled in the light of current legal structure or philosophical framework. The case of Patricia Dunn from HP might also sound like one of those complicated cases of ethics that need to be studied closely to reach a more reasonable solution. This case also highlighted the issue of pretexting which is strictly prohibited under California state law. Many people who had no way of knowing what pretexting meant learned about this ethical issue and hence something new was learned during the hearing of the case. We must understand that while each new major business ethics case might seem more complicated than the last one or even unique in some…
References
Federal Trade Commission: Pretexting. http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/credit/cre10.shtm
Biographies of HP board members. http://www.hp.com/hpinfo/investor/board.html
"Dunn charged in leak case" Accessed online from http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aud2XbLOFANc
Normative Ethics and the Right to Privacy
Who owns a person's email after that person has died is a question that is coming up more and more with the advancement of technology. Cases such as those of deceased service members whose family wanted access to their email after they were killed in combat have made the news. Rulings were that the emails belonged to the deceased person and that person's Internet service provider, through the contract the person had with the company. Because of that, the parents or other family members who were grieving their lost loved one could not be given access to their emails. Whether that is "fair" is a matter of opinion, but is it ethical? In order to answer that question, it is important to explore the issue from both a utilitarian and deontological standpoint, as those are contradictory to one another. A conflict between two…
Clients' rights are not being overtly violated because when they register for our referral services, they do not divulge any sensitive information. One could say they are assuming risk when they fill out our forms. On the other hand, when the client sees the doctor, social worker, or therapist, he or she does divulge sensitive information and does expect total confidentiality. The office workers also keep the jokes, and especially client names, within office walls. From this point-of-view, clients' rights are not actually being violated at all.
Similarly, it would be almost impossible for the client, the brunt of the joke, to find out about or be hurt by the gossip because when employees joke they do so without any references to the client's address or other vital information. A utilitarian could therefore argue that because the gossip causes more pleasure for the employees than it does pain for the…
Borderline Leadership" discusses the need for policy change regarding immigration. The form of reasoning used in this article is solidly utilitarian. The author urges the White House to take solid steps toward creating "realistic and enforceable" legislation to curb illegal immigration, and the federal government should "tailor the law to economic reality." The concept of economic need is the underlying reason used by the editor to support his view on immigration policy. Furthermore, the author refers to immigrants several times as being "needed" to maintain the American economy. The greatest good for the greatest number, according to the author, would be to change immigration laws to allow for more migrant workers.
However, twice the author slips slightly from his or her strictly utilitarian perspective, as when he or she discusses the high school student illegal immigrants. Referring to a judge's "sensible step of blocking their deportation," the author suggests that…
Although the tobacco Janet would market is not smoked, it is an addictive substance, and thus it could easily lead to smoking nicotine-containing cigarettes later on in life, and cause harm through second-hand smoke to millions of other people. The societal costs to the legal system because of the lawsuits the product has inspired, and the unhappiness the product has caused for the target audience's families are another example of how the sum total happiness of society is reduced, rather than increased, if Janet takes the job. Also, the campaign is in violation of laws that prohibit minors from using tobacco, and by encouraging the violation of the laws of the land, society's total happiness is reduced, as persons (and marketing departments) feel free to behave and market products in a less law-abiding fashion.
Finally, the idea that Janet can help herself and her future career by taking the job…
Business Ethics
How important is an individual's privacy in the workplace? Is an individual's privacy in the workplace the most important consideration to be taken into account? hat constitutes privacy in a workplace environment? Do the goals and the mission of the organization supersede an individual's desire to protect his or her privacy? Is it ethical for an employer to collect and disperse personal information from employees without their knowledge? How does the philosophy of utilitarianism play into this issue? This paper delves into those questions and provides supporting information for the resolution of this issue.
After careful review of the textbook for this course, after reviewing additional scholarly resources and taking into consideration a utilitarian approach to this issue -- and after researching the Australian laws regarding workplace privacy -- this paper takes the position that an individual's privacy is indeed vitally important (and must by law be protected)…
Works Cited
Doyle, Carolyn, and Bagaric, Mirko. (2005). Privacy Law in Australia. Annandale, AU:
Federation Press.
Fair Work Ombudsman. (2011). Best Practice Guide / Workplace Privacy. Retrieved September
25, 2012, from http://www.fairwork.gov.au .