Abstract
Most ethical dilemmas are conflicts between the whole and its part: organization and individual, society and organization. It is impossible to choose a single concept of ethical decision-making because it will change depending on the circumstances. As for me, over the course, I have learned to draw conclusions and make ethical decisions, depending on what is happening.
Ethics within decisions
When faced with ethical choice problems, people tend to rely on a normative point of view, i.e., certain norms and values, by which decisions are made. “Ethical decision-making is a multi-faceted phenomenon, and our understanding of ethics rests on diverse perspectives” (Small & Lew, 2021, p.103). There are several approaches to describing value systems in normative ethics and making ethically complex decisions accordingly. Ethical action must respect the rights of all those people it concerns. In particular, rights imply duties – also a duty to respect the rights of others.
However, it is needed to say that there are practically no ideal decisions that are acceptable to all stakeholders. The need for ethical justification for a decision is made when a feeling may violate some moral standards. The very acuteness of the ethical aspect, i.e., the apparent need to reckon with it is determined by a number of predictable factors. It is about the scale of the ethical consequences, both positive and negative; social consensus – the degree of moral approval or condemnation of the society.
Normative theories of morality provide a rational basis for solving ethical dilemmas. The difficulty lies in the fact that the philosophy of ethics has not yet formed a unified approach to understanding the nature and character of moral principles. Ethical relativism asserts that absolute principles do not exist, in contrast to ethical absolutism, which says it is necessary to be guided by the same general principles in any situation.
What have I learned, and how can I apply this in my life? First of all, I realized which path is most comfortable for me in making ethical decisions. The importance of ethics in decision-making is most pronounced when it is neglected. Therefore, I need to comply with all ethical standards in decisions on which not only my well-being depends. The crucial conclusions I learned during my studies can be summarized as follows: the decision should do more good than bad; the decision should benefit me and others in the long run; all my choices must be based on respect for freedom and human rights.
Secondly, I understood that my self-efficacy directly affects my ability to make ethical decisions. Ethical decisions are always challenging and require self-control for making them. Thus, I need self-efficacy so that my decisions are aimed at my state of affairs and the people around me. “People with a high degree of self-efficacy are more likely to attempt difficult tasks and persevere in the face of adversity, whereas people who are low in self-efficacy are more likely to avoid difficult situations and challenges” (Stenmark, Redfearn & Kreitler, 2021, p.312). I suppose that this also applies to me because a person must control himself to make an ethical decision.
In my case, it is also important to control my emotions because they prevent me from being rational in ethical decisions. “As a result of their prevalence and power, emotions exert considerable influence on a great deal of human experience, judgment, and behavior, including ethical decision making” (McManus, 2021, p.154). Ethics in decisions can be severely affected if the judgment is made on emotion.
According to my own experience, ethical decisions are based either on intuition, impulse, or on judgments based on personal experience, knowledge, and competencies. Intuitive decisions are not burdened with a conscious weighing of the pros and cons for each alternative and do not need a rational understanding of the situation. Initially, I asked myself the question, is it ethical to take based on intuition? However, in everyday life, there is not always enough time to fully organize information. Thus, I concluded that intuition is a great addition to analytical thinking, which will allow you to solve complex problems in time.
Decision-making
Deciding in accordance with ethical and other standards is a challenging task. Analytical thinking is an integral part of the process of making any decision, including ethics. Elder and Paul (2010) say that all people “must learn how to take thinking apart” (The thinkers guide to analytic thinking, p. 5). The effectiveness and value of a solution become apparent only after its implementation. At this stage, it is important to evaluate the choice made, both from the point of view of its effectiveness, and taking into account the criteria that lie beyond optimization and efficiency (respect for individual rights, respect for dignity, a positive moral, and psychological climate).
At the same time, it is worth remembering that a decision that initially seems correct may turn out to be a failure, because everyone should “look at the quality of their decision making (taking into account what was known at the time their decisions were made), not just the quality of the outcomes” (Harvard business review on making smart decisions, 2011, p. 10). The level of efficiency in the implementation of decisions will be the higher the more people whose interests are affected by this decision, recognize its value. This presupposes one crucial stage of decision-making – the establishment of feedback and the formation of appropriate motivation of people who are influenced by the decision.
The result of the decisions made is a criterion of professionalism and competence, which combines experience, intuition, judgments, rational knowledge, and moral responsibility. Professionalism is the ability to make decisions competently, to anticipate their results and the willingness to bear personal responsibility is a guarantee of success in any kind of activity.
I hope that the course I took will help me make ethical decisions in the future, which will be related, for example, to work. I have highlighted the steps that I will use in making my decisions. They consist of: a collection of information for a comprehensive justification of the decision, selection of appropriate ethical hyper norms and micro norms, preparation of two options for moral reason (desirable and least acceptable), figuring out if I can convert the minimum proper explanation to the desired one.
The final step is decision-making by the ethical standards that I have highlighted. If the solely ethical justification is not enough, I will be guided by other motives (social, economic, etc.). I realized that I must be sincere when answering the questions: “Am I ready to take responsibility for the consequences of the decision I make?”; “Do the people I involve in the implementation of the decision trust me?”
References
Elder, L. & Paul, R, (2010). The thinkers guide to analytic thinking (2nd ed.). Tomales, CA: The Foundation for Critical Thinking.
Harvard business review on making smart decisions. (2011). Boston, Mass.: Harvard Business Review Press.
McManus, J. (2021). Emotions and Ethical Decision Making at Work: Organizational Norms, Emotional Dogs, and the Rational Tales They Tell Themselves and Others. J Bus Ethics, 169, pp. 153-168.
Small, C., & Lew, C. (2021). Mindfulness, moral reasoning and responsibility: towards virtue in ethical decision-making. J Bus Ethics, 169, pp. 103–117.
Stenmark, C. K., Redfearn, R. A. & Kreitler C. M. (2021). Self-efficacy and ethical decision making. Ethics & Behavior, 31(5), pp. 310-320.