Principles of Ethics 2016

Learning Module

Professional Ethics in IT
Principles of Ethics
This course will focus on the study of code of ethics, conflict of
interest, safety and risk tradeoffs in design, confidentiality, and
behavior in the workplace, intellectual property, patents, trade
secrets and contemporary issues in IT. Appropriate Philippine Laws
are also included. This course also includes International Code of
ethics, conduct and practice (IEEE, ACM, etc.)

Objectives
At the end of the lesson, you will be able to:
a. Describe some of the major ancient Greek philosophies
b. Exploring the work of major philosophers we shall address such
basic philosophical questions as: What can I know? What should
I do? What is real? Do human beings have free will? Can the
existence of God be proven? What is evil? How can we deal with
pain and difficulty in life?
c. Students will learn to argue for their positions on these issues by
criticizing and responding to the philosophers.
d. Develop critical thinking skills and apply them in reading,
discussing, and writing about philosophy.

Teaching Strategies/Learning Activities

Lecture
Class Discussion
Video Presentation

Resources/Materials
Books
Journal Articles
Internet Sources

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Learning Concept
What is Ethics?

Ethics, also known as moral philosophy, seeks to address

questions of morality: right vs. wrong, good vs. bad, etc.

Seeks to answer questions such as:

What is the Good?

What ought we to do?

Are there absolute moral values, or are said

moral values relative?

What is Values?

It denotes something's degree of importance, with the aim of

determining what action of life is best to do or live
(deontology), or to describe the significance of different
actions (axiology).

Values can be defined as broad preferences concerning

appropriate courses of action or outcomes. As such, values
reflect a person's sense of right and wrong or what "ought"
to be. "Equal rights for all",

What is Attitude?

An attitude is an evaluation of an attitude object, ranging

from extremely negative to extremely positive.

An attitude can be as a positive or negative evaluation of

people, objects, events, activities, and ideas. It could be
concrete, abstract or just about anything in your
environment, but there is a debate about precise definitions.

Three (3) Ethical Theories

1. Metaethics
2. Normative Ethics
3. Applied Ethics

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Ethical Theories > (1) Metaethics

Investigates where our ethical principles come from, and

what they mean.

Are they merely social inventions?

Do they involve more than expressions of our

individual emotions?

Metaethical answers to these questions focus on the

issues of universal truths, the will of God, the role of
reason in ethical judgments, and the meaning of ethical
terms themselves.

The term "meta" means after or beyond, and,

consequently, the notion of metaethics involves a
removed, or bird's eye view of the entire project of ethics.

We may define metaethics as the study of the origin and

meaning of ethical concepts.

2 Issues of Metaethics

(1) metaphysical issues - concerning whether morality

exists independently of humans.

Metaphysics is the study of the kinds of things that

exist in the universe.

2 General Directions (that discussions of this topic )

1. other-worldly(Objective) This view

typically hold that moral values are objective
in the sense that they exist in a spirit-like
realm beyond subjective human conventions.

2. this-worldly(moral relativism) - follows in

the skeptical philosophical tradition, such as
that articulated by Greek philosopher Sextus
Empiricus, and denies the objective status of
moral values.

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(2) psychological issues - concerning the underlying mental
basis of our moral judgments and conduct.

A second area of metaethics involves the

psychological basis of our moral judgments and
conduct, particularly understanding what motivates
us to be moral.

We might explore this subject by asking the simple

question:

(1) "Why be moral?

(2) (answers) are to avoid punishment, to gain

praise, to attain happiness, to be dignified, or
to fit in with society.

Important Area of Moral Psychology

a. Egoism and Altruism

b. Emotion and Reason
c. Male and Female Morality

Ethical Theories > (2) Normative Ethics

It takes on a more practical task, which is to arrive at moral

standards that regulate right and wrong conduct.

This may involve articulating the good habits that we should acquire,
the duties that we should follow, or the consequences of our
behavior on others.

Normative ethics involves arriving at moral standards that regulate

right and wrong conduct. In a sense, it is a search for an ideal litmus
test of proper behavior.

The Golden Rule is a classic example of a normative principle: We

should do to others what we would want others to do to us.

Since I do not want my neighbor to steal my car, then it is wrong for

me to steal her car.

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Three strategies of Normative Ethics

(1) Virtue Theories

Virtue ethics, however, places less emphasis on learning
rules, and instead stresses the importance of developing
good habits of character,

Platos four virtues (cardinal virtues)

1. Wisdom
2. Courage
3. Temperance
4. Justice.

(2) Duty Theories or Nonconsequentialist

Duty theories base morality on specific, foundational
principles of obligation.
These theories are sometimes called deontological, from
the Greek word deon, or duty, in view of the foundational
nature of our duty or obligation.
They are also sometimes called nonconsequentialist since
these principles are obligatory, irrespective of the
consequences that might follow from our actions.

(3) Consequentialist Theories

It is common for us to determine our moral
responsibility by weighing the consequences of our
actions. According to consequentialism, correct moral
conduct is determined solely by a cost-benefit analysis of
an action's consequences:
Consequentialism: An action is morally right if the
consequences of that action are more favorable than
unfavorable.

Three subdivisions of Consequentialism

1. Ethical Egoism: an action is morally right if the
consequences of that action are more favorable
than unfavorable only to the agent performing the
action.
2. Ethical Altruism: an action is morally right if the
consequences of that action are more favorable
than unfavorable to everyone except the agent.

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3. Utilitarianism: an action is morally right if the
consequences of that action are more favorable
than unfavorable to everyone.
Types of Utilitarianism of Jeremy Bentham
1. Act-utilitiarianism - we tally the consequences
of each action we perform and thereby determine
on a case by case basis whether an action is
morally right or wrong.
2. Hedonistic utilitarianism - we tally the pleasure
and pain which results from our actions. For
Bentham, pleasure and pain are the only
consequences that matter in determining
whether our conduct is moral.
Ethical Theories > (3) Applied Ethics
It involves examining specific controversial issues, such as
abortion, infanticide, animal rights, environmental concerns,
homosexuality, capital punishment, or nuclear war.

In recent years applied ethical issues have been subdivided into

convenient groups such as medical ethics, business ethics,
environmental ethics, and sexual ethics.

Normative Principles in Applied Ethics

The principles must also be seen as having merit by
people on both sides of an applied ethical issue.
1. Personal benefit: acknowledge the extent to
which an action produces beneficial
consequences for the individual in question.
2. Social benefit: acknowledge the extent to which
an action produces beneficial consequences for
society.
3. Principle of benevolence: help those in need.
4. Principle of paternalism: assist others in
pursuing their best interests when they cannot do
so themselves.
5. Principle of harm: do not harm others.
6. Principle of honesty: do not deceive others.
7. Principle of lawfulness: do not violate the law.
8. Principle of autonomy: acknowledge a person's
freedom over his/her actions or physical body.

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9. Principle of justice: acknowledge a person's
right to due process, fair compensation for harm
done, and fair distribution of benefits.
10. Rights: acknowledge a person's rights to life,
information, privacy, free expression, and safety.
Issues in Applied Ethics
1. Biomedical ethics focuses on a range of issues
which arise in clinical settings. Health care
workers are in an unusual position of continually
dealing with life and death situations.
2. Business ethics examines moral controversies
relating to the social responsibilities of capitalist
business practices, the moral status of corporate
entities, deceptive advertising, insider trading,
basic employee rights, job discrimination,
affirmative action, drug testing, and whistle
blowing.
3. Environmental ethics often overlaps with
business and medical issues. These include the
rights of animals, the morality of animal
experimentation, preserving endangered species,
pollution control, management of environmental
resources, whether eco-systems are entitled to
direct moral consideration, and our obligation to
future generations.
4. Controversial issues of sexual morality include
monogamy versus polygamy, sexual relations
without love, homosexual relations, and
extramarital affairs.
5. Finally, there are issues of social morality which
examine capital punishment, nuclear war, gun
control, the recreational use of drugs, welfare
rights, and racism.

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Ancient Greek Philosophy

The Ancient Greek philosophers have played a pivotal role in the

shaping of the western philosophical tradition.

The Ancient Greek philosophical tradition broke away from a

mythological approach to explaining the world, and it initiated an
approach based on reason and evidence.

Their theories were diverse and none achieved a consensus, yet their
legacy was the initiation of the quest to identify underlying
principles.

Most Influential of the Ancient Greek Philosophers

Strong minds discuss ideas, average minds

discuss events, weak minds discuss people.
True knowledge exists in knowing that you
a. Socrates know nothing.
I know that I am intelligent, because I know
that I know nothing.
I cannot teach anybody anything; I can only
make them think.
Born circa 470 BC, in Athens, Greece.
Sentenced to death by hemlock poisoning in 399 BC.
Socrates believed that philosophy should achieve
practical results for the greater well-being of society.

No great mind has ever existed without a

touch of madness.
Happiness depends upon ourselves.
b. Aristotle
Born circa 384 B.C. in Stagira, Greece.
Died in 322 B.C., after he left Athens and fled to
Chalcis.
One of the main focuses of Aristotles philosophy was
his systematic concept of logic. Aristotles objective
was to come up with a universal process of reasoning
that would allow man to learn every conceivable
thing about reality.

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We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of

the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men
c. Plato are afraid of the light.
Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a
harder battle.
Born circa 428 B.C.E.,
Student of Socrates
Teacher of Aristotle
Founder of the Platos Academy
Schools of thought : Platonism
Best known as the author of Philosophical
works of unparalleled influence.
He died in Athens circa 348 B.C.E.
Plato founded the Academy in Athens, one of
the first institutions of higher learning in the
Western world.
Platos works / writings

Euthyphro

Raises a significant doubt about whether

morally right action can be defined in terms
of divine approval by pointing out a
significant dilemma about any appeal to
authority in defense of moral judgments.
Dialog after the death of Socrates.

Apology

The speech given by Socrates as he defended

himself in 399 BC against the charges of
"corrupting the young, and by not believing in
the gods in whom the city believes, but in
other daimonia that are novel".

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Crito

It depicts a conversation between Socrates

and his wealthy friend Crito regarding justice,
injustice, and the appropriate response to
injustice.

Republic

Concerning the definition of justice, the order

and character of the just city-state and the
just man.

Phaedo

Phdo or Phaedo, also known to ancient

readers as On The Soul, is one of the best-
known dialogues of Plato's middle period,
along with the Republic and the Symposium.

Parmenides

Is one of the dialogues of Plato. It is widely

considered to be one of the more, if not the
most, challenging and enigmatic of Plato's
dialogues.

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Theaetetus

is one of Plato's dialogues concerning the

nature of knowledge, written circa 369 BC.

Timaeus

Is one of Plato's dialogues, mostly in the form

of a long monologue given by the titular
character Timaeus of Locri, written c. 360 BC.

Laws

It is Plato's last and longest dialogue. The

conversation depicted in the work's twelve
books begins with the question of who is
given the credit for establishing a
civilization's laws.

Platos Main Interest

1. Rhetoric
2. Art
3. Literature
4. Epistemology
5. Justice
6. Virtue
7. Politics
8. Education
9. Family
10. Militarism
11. Friendship
12. Love

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Platos Notable Ideas

a. Theory of Forms
b. Platonic idealism
c. Platonic realism
d. Plato's tripartite theory of soul

Medieval Philosophy

Medieval philosophy is conventionally construed as the philosophy

of Western Europe between the decline of classical pagan culture
and the Renaissance.

The notion of a Middle Age (or plural Middle Ages) was

introduced in the fifteenth century for the period between the
decline of classical pagan culture in Western Europe and what was
taken to be its rediscovery during the Renaissance.

Theology

Medieval philosophy is characteristically theological.

Subjects discussed in this period include

The problem of evil: The classical philosophers had

speculated on the nature of evil, but the problem of how an
all-powerful, all-knowing, loving God could create a system
of things in which evil exists first arose in the medieval
period.

The problem of free will: A similar problem was to explain

how 'divine foreknowledge' - God's knowledge of what will
happen in the future - is compatible with our belief in our
own free will.

Metaphysics

After the 'rediscovery' of Aristotle's Metaphysics in the mid-

twelfth century, many scholastics wrote commentaries on
this work (in particular Aquinas and Scotus). The problem of
universals was one of the main problems engaged during
that period.

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Other subjects

Hylomorphism - development of the Aristotelian doctrine

that individual things are a compound of material and form
(the statue is a compound of granite, and the form sculpted
into it)

Existence - being qua being

Causality - Discussion of causality consisted mostly of

commentaries on Aristotle, mainly the Physics, On the
Heavens, On Generation and Corruption. The approach to
this subject area was uniquely medieval, the rational
investigation of the universe being viewed as a way of
approaching God. Duns Scotus' proof of the existence of God
is based on the notion of causality.

Individuation - The problem of individuation is to explain

how we individuate or numerically distinguish the members
of any kind for which it is given. The problem arose when it
was required to explain how individual angels of the same
species differ from one another. Angels are immaterial, and
their numerical difference cannot be explained by the
different matter they are made of. The main contributors to
this discussion were Aquinas and Scotus.

Natural Philosophy

In natural philosophy and the philosophy of science,

medieval philosophers were mainly influenced by Aristotle.

However, from the fourteenth century onward, the

increasing use of mathematical reasoning in natural
philosophy prepared the way for the rise of science in the
early modern period. The more mathematical reasoning
techniques of William Heytesbury and William of Ockham
are indicative of this trend.

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Logic

The great historian of logic I. M. Bochenski regarded the

Middle Ages as one of the three great periods in the history
of logic. From the time of Abelard until the middle of the
fourteenth century, scholastic writers refined and developed
Aristotelian logic to a remarkable degree. In the earlier
period, writers such as Peter Abelard wrote commentaries
on the works of the Old logic (Aristotle's Categories, On
interpretation, and the Isagoge of Porphyry). Later, new
departments of logical enquiry arose, and new logical and
semantic notions were developed.

Philosophy of mind

Medieval philosophy of mind is based on Aristotle's De

Anima, another work discovered in the Latin West in the
twelfth century. It was regarded as a branch of the
philosophy of nature. Some of the topics discussed in this
area include:

a. Divine illumination
b. Theories of demonstration
c. Mental representation

Medieval Philosophers

Peter Damian

Born in Ravenna, Italy, around

1007
Died 22 February 1072 or 1073 ,
Faenza

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Thomas Aquinas

Thomas Aquinas is considered

one of the Catholic Church's
greatest theologians and
philosophers.
Born 1225 Roccasecca, Kingdom
of Sicily, Italy
Died 7 March 1274 Fossanova,
Papal States, Italy
To one who has faith, no
explanation is necessary. To one
without faith, no explanation is
possible.
There is nothing on this earth
more to be prized than true
friendship.

THOMAS AQUINAS WORKS/WRITINGS

Summa Theologica
The Summa is "one of the
classics of the history of philosophy
and one of the most influential works
of Western literature."It was intended
as an instructional guide for theology
students, including seminarians and
the literate laity. It was a compendium
of all of the main theological teachings
of the Catholic Church. It presents the
reasoning for almost all points of
Christian theology in the West. The
Summa's topics follow a cycle: the
existence of God; Creation, Man;
Man's purpose; Christ; the
Sacraments; and back to God.

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Western Philosophy

Is the philosophical thought and work of the Western world.

Historically, the term refers to the philosophical thinking of Western
culture, beginning with Hellenic (i.e. Greek) philosophy, and
eventually covering a large area of the globe. The word philosophy
itself originated from the Hellenic: philosophia, literally, "the love of
wisdom philein, "to love" and sophia, "wisdom").

Immanuel Kant

(1724-1804) is one of the most influential

philosophers in the history of Western
philosophy.
Born: 22 April 1724 Knigsberg, Prussia
(now Kaliningrad, Russia)
Died: 12 February 1804 (aged 79)
Knigsberg, Prussia
Interest: Metaphysics
Ethics
Cosmogony
Notable Ideas: Categorical imperative
Transcendental idealism

KANTS INTERESTS
Metaphysics - the branch of philosophy that deals with the
first principles of things, including abstract concepts such as
being, knowing, substance, cause, identity, time, and space.
Epistemology - is one of the core areas of philosophy. It is
concerned with the nature, sources and limits of knowledge.
Epistemology has been primarily concerned with
propositional knowledge, that is, knowledge that such-and-
such is true, rather than other forms of knowledge, for
example, knowledge how to such-and-such.
Ethics - an area of study that deals with ideas about what is
good and bad behavior : a branch of philosophy dealing with
what is morally right or wrong
Aesthetics - a set of principles concerned with the nature and
appreciation of beauty, especially in art.

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MAJOR WORKS OF IMMANUEL KANT
The Critique of Pure Reason

The Critique of Pure Reason by

Immanuel Kant, is one of the most
influential works in the history of
philosophy. Also referred to as Kant's
First Critique, it was followed by the
Critique of Practical Reason and the
Critique of Judgment.

Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics

Kant distinguishes between a priori

and a posteriori cognitions and
between analytic and synthetic
judgments. Knowledge we gain from
experience is a posteriori, and what
we can know independent of
experience is a priori.

Answering the Question: What is Enlightenment

Kant replied to the question posed a

year earlier by the Reverend Johann
Friedrich Zllner, who was also an
official in the Prussian government.
Zllner's question was addressed to a
broad intellectual public community,
in reply to Biester's essay entitled:
"Proposal, not to engage the clergy
any longer when marriages are
conducted" (April 1783) and a
number of leading intellectuals
replied with essays, of which Kant's is
the most famous and has had the most
impact.

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Religion within the Bounds of Bare Reason
is a 1793 book by the German
philosopher Immanuel Kant. Although
its purpose and original intent has
become a matter of some dispute, the
book's immense and lasting influence
on the history of theology and the
philosophy of religion is indisputable.
It consists of four parts, called
"Pieces" (Stcke), originally written as
a series of four journal articles.

JOHN RAWLS
Born: February 21, 1921, Baltimore,
Maryland, United States
Died: November 24, 2002, Lexington,
Massachusetts, United States
Areas of interest: Politics, Political
philosophy, Social contract, Liberalism,
Justice
John Rawls, a philosopher who held the James
Bryant Conant University Professorship at
Harvard University, published several books
and many articles. He is chiefly known,
however, for his book A Theory of Justice, an
effort to define social justice. The work has
greatly influenced modern political thought.

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Activities/Exercises
Activity1

Please answer the following question.

1. What was the major difference between ancient Greek and

Medieval Philosophy?

Self Test
Instructions: Choose the letter of the correct answer.

1. It also known as moral philosophy, seeks to address questions

of morality.
a. Values
b. Ethics
c. Attitude
d. Behavior
2. It can be defined as broad preferences concerning appropriate
courses of action or outcomes.
a. Values
b. Ethics
c. Attitude
d. Behavior
3. This is an evaluation of an attitude object, ranging from
extremely negative to extremely positive
a. Values
b. Ethics
c. Attitude
d. Behavior

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4. It is the study of the origin and meaning of ethical concepts.
a. Metaethics
b. Normative Ethics
c. Applied Ethics
d. Metaphysical Ethics
5. This issue concerning whether morality exists independently of
humans.
a. Psychological issues
b. Utilitarianism
c. Metaphysical issues
d. Ethical Egoism
6. This issue concerning the underlying mental basis of our moral
judgments and conduct.
a. Utilitarianism
b. Psychological issues
c. Metaphysical issues
d. Ethical Egoism
7. This involves arriving at moral standards that regulate right and
wrong conduct. In a sense, it is a search for an ideal litmus test
of proper behavior.
a. Metaethics
b. Normative Ethics
c. Applied Ethics
d. Metaphysical Ethics

8. Three strategies of Normative Ethics are:

a. Virtue Theories, Nonconsequentialist, Consequentialist
Theories
b. Metaethics, Applied Ethics, Normative Ethics
c. Metaphysical Ethics, Ethical Egoism, Normative Ethics
d. Virtue Theories, Nonconsequentialist, Normative Ethics
9. Principle of honesty means does not deceive others.
a. True
b. False
10. Principle of autonomy means acknowledge a person's freedom
over his/her actions or physical body.
a. True
b. False

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References
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki
http://www.iep.utm.edu/greekphi
http://www.ancient.eu/Greek_Philosophy
http://www.britannica.com/topic/Western-philosophy/Medieval-philosophy
https://www.rep.routledge.com/articles/medieval-philosophy
https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/medieval-philosophy
http://www.sparknotes.com/philosophy/prolegomena/summary.html

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