This document provides an overview of steps in ethical decision making. It includes 3 lessons: ethical reasoning, the principle of beneficence, and a 7-step guide to ethical decision making. The 7 steps are: 1) state the problem 2) check the facts 3) identify relevant factors 4) develop options 5) test the options using various tests 6) make a decision 7) review and improve processes. The document concludes with a case study and questions about how to apply ethical decision making principles to the situation.

1. Chapter 4 –
Steps in Ethical
Decision Making
Here starts
the lesson!

2. 01
Lesson 1 Ethical Reasoning
Lesson 2 Principle of
Beneficence
Lesson 3 Step Guide to Ethical
Decision

3. Lesson 1 Ethical Reasoning
REASON
– is the capacity for consciously making
sense of things, establishing and
verifying facts, applying logic and
changing or justifying practices,
institutions and beliefs based on new or
existing information (Kompridis, 2000).

4. 1. Those which
enhance the well-
being of others-
(Praise)
2. those that harm or
diminish the well-
being of
others.(Criticism)
Role of ethical reasoning

5. It’s quite scary to think that there are
people out there who are voting,
protesting, financing causes or running
campaigns without any clear idea of why
they are doing it. Each and every one of
us should be clear about our reasons for
our values, beliefs and behaviors and we
should be able to give a reasoned
account of them to others.

6. – also called even-handedness or fair-
mindedness is a principle of justice
holding that decisions should be based
on objective criteria, rather than on
the basis of bias, prejudice or
preferring the benefit to one person
over another for improper reasons.
IMPARTIALITY

7. - Impartiality makes no discrimination
as to nationality, race, religious
beliefs, class or political opinions.
IMPARTIALITY

9.  Cultural relativism is the
ability to understand
a culture on its own terms and
not to make judgments using
the standards of one's
own culture. The goal of this
is promote understanding
of cultural practices that are
not typically part of one's
own culture.
CULTURAL RELATIVISM

10. PREDICTING
CONSEQUENCES

11. Reason only informs you about what transpired
and how. So in assessing moral value of an
incident, will you based your moral
valuations solely on feelings? How do you
think can moral impartiality help in
resolving a societal issue such as racism and
sexism?
Relate to Practice

12. Lesson 2
Principle of Beneficence

13. - The generic definition of beneficence is
an act of charity, mercy, and kindness.
- An example of this is what has become
known as a random act of kindness.
BENEFICENCE

14. If one of your family members is about to be
put to jail for something, he had done wrong,
how will you react on this scenario? Unto
what extent would you take risk of saving
him/her? Will you let your feelings get the
best of you or will you let your sound moral
reasoning take part? Explain your answer.
Case Analysis: answer the following questions
after comprehending the case presented
below.

15. Lesson 3
Step Guide to Ethical
Decision

16. THE SEVEN (7) STEP
GUIDES TO ETHICAL
DECISION MAKING AND
MORAL REASONING
of Michael Davis

17. – Determine the possible moral dilemmas at
hand. Is there something about your judgment
and/or decision that make you uncomfortable?
Is there any conflict of interest present?
1. State the problem

18. – When we examine a scenario closely, what is
initially identified as a problem or dilemma
can surprisingly disappear. Some, on the
other hand, can be amplified or altered
radically due to new details that might come
to the light upon closer scrutiny.
2. Check the facts

19. – Who are the people involved? What laws or
professional codes can possibly apply? Are
there practical constraints? (For example:
You are a journalist and you were given 5000
php by a politician whom the article you are
currently writing is about. Will the money
create conflict of interest?)
3. Identify relevant factors

20. – Do you have a set of alternatives to the
action or decision (in relation to a given
scenario) in mind? Be creative and develop a
list of other choices. Avoid the binarism of
“yes/no” questions in making moral decisions
(such as “Should I do it or not?”). Identify
people you can potentially approach who may
provide fresh perspectives on the situation
you are confronted with.
4. Develop a list of options

21. – Michael Davis has included several test
that may prove to be useful where one is
weighing in on his/her choices and decisions:
5. Test the options

22. Harm Test – Would less harm be done on other
people when I favour this one decision over
the others?
Publicity Test – Would I be proud of this
decision if it makes the evening news? Would
I want my loved ones to know?
Defensibility Test – Would I be able to
defend this decision before the court or a
panel of reviewers without appearing self-
serving?
Test the options

23. Reversibility Test – Would I still prefer my option of
choice if it were to have some adverse effects on me
instead of others? Would I still want it despite the
implications?
Colleague Test – How would my profession’s ethics
committee see the option? What would they say?
Organization Test – What would my company’s (or
organization) ethics officials and/or legal counsel say
regarding the option?
Virtue Test – What kind of person would also choose such
an option? Is he/she who someone might consider as
“virtuous”? What would I become of me if I enact this
option all the time?
Test the options

24. 6. Come with a choice or decision based on the
abovementioned steps.
7. Review Steps 1-6 - What can you do to prevent making
such a decision again? Are there precautions to take?
What changes should be affected on an organizational and
personal level (such as reviewing policy or being a more
discerning employee, among others)? Would it be possible
to get more support next time?

25. Before you make a major decision, think of
the following question again: Will these
leads me to the right path? Will I be able to
face the consequences justly? Will this help
me to become a better individual?
Relate to Practice

26. Directions: Analyze and comprehend the given
scenario below applying what you have learned from
the previous chapter. Answer the follow-up
questions after the case study presented.

27. Situation:
Romeo and Jerome are good friends. They are brothers not
by blood but by heart. Both of them are already a
graduate of the same program and together landed the
same job. One of the most important things to do
routinely is to report to your work place ahead of time.
One day Jerome appeared to work one and a half hour late
in his shift. Then he uttered “Andyan ka naman eh.”
signifying that you’ll cover his mistake his fault for
the day.
A week before the release of salary, the person
in-charge asked for all of your attendance manually due
loss of record. Jerome told him that he did not commit
any record of late and absence in his attendance. It was
noted by the person in-charge and turned to you to ask
the same question.

28. Questions:
1. If you are caught in this situation, how will you be
solving the problem? Present your ideas using the duty-
oriented and principled reasoning. Remember that in this
form of reasoning, it is not the consequences that are
considered but rather the principle involved.
2. If you are Jerome, what will you do?
3. If you are Romeo, how will you manage the situation?
Applying what you learned in this chapter, how does
ethical decision- making affect your daily living?