SELECT ETHICAL PRINCIPLES

The categorical imperative: Immanuel Kants categorical imperative is to act so that your action could become a
universal law. It embodies the quick test of universalizability: Could this act be turned into a universal code of
behaviour?
The Utilitarian Ethic: The utilitarian ethic advocates the greatest good for the greatest number.
The Conventional Ethic: The conventionalist ethic is that business is like a game with permissive ethics. In business
any action that does not violate the law is permitted.
The Disclosure Rule: The disclosure rule requires a manager confronting an ethical dilemma should ask
himself/herself: how would it feel to explain the decision in question to a wider audience, such as the media, or his/her
family?
The Doctrine of the Mean: Aristotles doctrine of the mean calls for achieving virtue through moderation. One should
avoid action that is either excessive or deficient, i.e. extreme action. Right actions are found between these two
extremes: excessive and deficient.
The Ends-Means Ethic: The ends-means ethic is that worthwhile ends justify the use of means that would otherwise
be considered compromising. According to this ethic, the result validates the deeds. It is associated with Machiavelli,
who argued that when ends are of overriding importance or virtue, unscrupulous means may be employed to reach
them.
The Golden Rule: The Golden Rule is Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. A manger may apply the
Golden Rule by using the test of reversibility: Would I be willing to change places with the person or persons affected
by my actions?
The Practical Imperative: According to Immanuel Kants practical imperative: Act so that you treat humanity,
whether in your own person or in that of another, always as an end and never as a means only. This principle requires
that others be treated as ends in themselves rather than as means to a selfish goal.
The Intuition Ethic: The intuition ethic is that people are endowed with a moral sense by which they intuitively know
the difference between right and wrong. The solution to an ethical problem confronting a manager lies in what s/he
senses or understands to be right or wrong.
Might-Equals-Right Ethic: According to this principle, justice is the interest of the stronger. What is ethical is what a
stronger individual or company has the power to impose on a weaker one.
The Organization Ethic: The organization ethic is be loyal to the organization. The wills and needs of individuals are
subordinate to the overall welfare of the organization.
The Principle of Equal Freedom: Herbert Spencers principle of equal freedom is that each person may exercise
liberties until the point where they infringe on the liberties of others.
The Proportionality Ethic: The proportionality ethic is inherited from medieval Catholic theology and applies to
situations in which a decision leads to both good and evil effects. A classic formulation of this ethic into a specific
principle is Thomas M. Garretts principle of proportionality, which requires managers to weigh five factors in their
decisions: (1) Considering the types of good and evil involved (major and minor). (2) Calculating the urgency of the
situation. (3) Estimating the probability of both good and evil effects (if good effects are certain and risks of serious
harms are remote, an action is more favourable). (4) Assessing the intensity of influence over effects. (5) Considering
the existence of alternatives. The principle of double effect is an alternative formulation of the idea of proportionality.
A manager can be regarded as acting ethically if three conditions exist: (a) the good effects outweigh the evil; (b) the
managers intention is to achieve the good effects; and (c) there is no better alternative.
The Rights Ethic: According to this ethic, each person has protections and entitlements that others have a duty to
respect. The rights ethic protects important liberties that people have. Because of their human nature, people have
natural rights. In societies they have also received legal rights.
The Theory of Justice: The theory of justice defines what individuals must do for the common good of society. John
Rawls has developed a set of principles of justice that would be chosen by rational persons acting behind a hypothetical
veil of ignorance. (a) Distributive justice requires that benefits and burdens be distributed using impartial criteria. (b)
Retributive justice requires punishment to be even handed and proportionate to transgressions. (c) Compensatory
justice requires fair compensation to victims.