APPLIED ETHICS

Assignment Report of a Business Law and Ethics

Introduction
Applied Ethics
Applied ethics is, in the words of Brenda Almond, co-founder of the Society for Applied Philosophy, "the philosophical examination, from a moral standpoint, of particular issues in private and public life that are matters of moral judgment". It is thus a term used to describe attempts to use philosophical methods to identify the morally correct course of action in various fields of human life. As such, it is a study which is supposed to involve practitioners as much as professional philosophers. Applied ethics is distinguished from normative ethics, which concerns what people should believe to be right and wrong, and from meta-ethics, which concerns the nature of moral statements.

Modern Approach
Much of applied ethics is concerned with just three theories: Utilitarianism, where the practical consequences of various policies are evaluated on the assumption that the right policy will be the one which results in the greatest happiness. Notions based on rules. An assumption that there is an obligation to perform the 'right' action, regardless of actual consequences, epitomized by Kant's notion of the Categorical Imperative, and virtue ethics, derived from Aristotle's and Confucius's notions, which asserts that the right action will be that chosen by a suitably 'virtuous' agent.

One modern approach which attempts to overcome the seemingly impossible divide between deontology and utilitarianism is case-based reasoning, also known as casuistry. Casuistry does not begin with theory; rather it starts with the immediate facts of a real and concrete case. While casuistry makes use of ethical theory, it does not view ethical theory as the most important feature of moral reasoning. Casuists, challenge the

traditional paradigm of applied ethics. Instead of starting from theory and applying theory to a particular case, casuists start with the particular case itself and then ask what morally significant features (including both theory and practical considerations) ought to be considered for that particular case.

Some of the Sub-Fields of Applied Ethics

Legal Ethics: Legal ethics encompasses an ethical code governing the conduct of
people engaged in the practice of law. The model rules (by American Bar Association) address the client-lawyer relationship, duties of a lawyer as advocate in adversary proceedings, dealings with persons other than clients, law firms and associations, public service, advertising, and maintaining the integrity of the profession. Respect of client confidences, candor toward the tribunal, truthfulness in statements to others, and professional independence are some of the defining features of legal ethics.

Human Rights:

Human rights refer to the "basic rights and freedoms to which all humans are entitled. Examples of rights and freedoms which have come to be commonly thought of as human rights include civil and political rights, such as the right to life and liberty, freedom of expression, and equality before the law; and social, cultural and economic rights, including the right to participate in culture, the right to food, the right to work, and the right to education. According to Article 1 of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR); All human beings are born free and equal indignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

Medical Ethics:

Medical ethics is primarily a field of applied ethics, the study of moral values and judgments as they apply to medicine. As a scholarly discipline, medical ethics encompasses its practical application in clinical settings as well as work on its history, philosophy, theology, and sociology. Medical ethics tends to be understood narrowly as an applied professional ethics, whereas bioethics appears to have worked more expansive concerns, touching upon the philosophy of science and the critique of biotechnology. Still, the two fields often overlap and the distinction is more a matter of style than professional consensus. Medical ethics shares many principles with other branches of healthcare ethics, such as nursing ethics.

Business Ethics:

Business ethics is a form of applied ethics that examines ethical principles and moral or ethical problems that arise in a business environment. In the increasingly conscience-focused marketplaces of the 21st century, the demand for

more ethical business processes and actions (known as ethicism) is increasing. Simultaneously, pressure is applied on industry to improve business ethics through new public initiatives and laws (e.g. higher UK road tax for higher-emission vehicles). Business ethics can be both a normative and a descriptive discipline. As a corporate practice and a career specialization, the field is primarily normative. In academia descriptive approaches are also taken. Corporate Social Responsibility and corporate governance are one of the business ethics. In some cases, corporations have redefined their core values in the light of business ethical considerations (e.g. BP's "beyond petroleum" environmental tilt).

Research Ethics:

Research ethics involves the application of fundamental ethical principles to a variety of topics involving scientific research. These include the design and implementation of research involving human experimentation, animal experimentation, various aspects of academic scandal, including scientific misconduct (such as fraud, fabrication of data and plagiarism), whistle blowing; regulation of research, etc. Research ethics is most developed as a concept in medical research. The key agreement here is the 1974 Declaration of Helsinki. The Nuremberg Code is a former agreement, but with many still important notes.

Computer Ethics: Computer Ethics is a branch of practical philosophy which

deals with how computing professionals should make decisions regarding professional and social conduct. The term "computer ethics" was first coined by Walter Maner in the mid-1970s. The conceptual foundations of computer ethics are investigated by information ethics, a branch of philosophical ethics established by Luciano Floridi. Identifying ethical issues as well as defining how to deal with them, has traditionally been problematic in computer ethics. There are a number of questions that are frequently discussed under the rubric of computer ethics relating to hacking, software piracy, ecommerce, cyber crime and accuracy.

Marketing Ethics: Marketing ethics is the area of applied ethics which deals
with the moral principles behind the operation and regulation of marketing. Some areas of marketing ethics (ethics of advertising and promotion) overlap with media ethics. Specific issues in marketing ethics relates to marketing research like invasion of privacy and stereotyping. Another issue relates to targeting vulnerable audience like children and old people and ignoring potential customers and many other issues regarding unethical pricing strategy followed by various organizations.

Journalism Ethics:

Journalism ethics and standards comprise principles of ethics and of good practice as applicable to the specific challenges faced by professional journalists. Historically and currently, this subset of media ethics is widely known to journalists as their professional "code of ethics" or the "canons of journalism. While various existing codes have some differences, most share common elements including the principles of truthfulness, accuracy, objectivity, impartiality, fairness and public accountability as these apply to the acquisition of newsworthy information and its

subsequent dissemination to the public. The codes and canons provide journalists a framework for self-monitoring and self-correction as they pursue professional assignments. Some of the codes and ethics are objectivity, sources, presentation, limitation of harm principle, slander and libel considerations, and accuracy and standard for factual reporting.

Environmental Ethics: Environmental ethics is the part of environmental

philosophy which considers extending the traditional boundaries of ethics from solely including humans to including the non-human world. It exerts influence on a large range of disciplines including law, sociology, theology, economics, ecology and geography. There are many ethical decisions that human beings make with respect to the environment. For example: should we continue to clear cut forests for the sake of human consumption? Or should we continue to propagate? The first international academic journal in this field emerged from North America in the late 1970s and early 1980s the US-based journal, Environmental Ethics in 1979 and early 1980s the US-based journal, Environmental Ethics in 1979 and the Canadian based journal The Trumpeter: Journal of Ecosophy in 1983.

CONCLUSION