Understanding ethics

CHAPTER ONE
Ethics: Meaning, Definition and Scope
What is the word in your mother tongue for the English
term ETHICS?
Is there an equivalent word in your mother tongue for
MORALS?

 The term moral and ethics are used

simultaneously
Ethics is a systematic discipline with basic
assumptions and well grounded theories
The word ethics stems from the greek word
ethike which attributes to social environment,
referred to as ethos or social mileu
Moral is derived from the latin word moralis
which implies customs -Where individuals have a
conscious choice to make a right and ethical
decsion
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 Ethics is Systamatic Study of moral conduct

Business Ethics is : Ethical processes
businesses use in order to achieve a good
ethical standard
Ethics can be classified as :
Normative, Applied and Meta Ethics

 Normative ethics Study of moral

standards to determine right and wrong .
Scope General moral Science
Applied Ethics Study of special issues
Business Ethics
Meta Ethics Cognitive study of the
ultimate principles of ethics, their origin
and meaning . Scope Philosophy
Philosophical ethics distinguishes what people do value from what they
should value

 Ethics & Law overlap can also be called

grey area
Principle is a basic truth law or
assumption

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 Business ethics adheres to a code of

conduct that is in accordance with the
normative principles
Professionals bear the following
characteristics
Competency
Character
Compensation
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 The idea of good

Value based business practices classify the
idea of being good to a person who is

A good father
Good Manager
Good teacher
Good Customer