Lecture 1.3 – Ethics
It is utterly important to live with ethics and in particular sexual ethics. It is also important to live by ethical rules. Individuals who don’t live according to ethical rules are heading for failure.
What is ethics?
Google Definition of Ethics:
- moral principles that govern a person’s behavior or the conducting of an activity.
- the moral correctness of specified conduct,
- the branch of knowledge that deals with moral principles,
- a set of moral principles, especially ones relating to or affirming a specified group, field, or form of conduct.
An easier way to understand ethics as opposed to morals is… Ethics are a set of rules laid down by a specific institution that have to be followed or abided by. Morals are internal beliefs.
In other words, if one wants to be a member of a church, professional group or a corporate firm, one has to accept and abide by their set rules, and these set rules we call ethics.
In an attempt to create morals within individuals and also to force individuals to have morals or moral beliefs, religious institutions scared their members by telling them that they would go to hell if they didn’t believe what their institution wanted them to believe.
People should learn the importance of abiding by rules & how to abide by rules, since ethics and ethical rules ultimately become a part of a person, causing the individual to believe in them that results in morals.
Ethics also mean the ethical motive or motivation based on ideas of right and wrong. Many philosophers believe ethics are more important than moral conduct, but they actually go hand in hand as we apply ethical sexual conduct which is an important form of ethical conduct. We all have the obligation to choose to be ethical or not. Any form of ethical behavior or of applying ethics in any way has a positive effect on our lives and on each of our own spiritual being, also known as life-force or energy force.
Personal ethics is a category of philosophy that determines what an individual believes about morality and right and wrong. Personal ethics refers to the ethics that a person identifies with in respect to people and situations that they deal with in everyday life.
This is usually distinguished from business ethics, professional ethics, or legal ethics.
These branches of ethics come from outside organizations, institutions or governments, not the individual’s conscience.
Personal ethics is a combination of a person’s morals and standards, together with rules from outside sources. Examples of personal ethics: Treating another decently and fairly.
Holding yourself in a good manner. Being respectful to others. Treating people how you expect to be treated yourself.
A code of ethics is a set of principles and rules used by individuals and organizations to govern their decision-making process, as well as to distinguish right from wrong. These codes are often more complex and contextual than simple morality, acknowledging specific situations and providing guidance. Many codes of ethics also specify penalties for violations.
5 General Ethical Principles for Personal Code of Ethics:
Principle 1: Beneficence and nonmaleficence.
Principle 2: Fidelity and responsibility.
Principle 3: Integrity.
Principle 4: Justice.
Principle 5: Respect for people’s rights and dignity.
Here are a few principles that form the basis of personal ethics, and are what you need to hold yourself accountable to:
Being Honest
Having Integrity
Keeping Your Promises
Being Loyal
Being Fair
Being Caring
Being Respectable
Respectful Toward Others
Obeying the Law
Provide Excellence in Everything You Do
Being a Role Model & Achiever
Have High Morale / Self-Esteem / Confidence
Have Faith in Yourself
Being Accountable
Have High Standards
It is clear that ethics are an important element for humans and that humans have to live by ethical rules.