Creating Ethical Environment and Restoring Trust: Bridging the Skill Value Gap

Part [This part of paper attempts to describe concepts related to understanding of and role of mind in propelling ethical or un-ethical behaviour. It also attempts to explain as to how mind is guided by combination of virtue and vice driven values when it propels ethical or unethical behaviour with kind of intelligence possessed by a person.] What is Ethics? (vai Latin ethica from Ancient Greek from adjective of custom, habit'), a major branch of philosophy, encompasses right conduct and good life. It is significantly broader than common conception of analyzing right and wrong. A central aspect of is the good life, life worth living or life that is satisfying, which is held by many philosophers to be more important than moral conduct. The major problem is discovery of summum bonum, greatest good. The right act can be identified as one causing greatest good and immoral act as one impeding it. and morals are respectively akin to theory and practice. denotes theory of right action and greater good while morals indicate their practice. Moral has dual meaning. The first indicates a person's comprehension of morality and his capacity to put it into practice. In this meaning, antonym is amoral, indicating an inability to distinguish between right and wrong. The second denotes active value of those values. In this sense, antonym is immoral, referring to actions that violate ethical principles. is related to morals or moral principles and moral is concerned with conduct and duties of man and moral philosophy is science of right living and just conduct of living. is concerned with philosophy which treats of human character and conduct, of distinction between right and wrong, and of moral duties and obligations to community. Personal signifies a moral code applicable to individuals, while social moral theory applied to groups. Social can be synonymous with social and political philosophy, in as much as it is foundation of a good society or state. is not limited to specific act and defined moral codes, but encompasses whole of moral ideals and behaviour, a person's philosophy of life. A few years ago, sociologist Raymond Baumhart asked business people, what do mean to you? among their replies were following. Ethics has to do with what my feelings tell me is right or wrong Ethics has to do with my religious beliefs ethical is doing what law requires Ethics consists of standards of behaviour our society accepts I don't know what word means These replies might be typical of our own. The meaning of ethics is hard to pin down and views many people have about are shaky. Like Bahaman's first respondent, many people tend to equate with their feelings. But being ethical is clearly not a matter of following one's feelings. A person following his or her feelings may recoil from doing what is right. In fact, feelings frequently deviate from what is ethical. Nor should one identify with religion. Most religions, of course, advocate high ethical standards. Yet if were confined to religion, then would apply only to religious people. But applies as much to behaviour of atheist as to that of saint. Religion can set high ethical standards and can provide intense motivations for ethical behaviour. Ethics, however, cannot be confined to religion nor is it same as religion. Being ethical is also not same as following law. The law often incorporates ethical standards to which most citizens subscribe. But laws, like feelings, can deviate from what is ethical. Our own pre-civil war slavery laws and apartheid laws of present day South Africa are grotesquely obvious examples of laws that deviate from what is ethical. …