Understanding
ETHICS &
MORALITY
Lesson 1: Moral and Non-Moral Standards
Lesson Identify the similarities and differences
between Ethics and Morality
Objectives
Compare Moral and Non-moral
Standards
Determine the necessary role of Ethics in
the society.
ETHICS
Ethics or Moral Philosophy is a philosophical discipline which concerns
primarily on the rightness and wrongness of an action.
It is a “philosophical discipline that provides the principles on the morality of
human acts.”
“It equips man with a theoretical knowledge of the morality of human acts,”
(Babor, 2010).
It is derived from the Greek word ethos which means “custom,” (Glenn, 1968).
MORALITY
Morality is defined as the principle of what is considered to be right or wrong,
of knowing what is good from what is bad.
It refers to the extent to which an action is right or wrong.
“It concerns the recognition of the inherent value of people, both ourselves
and others, a value that is not reducible to how others benefit us,” (Martin,
2001).
“It is the application of the theories of ethics. When one does the application,
he or she is already in the ambience of morality.” (Babor, 2010).
MORAL STANDARDS
Moral standards deal with matters that can benefit or seriously injure human beings,
e.g., fraud, slander, rape, robbery, and murder.
Those acts that can cause benefits are labeled as “moral” and those which can
cause harm are considered “immoral.”
Hence, it is necessary that our moral standards are those which can cause benefit
with others.
They are to be preferred than other values including self-interest. E.g., credibility is to
be preferred than cheating, although fraud can me make me run for a position in the
government.
NON-MORAL STANDARDS
Non-moral standards refers to rules that affect the choice of a
person but are not linked to moral or ethical considerations.
It manages and governs individual life aspirations and desires, and
may decide a person’s place in his group. Some non-moral
standards of any society could be table manners, general
etiquette, clothing, grammar, language expectation, etc.
Why study ethics?
Ethics can deepen our reflection on
the ultimate questions of life.
It can help us to think better of morality.
It can improve our perspective and
make it more reflective and better
thought out.
Ethics is important because our choices
are important.
Understanding
ETHICS &
MORALITY
Lesson 1: Moral and Non-Moral Standards
