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MSU PRR 370 - ETHICS AND LEADERSHIP

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ETHICS AND LEADERSHIPPutting Theory Into PracticeImportance of Values - Conflict in Values - The Good Life.- Ethical Systems - Leadership Styles - What Should Be DoneWilliam D. HittIVEthical SystemsWhen a businessman, or any person living in this complex and highly developed stage ofcivilization, tries to be ethical, he has a much more difficult task than is usually assumed.He has to choose which set of ethics he is going to employ He has to make decisions, notmerely between the good and the bad in a popular sense, but between various kinds ofgoodness as well, to determine their appropriateness in the total situation of which he is apart. Samuel Miller“The Tangle of Ethics”39The Nature of Ethics - End-Result Ethics - Rule Ethics - Social Contract Ethics -Personolistic Ethics - Summing UpTHE NATURE OF ETHICS“What does ‘ethical’ mean to you?” This was the question posed to 100 business people byRaymond Baumharti. Here are some of the typical responses:- ‘Before coming to the interview to make sure that I knew what we would talk about, Ilooked up ‘ethics’ in my dictionary. I read it and can’t understand it. I don’t know whatthe concept means.”- “‘Ethical’ is what my feelings tell me is right. But this is not a fixed standard, and thatmakes the problem.”- “‘Ethical’ means accepted standards in terms of your personal and social welfare, whatyou believe is right.”It is no simple matter to define ethics. The literature on the subject reveals a number ofdifferent definitions, and some of the differences are substantial. In the book, Above theBottom Line, Solomon and Hanson offer a general definition of ethics that is consistent withSocratic thinking:Ethics is, first of all, the quest for, and the understanding of, the good life living well, alife worth living. It is largely a matter of perspective: puffing every activity and goal in itsplace knowing what is worth doing and what is not worth doing, knowing what is worthwanting and having and knowing what is not worth wanting and having.”’ ~An ethical system may be defined as “a set of interrelated values concerning preferablemodes of conduct.” In the language of M. Scott Peck, your personal ethical system is yourmap of the good life. In the language of Mark Pastin,’00 your ethical system is your set of“ground rules” for making what you consider to be a “right” decision.To pursue the idea of “ground rules for making right decisions;’ consider the followingquotation by the former president of the University of Notre Dame, Father TheodoreHesburgh:My basic principle is that you don’t make decisions because they are easy, you don’t makethem because they are cheap, you don’t make them because they are popular; you makethem because they are right. Not distinguishing between rightness and wrongness is whereadministrators get into trouble.53, p. 172As a point of departure in my Ethics and Leadership seminar, I have asked the participants toreflect on Father Hesburgh’s quotation and then answer this question: What ground rules doyou follow in determining what is a “right” decision? The responses are quite varied and tendto fall into four distinct categories. These are typical responses that represent the fourcategories:- “I would make the decision on the basis of expected results, what would give us thegreatest return on investment."- “I would make the decision on the basis of what the law says, on the legality of thematter:’- “I would make the decision on the basis of the strategy and values of myorganization.”- “I would make the decision on the basis of my personal convictions and what myconscience told me to do.”The four illustrative responses represent four distinctly different ethical systems: end-resultethics, rule ethics, social contract ethics, and personalistic ethics. It will be instructive toexamine each of these four ethical systems and then consider the role that each might play ina comprehensive ethical theory.These particular ethical systems have been selected because, in addition to achievingnoteworthy status in the philosophy of ethics, each reflects a different mode of being. Whilethere are other ethical systems not to be considered here, an understanding of these four willprovide a reasonably broad perspective of different approaches to ethics.The four ethical systems to be examined are defined as follows: Ethical System Proponent DefinitionEnd.result ethics John Stuart Mill (1806—1873)The moral rightness of an action is determined by considering its con sequences.Rule ethics Imnianuel Kant(1724—1804)The moral rightness of an action is determined by laws and standardsSocial contract ethicsJean Jacques Rousseau(1112—1778)The moral rightness of an action is determined by the customs and norms of a particular community.Personalistic ethIcs Martin Ruber(1878—1965)The moral rightness of an action is determined by one’s conscience.- End-result ethics: The moral rightness of an action is determined by considering its consequences. (Principal exponents: Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill.)- Rule ethics: The moral rightness of an action is determined by laws and standards. (Prominent exponent: Immanuel Kant.)- Social contract ethics: The moral rightness of an action is determined by the customs and norms of a particular society or community. (Principal exponent: Jean Jacques Rousseau.)- Personalistic ethics: The moral rightness of an action is determined by ~ conscience (Prominent exponent: Martin Buber.)What criteria should be used in evaluating a particular ethical system? In his book, Ethics; Theory and Practice, Jacques Thiroux provides us with a list of attributes of a workable and livable ethical system:1. It should be rationally based and yet not devoid of emotion.2. It should be as logically consistent as possible but not rigid and inflexible.3. It must have universality or general application to all humanity and yet be applicable in a practical way to particular individuals and situations.4. It should be able to be taught and promulgated.5. It must have the ability to resolve conflicts among human beings, duties, and obligations.As you read the summaries of the four ethical systems on the following pages, consider how well eachone satisfies the criteria delineated by Thiroux.118r.


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