Eth 316 Week 1 Individual Ethics Essay

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Individual - Ethics Essay Vina Baptiste ETH 316 February 4, 2013 G. Edward Mc McCullough Individual - Ethics Essay In order for one to understand their direction which helps them with their decision making process, it requires the help of comparing and contrasting ethical theories. “Each theory emphasizes different points such as predicting the outcome and following one’s duties to others in order to reach an ethically correct decision.” (2013) I will attempt to describe the three ethical theories virtue, utilitarianism, and deontological relating to ethics and morality since each theory has something in common with an end goal. The virtue theory of ethics is exemplified when a person judges another by character and not by their actions and relies on observed behavior more than a behavior that may have happened only once. A virtue based person would morally guide an individual in making correct decisions from their own life experiences. “Conversely, a person who has a reputation for scientific misconduct is more likely to be judged harshly for plagiarizing because of his consistent past of unethical behavior (Penslar, Robin, L., 1995). The fact that this ethical theory does not consider a person’s change in moral character; it is one of its weaknesses. Utilitarianism is more concerned with the good for all. “According to this theory an individual’s rights may be infringed upon in order to benefit a greater population.” (2013) Utilitarianism, in terms of ethics, is an individual trying to make a positive change for a larger group, and morally would guide themselves in decision in regard to the group they are associated with or belong to. There are two types of utilitarianism, act utilitarianism which a person performs the acts that benefit most of the people regardless to a person’s feeling or the laws, and rule utilitarianism which takes the law

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