...• Ethical Relativism • Moral Differences • Not everyone shares our idea of what constitutes decent/moral behavior. • What we believe to be immoral behavior in fact can be grounded in an ethical code. – 9/11 for example. Al-Qaeda’s code of ethics identify their action as morally justified and mandated • Terms • Moral nihilism – View that there are no morally right or wrong viewpoints, that the whole moral issue is a cultural game. – Neither your nor my opinion matter because there is no moral right or wrong. – Difficult to uphold because it’s extreme. • Terms • Moral skepticism – We can’t know if there are moral truths or not. – Problem, how do you make moral judgments • Moral subjectivism – Moral views are to each individual and we can’t know the inner states from one person to another. – Problem, this approach has no problem solving capability. • • Soft Universalism • Belief that deep down, despite cultural differences, there exist basic moral principles that can be agreed on. • Allows for problem solving capability between cultures and ideas. • Hard Universalism • AKA…Moral absolutism • Holds that there is one absolute and universal moral code • Most often supported by ethical theories. • Descriptive and Normative Ethics • Important terms for any ethical theory • Descriptive ethics – An ethical theory that merely describes what is seen as fact. – Describes what is actually done or thought • In the US it generally isn’t considered...
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...Renarta Mentis University of Phoenix BSHS/332 Theresa Edwards Ethical Relativism October 13, 2014 Do you know about Ethical Relativism? Do you practice Ethical Relativism? Can Ethical Relativism hurt you or harm you? Ethical Relativism is the act of knowing what’s right from wrong. Every culture and society may have different views. Ethical relativism does not tell what’s right from wrong, it’s cultural diversity and describes its theory. According to the text, relativism can differ from person to person, culture to culture; society to society. One should respect one’s views as they may or may not be the same. All cultures do not agree with others, however as an individual you try to change the persons view. Do you do what is morally, and politically correct? As an individual that can establish wrong, or right, and make the right choices. Ethical relativism does not know what’s right from wrong. Everyone should be able to make choices according to one’s culture, or what society believes is right, however it is the actions of a person who has rights and the ability to make the right choices, and allow a person’s values? Is there an excuse or pass for doing something that is clearly wrong, however allowing one’s self to believe that it is morally and ethically correct, can be nearly impossible. When a person’s morals becomes a position that can be a lot different from others. Society’s views are better than others in a transcultural way. A person can act, but to act...
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...and wrong are predestined by ethical relativism, what a person’s society believes becomes a major factor in that person’s ethical decision making process. Society often follows blindly the advice of positions of authority. If society is to let them lead the way in determining what is right, their behavior is directly affected by a third party. They are not making decisions for themselves and are rather being manipulated by society’s demands Ethical Relativism does not have a clear decision making process. What is required when any two parties interact is the skill to solve problems. Problems will arise; support for that assumption needn’t even be presented. We must then be assured that we have in place a method of dealing with such problems. Ethical relativism not only doesn’t furnish us with such a technique , it actually condemns the effort, since the resolve of any situation involving cultural differences must by nature involve infringing on one culture to back down and acquiesce. This is of course moot if the problem is one of a nature that can be compromised on, of course then it wouldn’t even qualify as an issue worth evaluating on this level. So we are left with no method of solving problems with. This means that though there are certain basic rights that most cultures agree on, we are at a loss to enforce them in another culture, or condemn their flouting. Human right as an international issue then dissolves. Ethical Relativism can be utilized to signify many...
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...and the systematic study of the former (Joseph Omoregbe 1993 p.3)2. How then do we decide what is morally right? Is it based on universal laws or divine instructions? Are laws truly universal? If they are not, how then can the rightness or wrongness of culturally divergent societies be determined? Philosophers agree and disagree in varied proportions on answers to these questions. It is normal if you disagree too. For the purpose of this paper, an attempt will be made to look into the concept of ethical relativism, its importance and areas of deviation from ethical absolutism. History of Ethical Relativism Though moral relativism did not become a prominent topic in philosophy or elsewhere until the twentieth century, it has ancient origins. In the classical Greek world, both the historian Herodotus and the sophist Protagoras appeared to endorse some form of relativism. The early Sophist Greek philosopher Protagoras provides an early philosophical precursor to modern Moral Relativism in his assertion that "man is the measure of all things". The Greek historian Herodotus (c. 484 - 420 B.C.) observed that each society typically regards its own belief system and way of doing things as better than all others. Plato also pointed out that much of what is believed to be...
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... STEPHEN B, GUFFEY, DARLY M, & MCMILLIAN, JEFFERY J JOURNAL OF BUSSINES ETHICS INTRODUCTION Many studies have noted differences in ethical judgments across individuals within organizations, industries, and countries. Such differences tend to become more pronounced and problematic when one enters the international arena, because members of different national cultures frequently apply different ethical standards and criteria This remains a vexing challenge for those engaged in international trade. This gave us the opportunity to observe cross-cultural differences firsthand, using our own students as subjects. Initially, our data originated as a class exercise intended simply to motivate discussion. As is customary in marketing and business ethics classes, students were asked to read a printed scenario, to rate the ethics of the actor in the scenario, and to discuss justify their evaluations. The discussions revealed the ethical criteria applied by the students and the importance weightings they placed on each criterion. It was our observation of the pronounced differences evident across national groups that sparked our investigation into the sources of these differences. This study was also motivated by our curiosity concerning whether U.K students ethical evaluations would be similar to those of their North American counterparts (by merit of being Anglophones) or similar to their French counterparts (by merit of being European...
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...Introduction This paper explores three philosophical issues. The concepts examined are personal identity, virtue ethics, and ethical relativism. A personal philosophy in relation to each concept is identified and described. In conclusion, philosophical findings are incorporated into a personal view on the ultimate meaning of life. Philosophical Issues Personal Identity Personal identity of the most basic nature is “what makes one the person one is” (Olson, 2010). This basic nature then leads to the complexities of personal identity. Complexities include questions such as: * Who am I? * What is it to be a person? * What does it take for a person to persist from one time to another – that is, for the same person to exist at different times? * How do we find out who is who? * What am I? * How could I have been? * How different could I have been from the way I actually am? (2010) These questions are crucial to discovering self-purpose of life. Hume’s philosophy is that personal identity is “nothing but a bundle or collection of different perceptions” and “too inconstant” (n.d.). Several philosophers disagree, arguing that “when the soul and the body are united, then nature orders the soul to rule and govern, and the body to obey and serve” (Chaffee, 2011, p. 91). There are many theories of philosophy pertaining to personal identity and social identity. In most cases, the compulsion to rationalize identity by understanding and knowing who...
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...wrong, or is it morally right within certain contexts. Cultures exist that make having multiple children an extreme financial burden, or due to population control, illegal to have more than one child. Even within these contexts, does it make it morally right to practice infanticide? No, it does not! The practice of infanticide is universally morally wrong. Infanticide is practiced in several cultures, one of which is Pakistan. According to cultural relativism, this practice is deemed morally right. Cultural relativism deals with actions that are specific to a culture and the individuals within a specific culture. The beliefs and customs of a particular culture are relative to the individuals within that culture. What may be morally right in one culture may not be right in another (gotquestions.org, 2011). Relativism deals with the fact that individual societies may deem, for themselves, what is right or wrong. Since truth is non-discriminatory, there really cannot be a set of standards that apply to all cultures. Relativism says that it is wrong for one society to pass judgment on another society for this reason. Pakistani's believe that infanticide is right based on reasons such as babies being born out of wedlock or the baby being the wrong sex, where here in the United States we believe that the baby has to...
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...explain and critically discuss the strengths and weaknesses of moral relativism. Every choice we make is due to each person’s individual morality and rationality. In this view, Norman (1988: 188) contends that, “Morality is premised on the assumption of individual responsibility.” Morality is concerned with the free choice of rational human beings, and not the non-rational. Louis (2002:28) further adds that morality, “Is just the set of common rules, habbits, and customs that have won social approval over time so that they seem part of things, like facts.” Moral relativism shows that there are no absolute moral rules and each situation needs to be examined individually. Therefore moral relativism is the belief that morality does not relate to any absolute standards of right and wrong but good and bad are dependent on culture and circumstance or judgment paradigm. Thus different moral truths hold for different people from society to society or at different periods in time. The fact that some people see moral relativism as an obvious truth which is undeniable needs no preamble. Needless to mention, others perceive moral relativism as threatening to the moral foundation on which society is founded. According to moral relativists there is nothing that is absolutely, invariably right or wrong, and there is no universal standard by which to measure our character or our actions. According to moral relativism, it is never true to say simply that a certain kind of behaviour is right...
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...Katie Potter PHIL 213 Ethical Universalism vs. Ethical Relativism Ethical universalism and ethical relativism are two types of meta-ethical views, meaning the two theories attempt to understand the reason behind ethical properties, attitudes, boundaries and judgements. Ethical universalism can be viewed as an ideal world, while ethical relativism explains a more realistic perspective on why different cultures can view the same actions differently. The two delve more into the essential meaning of a theory rather than just simply labeling actions as right or wrong. Ethical universalism is the theory that there is a universal ethic that applies to all people, no matter the individual's history, preferences, traits or circumstances, and is applied to that individual at all times. Universalism principles are principles for everyone, all humans are granted equal rights therefore share the same values and views on what is right and wrong. Universalism is based on the idea that a rational test or standard can be applied to any ethical dilemma, however that rational test can vary among different groups of people. For example, a Utilitarian person would determine if an action is right by asking “does my action create the maximum good for the maximum number of people?” In a Utilitarians eyes, this action would be good and “universal”, but in another person's eyes this action could be morally or ethically wrong. That’s why I believe that there is little to no moral universalism...
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...of Cultural Relativism” by James Rachels The argument that I would like to address from this reading is that “there is no objective truth in morality. Right and wrong are only matters of opinion, and opinions vary from culture to culture.” (Rachels, 618). In this reading, William Graham Sumner says, “there is no measure of right and wrong other than the standards of one’s society.” ( Rachels, 619) This means that right and wrong are determined by a specific culture and may not be viewed the same in another culture. Cultural relativism is the belief that although practices and ethical beliefs differ from society to society, it must be accepted as good, relative to each respective culture's beliefs and moral code. In cultural relativism, right and wrong become matters of opinion in a particular culture and one culture should not judge the behaviors of another culture by using the standards of their own culture as a measuring stick. If this is the case, then nothing is inherently wrong and nothing is inherently good. It is an “anything goes” mentality – it just has to be approved by ones’ culture or society. “Cultural relativism is a theory about the nature of morality” (Rachels, 618). But that’s all it is –it is only a theory. The moral decisions are a matter of the perception of what one cultures perceives to be moral. I disagree with Rachels’ viewpoint when he states that there is no absolute rational standard and that the theory of Cultural Relativism does...
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...Cultural Relativism Cultural relativism, or CR, is the view that good and bad are determined by the beliefs of a society, or in other words, moral principles are based upon the culture’s collective norms of what is good and bad. Normality is culturally defined. This implies that morality is a social construct and therefore the moral codes you hold, are a direct reflection of the societies codes in which you live. Further, the morals held by your society are not objective facts, but rather, varied from culture to culture. Neither side is wrong in their belief, despite the fact they are different beliefs. Relativism argues that not passing judgments against cultures allows for a greater sense of cultural appreciation. We don't lock other cultures in judgments, but rather are tolerant and accepting of them. Cultural relativism teaches us to view other cultures with a nuanced outlook, and to not immediately assume (as many people do) that our own preferences are the absolute best ones. Many (though not all) practices, customs, and beliefs may seem odd or even repulsive, but they’re generally harmless as far as their ethical consequences. From the tolerance and open-mindedness offered by cultural relativism is a chance to learn about other cultures and ways of doing things. Opponents of cultural relativism offer some strong arguments against this theory. First, it doesn’t allow you to question society’s norms. In asking whether slavery was right or wrong, you would merely be asking...
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...bribery become a controversial issue worldwide. Some countries including the U.S. and China have specific laws to resist these conducts, but some countries like Somalia consider corruption and bribery as a tool of doing business. This difference between countries is due to the deeply cultural distinction. After reading chapter five on ethical values, it brings me a good argument about the definitions of morality and ethics. According to the textbook, ethical relativism and ethical objectivism are two different principles (Lawhead, 2010). Ethical relativism states that the human option decides a person's standpoints to judge if a conduct is ethical or not, while ethical objectivism states the moral principles, which is universally acceptable regardless of the individual and society, do exist and it is objective (2010). These two principles are all true. For example, murder is considered as illegal and unacceptable worldwide. This conduct fits for the ethical objectivism. On the other hand, prostitution is considered as unethical and immoral conduct in China while it is a legitimate occupation in Japan. This is an instance of the ethical relativism. In this journal, I will focus on the ethical relativism. First of all, we should know the definition of bribery. It means to voluntarily offer payment by someone seeking unlawful advantages (Wikipedia). In the U.S., in order to prohibit this conduct, Foreign Corrupt Practice Act (FCPA) is established, which forbids the U.S. citizens...
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...SHEILA JANE M. ESPINA CONCEPT PAPER MFC 301 MBA ETHICAL RELATIVISM & REASONING IN ETHICS INTRODUCTION People develop their judgment concerning morality over time. They improve and widen them through interactions with individuals and social institutions. In different societies each with their own ethnicity and traditions, there are different thoughts concerning how humans are to behave. Different societies and cultures have different policies, different customs, laws and regulations and moral ideas. ETHICAL RELATIVISM Cultures vary extensively in their ethical practices. Whatvarious practices that some societies considers morally acceptable, can be condemned in others, like polygamy or adultery, racism, sexism, and genocide, which is the deliberate killing of people who belong to a particular racial, political or cultural group. Differences like these may make us question whether there are any universal moral principles or whether morality is merely a matter of "cultural taste."Dissimilarities in these practices across cultures raise a vitalconcern in ethics -- the concept of "ethical relativism." Ethical relativism is the philosophy that states that morality is relative to the customs of one's culture. Albeit, whether an action is right or wrong is contingent on the moral norms of the society in which it is practiced.The same action may be morally right in one society but be morally wrong in another. It is a theory in which the...
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...Relativist Hume believed that the only kind of truth that can be known is a _____ Truth Subjective The notion of ethical _________which is often mistaken and confused with Ethical relativism, doubts that any acts are right or wrong. | | Skepticism Moral decisions, determinations, and judgments are acknowledged and established in a cultural context, and these positions are subject to change depending on one’s cultural Relativism ______is the notion that there is no concrete certainty the sphere of knowledge and truth. Relativism An objective______ is a truth that is independent of an observer. Truth _________ is the notion that truth depends on context—the time, place, and the identity of the observer. Relativism The certainty of Descartes’ rationalism leads to the idea of absolute truth In the never-ending debate between relativism and dogmatism, most people agree that the solution for inclusivity is moderation People who argue that ethics and morality are subjective, and moral choices should be made on individual assessment, or societal allowances granted to the individual are called ethical relativists ------------------------------------------------- Approaching morality _______ ethics stresses importance of being a moral person. _____ ethics classifies morality in terms of virtue. Virtue ______is the ethical theory that is essentially concerned with duties and...
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...for example, to think that an individual who tells the truth to her friends but consistently lies to her parents and teachers possesses the virtue of honesty. Ethical merit, like the majority of troubles in ethical psychology, states at the connection of concerns in equally normative principles and experiential psychology, and at hand are two universal moves in the direction one might take. A principle that normally is set by ethical philosophy is not based on how an individual measures up to ones principles. On the other hand, one possibly will appear to have ethical qualities within the principle guidelines that general morals should be controlled by structure. This subsequent move toward, ethics is not that the normative/descriptive difference vanishes; instead, it simply thinks that a theory of moral character ought to be appropriately Social psychology explains to us what ethical mediators are like, because asset approaches build character and its mechanism is the foundation of ethics, it looks to be mainly suitable that such moves take the psychosomatic information on nature and its apparatus sincerely. This longing for sensitive principles to a degree clarifies the current resurrection of virtue principles; however it in addition leads to various disputes to the design that mediators embody vigorous ethical characters. Deontological techniques of ethics are more often than not...
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