What Is Ethics?

Introduction

We always talk about doing good things and behaving well. So automatically, we are thinking about ethics. What is ethics? Ethics is your feelings about right or wrong. Most of the people learn ethical norms at school, at home, and at churches. Even though we learn moral values in childhood, we learn these values throughout our life.

The ethics refers to well-founded standards of right and wrong that prescribe what humans ought to do, usually in terms of rights, obligations, benefits to society, fairness, or specific virtues. The ethics also means the continuous effort of studying our own moral beliefs and our moral conduct. As human being we ensure that, we help to shape up our lives that are reasonable and strong.

In the business, we need to be honest and responsible. The ethical behavior is lubricant that keeps the economy running.

"Flourishing economics require a healthy level of trust in the reliability and fairness of everyday transactions. If you assumed every potential deal was a rip off or that the products you were buying were probably going to be lemons, then very little business would be get done" (James, Surowiecki "A Virtuous Cycle", Forbes, December 23, 2002, pp. 248-256

Ethics is very important in our lives. Ethical behavior is essential for the functioning our economy and our lives. Ethical rules have become an important part of the business and professional world. A wide range of groups have adopted ethical codes, including lawyers, doctors, accountants, real estate professionals, teachers, journalists, social workers and engineers. The ethical rules have legal significance and that failing to adhere to ethical standards can result in court-imposed civil liability, fine and jail.

THE UNETHICAL USE OF POWER

Women's ethical approaches toward harassments cases have changed tremendously

Throughout the years, more and more women have climbed the cooperate ladder, leaving many women's rights unprotected from inappropriate harassment or bullying into certain requests or sexual favors, resulting into a hostile work environment. There have been many cases of harassment reported in the past, but more frequently women have come forth reporting their case, stating the facts and propositions that have been requested by an employer, or an authority figure of high demand. Many women have been intimidated to come forth with these unethical propositions, fearing loss of their job, benefits, pay, or most of all the embarrassment of not being heard or believed. Although leadership and power are ultimately connected, another component of equal importance is ethics. Leadership is not a person or position, but it is a complex moral relationship between people based on trust, obligation, commitment, emotion, and a shared vision of completing tasks and principle standards to abide by.

Women's rights have since ratified the nation, as now seen in many employers' handbooks must state a sexual harassment policy. The U.S. Supreme court has recognized this unethical abuse of power as an illegal act and it punishable under all provisions of the law for example, passage of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act 2002, that mandated changes in financial reporting by public companies and enhanced the powers of the Security and Exchange Commission, was a direct result of the numerous cases of unethical conduct of leaders in corporate America. These types of cases lend credence to the theory that abuse of power for sexual gains but is not only limited to men. In fact, as more and more women attain levels of prominence within organizations, the potential for female abuse of power for sexual gains will increase.

Sexual Harassment is a serious problem, especially when the problem is permitted to go unnoticed or unaddressed. While the unethical use of power by leaders is often the source of harassment, the ethical use of power can help remedy sexual harassment. One way to offer a solution to this problem is to establish an ethical climate within the organization. This can be achieved by establishing a zero tolerance policy, conducting mandatory sexual harassment training, and providing prompt corrective assistance to the victimized employee.

Power is an essential element of leadership; However when used inappropriately and unethically, power can have grave consequences to an organization. When discussing sexual harassment, whether leaders are using positional reward, or coercive power, the ethical use of power must be a paramount concern. There are many laws to protect the rights of employee's rather they are low entry position, women, men, or of same sex harassment it is unethical and illegal and the proper advocate should be notified is such a crime is being committed.

Many think that harassment does not exist in certain countries or within certain gender, but this is a global issue that must be addressed nationwide. Employee's everywhere must take responsibility to call out this unethical behavior. Notice the values and the norms established on preventing sexual harassment are at the level employee satisfaction, and in preventing turnover and legal action. To exercise power is a natural phenomenon; however, it is whether leaders or subordinates use power to create problems or to resolve issues that can make a substantial difference in the workplace environment. Leaders who obtain and use power ethically will be successful in diminishing costs and maintain a stable, respectful, and safe workforce.

Medical Ethics

Autonomy vs. Paternalism

There are so many facets of medical ethics that could go on for an inexhaustible amount of pages. For the sake of time the topic that will be touched on will be the ethics of autonomy vs. paternalism. An autonomous person may choose to pick religious customs, cultural customs, or just for their own comfort, the medical treatment that they want. Autonomy is the idea that a patient has the right to govern his own will of and his own decisions in his/her medical decisions.

The opposite of autonomy is paternalism; "Paternalism can be defined as interfering with a person's freedom for his or her own good" (http://www.scu.edu/ethics/publications/iie/v4n2/owngood.html).Take for instance, Jehovah's Witnesses. Jehovah's Witnesses do not take any blood in medical procedures even if it means their life. Many may feel it wrong to lose one's life, over what