CENTRE FOR APPLIED ETHICSResources

Ethics is a part of philosophy that develops a critical reflection on the behaviour of individuals and societies.

Where does the term ethics come from? It was Aristotle who invented the term ethics. He turned to a word that in Greek had a double meaning, ethos, which refers both to a person's character, the way a person relates to others, and to the society in which a person lives.

Ethics is not only about critically analysing this relationship, but also about being proactive. It therefore develops ideals of a good life or, in Aristotle’s terms, a happy life.

An ethical dilemma is a situation where we have to make a difficult decision and where there are only two options. Both alternatives cause irreparable harm, are mutually exclusive, and are equally defensible and reprehensible.

If we are faced with an ethical dilemma, any solution will have some degree of injustice. Ethics can help us to exercise our freedom of choice more rationally and accurately. 
 

We speak of a problem when the options we have are not mutually exclusive, when one of the options protects a legitimate right or expectation and the other a non-legitimate one.

For example, one problem is when a car company, seeking to increase profits, lowers production costs to the point of decreasing safety, increasing the risk to its consumers. While the pursuit of increased profits may be a legitimate interest, it cannot be pursued to the detriment of consumer safety.

In this case, the answer is therefore clear and there is no need to resort to the tools provided by ethics to determine which decision is right or wrong. There is only one ethically arguable option.
 

Minimalist ethics allows us to build healthy pluralistic societies. It serves a crucial function. Firstly, it is the foundation upon which we can coexist with people who hold different values.

Secondly, it is a minimum standard that we all must adhere to. Discrimination or mistreatment cannot be accepted. And thirdly, it serves as a criterion for judging common institutions. When we say that a law is unjust, we all need to agree on what we mean. 

There are a number of tools and theoretical approaches that allow us to develop ethical reflection. The instruments are well-known: values, norms, principles and virtues.

Regarding the theoretical approaches, we can focus on the intention of a person who is doing something. We can look at the action itself or at the consequences of that action. 

The care of ourselves and of the common good is the fundamental task posed by ethics, and it aims to assist us in this. Our behaviours are not automatic; we choose them. And we have to learn how we make those decisions, to build good individuals and good societies. 

Ethics helps reflection and tells us why we have to do what morality says is good to do or is our duty. 

1. Understand the starting situation, the people who will be involved, and consider what fair and unfair effects it will have on them.
2.-Identify fundamental ethical principles, prioritise and argue the choice we make.

In order to identify the most ethically sound option, we can look at the criteria put forward by the various ethical schools: deontological, utilitarian, virtue ethics, discursive and professional ethics.
 

The ethics of maxims is the aspect of ethics that each person is responsible for choosing.. Some people consider that an optimal life is a life of seeking pleasure and satisfaction either for themselves or for the majority.

Others believe that commitment to progress justifies a life of self-denial and sacrifice. There are vegetarians for ethical reasons and people who consider that they should donate part of their income to social causes.

None of these life proposals can be considered a condition for coexistence. In fact, consensus on them is not even desirable, let alone possible.

Nevertheless, the ethics of maxims is important because it gives coherence to our life choices and behaviours. Unlike minimal ethics, which fail to define us as individuals, it is maximal ethics that truly shape who we are. 

What is corporate citizenship?

The corporate citizenship model seeks to respond to the current moment, in which there is a growing ethical demand towards companies. It stems from research carried out at the Centre for Applied Ethics (CAE). It is based on the academic notion of corporate citizenship. Unlike traditional CSR, the corporate citizenship model suggests embedding civic principles into organizational culture and practice, making it inherent to their activities. 

It proposes that the organisation engages in public discourse with the society it impacts, collaborating to address the social, environmental, and economic challenges it faces. The corporate ethics research team has outlined a series of traits that characterise corporate citizenship. The aim is to serve as a reference for organisations to reflect on their social role.

Corporate citizenship entails recognising membership in the community, understanding its interconnectedness, and interdependence. This sense of belonging leads them to understand that their contribution to society is not limited to providing goods or services or complying with the law. In addition to its own interests, it serves the interests of society as a whole.

The researchers have identified a total of 12 characteristics that define corporate citizenship . And they have developed a method to help organisations make that change and to reflect and analyse:

• How they think they should be
• How they appear to society
• How this ideal would be realised in practice.

Ethical triangle of corporate citizenship