Male

44

My Ethical Perspective

I tend to base my ethical perspective on what is good to be, rather than what it is good to do. I believe that ethics should focus on ways to help people achieve moral excellence. When asked to judge whether an individual’s actions are ethical, I look beyond the actions to examine the individual’s character. Uprightness and integrity are key factors in my assessment. I look for evidence of virtue in people, including such traits as honor, justice and benevolence, believing that a virtue is not just an abstract principle. Rather virtue is reflected in the quality of an individual’s character, and character is more important than an individual’s action. In my opinion, mere compliance with rules, no matter how well-intentioned, does not make anyone an ethical person without being accompanied by consistent voluntary striving to be a morally good person. This category is most closely aligned in philosophy with virtue theory.

My Ethical Style

I believe that ethics relies on the ability of the individuals to make sound moral judgements. I do not believe that it is enough to comply with some preset standards or principles of right and wrong to find the solution to a complex ethical dilemma. Ethics relies on exemplary character to make the difficult choices. I value such qualities as honesty, wisdom and integrity and I place greater emphasis on demonstrating these qualities than on following the rules. I believe that an individual would be incapable of choosing between conflicting rules or standards of right and wrong without already possessing good character. My approach to ethics calls for developing practical wisdom and sound judgement within individuals to guide them in their ethical decision making. My ethical style compels me to strive to be a person of wisdom and integrity.