One of important global business tendencies lies in growing role of ethical behavior in business activities and communication. According to the opinion of Leonard J. Brooks&Paul Dunn (2009), this phenomenon is predetermined by such reasons as increased level of societal moral sensitivity and accountability desired, going away from profit-only model of business and introduction of managerial frameworks based on values, reputation and risks (4-15). Ethical behavior can be defined in many different ways. To my mind, one of most comprehensive definition was introduced by R.French (2011), who defines ethical behavior as the behavior, which is morally accepted as good and right, as opposed to an unethical one, which is considered to be bad (or wrong) in a particular setting (40). Normative ethics, which is considered to be a basis for ethical behavior in business, is characterized by simultaneous functioning of three different approaches to ethics. They are virtue ethics, deontology and utilitarianism.
The core similarity of all three approaches lies in the fact that all of them are aimed at determining (judging) what is rights and wrong under particular circumstances. Moreover, it can be stated that all three approaches use the same concepts of “good” and “bad”, right” and “wrong”. However, under each approach these concepts can acquire different meanings. It is also worth mentioning that all abovementioned approaches concentrate on results. All of them are aimed at achieving the best result, dependently on what the one believes the best result should be. Despite the range of similarities related to basic framework, each of the theories has its own peculiarities and its own criteria to consider something to be either good or bad. In other words, core differences in discussed ethical approaches become apparent in terms of different ways the theories use to approach moral dilemmas.
Virtue ethics focuses on one’s character and its features to evaluate ethical behaviour. It is the oldest one among discussed approaches. The core peculiarity of virtue ethics lies in its concentrating on being, whereas deontology and utilitarianism concentrate on doing. A great debate exists in terms of defining which features of person’s character can be named virtues. Deontological ethics, often referred to as “duty ethics”, emphasizes the need to adhere to ethical principles of duties. However, it is not always clear how these duties should be defined. As opposed to virtue ethics and deontology, utilitarianism focuses on the outcomes (or consequences) of some action. So, it is clearly seen that ethical behavior can be viewed totally different through the lens of each of the approaches. Not to be unsubstantiated, let me refer to practical example.
So, let me imagine that I would like to lie to my parents about the way I am going to spend my short holidays. I consider telling them that I will go to one of friends instead of telling that I am going to spend several days in my boyfriend’s (girlfriend’s) house. From the point of view of utilitarianism, I can consider lying to be wrong as my lying is likely to be exposed. However, if I think that my parents might not get aware about my lie, I can consider lying good as it will have some positive results for myself. If I were a follower of deontology ethics, I would most likely state that lying is always wrong. On the other hand, if I were a virtue ethicist, it would be complicated for me to solve the moral dilemma. It is more likely that I will try to focus on what each decision can say about my virtues.
Concluding, I would like to state that applying each of approaches under study to a life situation shows that the decision a person will finally make is undoubtedly dependent on a chosen approach.
References
Brooks, L.J., Dunn, P. (2009). Business & Professional Ethics: For Directors, Executives & Accountants. Mason: Cengage Learning
French, R. (2011). Organizational behavior. London: John Wiley&Sons
