Reflection Essay: Effective Ethical Decision Making

Analyzing Two Cases from Class

After considering the case that we undertook in class, I decided that, as the parties in both cases had their own moral reasoning that informed their behavior, therefore, their behavior afterward could be justified. For example in the case of Ryan, he evaluated the options that he had which made him focus more on the end goal which was a good commission which would have help with the mortgage given that he was already behind on payment (Vyakarnam et.al, 2017). There was also moral tolerance on the disagreement and ambiguity which he had with his boss where they disagreed about the values and course of action to take (Gaudine & Thorne, 2016). Therefore, considering these issues and my rational reasoning about these cases, and also the situations they were in, I concluded that, none of the actions from the parties came from a malicious place, all they were focused on is the end results which would have been favorable to their businesses and to them personally, hence making it hard to determine whether their actions were right or wrong.

I assumed that having, moral sensitivity, where one recognizes that there is an ethical issue, helps a person make an ethical decision or determine the consequences of the decisions we make on daily basis. Also, having perspective and empathy skills, where I consider my feelings towards others before making a decision, becomes an essential component in our moral actions as we become more sensitive to potential negative or even positive effects of the choices we make which make one to predict the likely outcomes better (Kim & Johnson, 2013). Therefore, using my empathy skills where I will imagine myself in their situation to see their perspective so as to understand their point of view where I practice openness and humility upon their views. So I tried to understand the reasons as to why the parties in the cases did what they did with an open mind which informed my decision above. Also once I identify an ethical problem, I make a rational judgment on the right or wrong thing to do in the situation. With this in mind, I understand that we as individuals, we progress through several moral stages where we engage in a more complex way of reasoning as we progress up the stages, but also we develop broader morality definitions as we become less self-centered.

In this case, I saw conventional thinkers who seek other people’s guidance when faced by an ethical dilemma and when trying to decide on what actions to take as they wanted to live up to the expectations of their bosses by taking a broader perspective on the situation. By studying their actions carefully and also considering if that was I in that situation, what I would have done made me understand their point of views even better on taking the actions they took which also informed my decision. But I also understand that, based on my decision, I don’t mean that what they did right, but it’s tough to decide or even judge them wrongly, in my opinion. Cognitive models of moral development provided me with the insights that led me to make the decision I made. I can attribute this to my education which promotes my moral development which in turn fosters my moral reasoning and considering other people’s points of view which informs my decisions. This is because a broader perspective is always important in decision making by considering the viewpoints of others which enables us to come up with superior solutions (Wright, 2016).

Key Questions to Consider

One of the reasons is the fact that moral values sometimes conflict with other values which are significant as well (Roman & Luis, 2015). Individuals sometimes would genuinely feel that they should do the right thing, which we get from our upbringing and also our cultural values, but the integrity is overpowered when some of them realize that they might pay a personal price for acting in a manner that is ethically correct or even a need that there were looking forward to eagerly might not be fulfilled which most of the times informs their decisions (Pfister & Bohm, 2014). Another reason is my personal character; where I trust or rather rely on other people’s actions which give me great interpersonal reactivity index which allows me to understand and approach individual differences differently, which greatly influences my moral behavior and actions. I have a strong will and will and confidence in my abilities and also an internal locus of control which motivates me to do the right thing but also considering several factors in the situation. This allows me to define a problem carefully, gather more information, apply ethical and personal values and standards, and evaluate the alternative courses of action which enhances my decision making.

 Also, my cultural background and emotions is another reason why I came up with the assumptions. This is because: rapid decisions are sometimes based on one’s background and they are good decisions, but not always though (Taggart, 2011). But am still comfortable with it because my deliberations are always informed by my emotions, preconscious experiences, and intuitions not forgetting my conscious reasoning. Another is the knowledge that, sometimes the values that seem irreconcilable can be resolved through compromise of a creative solution by bringing competing factions together which can end up being a favorable decision in the long run (Shaw et.al, 2015).

Also the knowledge that identifying and describing a problem is key to solving a problem, therefore, because I evaluated the situation in the case study, I got everything that i needed to make a decision. Also, I don’t try to avoid controversy by avoiding the use of moral terminology to describe a decision that I made thinking that doing that will make me appear capable and strong. I tell the truth on my decision even when it’s not what everybody wants to hear and also apply my cognition skills where I acquire knowledge and understanding through my thoughts which has played an important part in making the decision that I made and also the reasons that led me to the decision. Lastly, the knowledge that the hunger for success can make an individual go to greater extent in order to achieve it which could sometimes lead to compromising some laid out rules which could make ethical behavior or matters worse in some cases and in others, it could turn out to be what was needed (Finegan, 2018).

Assumptions and Beliefs that Inform Practice

I felt guilty about my decision as it somehow goes against the ethical behavior that should be observed at all times in our workplaces. Trying to justify or support what the parties in the case study did, which is punishable as it goes against the moral and ethical guidelines laid out. This self-conscious emotion encourages us to follow and obey the rules to the letter and to uphold the social order at all times. Feelings like these are triggered when the norms and social conventions are violated and when we fall short of the moral standards and guideline that are put in place (Zeelenberg et.al, 2018). This feeling keeps me from engaging in decision-making behaviors that could damage further and can easily drive me to withdraw my sentiments. It also motivates me to make a decision that is helpful to others as well as treating them how they should be treated. It also encourages me to make help, comfort and alleviate the pain of others which I might have caused through my decision. Therefore in experiencing this feeling, chances are that they are ethical dimension to the decision that I made and that I need to look even further so as to determine if indeed this is the case.       

Feelings and intuitions play a major role ethical decision making as they direct our moral choices and also that it’s not possible to make any decisions that are important without these emotions clouding our judgment (Jones, 2017). Therefore, this feeling was entirely elicited by the violation of ethical guidelines that I consider to be acceptable but also, on the other hand, the situations in the case study conflicts with what I believe in as it a real ethical dilemma. Also because, considering my values, I developed some behavioral intentions with regards to these dilemmas, therefore knowing the actions that were morally justifiable and right, I still had to consider whether morally right was as significant as behaving in a way that somehow could result in favorable outcomes. Another reason is, I felt that the individuals allowed themselves to be pressured by certain environmental factors that pushed them to behave unethically which was wrong. If they were able to control themselves for some time, they couldn’t have found themselves in the position they were in.

 Also, individuals seeking to develop some behavioral intentions so as to respond to moral dilemmas usually look for their colleagues to get behavioral cues (O’Fallon & Butterfield, 2012). Another reason is that I feel like the individuals in the case study could have exercised high levels of intelligence, emotionally, which should have made them conscious of their emotions strength which could have enabled them to regulate the behavioral actions motivating them to apply situational appropriate behaviors while responding to the ethical dilemma. Therefore, I could not be having this feeling of guilt, if that was the case as my decision could have being totally different. Lastly, individuals with an internal locus of control, like myself, are more likely to make decisions having the confidence that they have the ability to make a difference and those with religious beliefs are more likely to determine the behavioral responses that is morally appropriate for a certain situation based on their beliefs.

References

Finegan, J. (2018). The impact of personal values on judgments of ethical behaviour in the workplace. Journal of Business Ethics, 13(9), 747-755.

Gaudine, A., & Thorne, L. (2016). Emotion and ethical decision-making in organizations. Journal of Business Ethics, 31(2), 175-187.

Jones, T. M. (2017). Ethical decision making by individuals in organizations: An issue-contingent model. Academy of management review, 16(2), 366-395.

Kim, J. E., & Johnson, K. K. (2013). The impact of moral emotions on cause-related marketing campaigns: A cross-cultural examination. Journal of business ethics, 112(1), 79-90.

O’Fallon, M. J., & Butterfield, K. D. (2012). A review of the empirical ethical decision-making literature: 2012. Journal of business ethics, 59(4), 375-413.

Pfister, H. R., & Böhm, G. (2014). The multiplicity of emotions: A framework of emotional functions in decision making. Judgment and decision making, 3(1), 5.

Román, S., & Luis Munuera, J. (2015). Determinants and consequences of ethical behaviour: an empirical study of salespeople. European Journal of Marketing, 39(5/6), 473-495.

Shaw, D., Shiu, E., & Clarke, I. (2015). The contribution of ethical obligation and self-identity to the theory of planned behaviour: An exploration of ethical consumers. Journal of marketing management, 16(8), 879-894.

Taggart, G. (2011). Don’t we care?: The ethics and emotional labour of early years professionalism. Early Years, 31(1), 85-95.

Vyakarnam, S., Bailey, A., Myers, A., & Burnett, D. (2017). Towards an understanding of ethical behaviour in small firms. Journal of Business Ethics, 16(15), 1625-1636.

Wright, M. (2016). Can moral judgement and ethical behaviour be learned? A review of the literature. Management Decision, 33(10), 17-28.

Zeelenberg, M., Nelissen, R. M., Breugelmans, S. M., & Pieters, R. (2018). On emotion specificity in decision making: Why feeling is for doing. Judgment and Decision making, 3(1), 18.