Decision making ethical/moral

Chemistry, like any discipline, has a social structure. It relies on the interactions, behaviors, and expectations of individuals in order to function. Every social structure has a code of practices that constitutes its behavioral norms, that is, a set of rules governing what are acceptable and unacceptable behaviors. These rules are the moral philosophy of that social structure. When people find themselves in a situation in which there is a conflict or dilemma, the decision-making processes that they use to make the behavioral choices that follow are called ethical decision-making skills. Ethics, then, is the process whereby an individual, faced with a moral dilemma, arrives at a morally defensible decision. 

The Encyclopedia of Bioethics defines bioethics as The systematic study of the moral-dimensions—including moral vision, decisions, conduct and policies—of the life sciences and healthcare, employing a variety of ethical methodologies in an interdisciplinary setting . Clinical ethics is considered to be a subspecialty of bioethics and refers to the daily decision making of those who care for the patient. 

While there is no quick-and-easy formula for solving ethical problems, there are some tools to help in the process. The 1990 Conference on Ethics in Engineering Education has devised a seven-step procedure for moral decision-making. 

Wagner, R, and Simpson, D. (2009). Ethical Decision Making in School Administration Leadership as Moral Architecture. SAGE Publications, Thousand Oaks, CA. 

University codes may be very succinct. For example, the U.S. Military Academy s Cadet Honor Code is simply stated as A cadet will not lie, cheat, steal, or tolerate those who do. According to the USM A, On a behavioral level, the Code represents a simple standard for all cadets. On a developmental plane. West Point expects that all cadets will strive to live far above the minimum standard of behavior and develop a commitment to ethical principles guiding moral actions. Besides it succinctness, the USMA s honor code is closely linked to the academy s core mission which is to develop leaders of character for our Army... A leader of character will apply the Spirit of the Code when making decisions involving ethical dilemmas. ... 

Inasmuch as all engineers do not share a sin e set of moral principles by which to make ethical decisions, it is fully expected that different readers will make different decisions, especially in conplex situations. The goal of this chapter is not uniformity of decisions by all engineers but autonomy of each engineer to make the right decision. In this context, the right decision can be identified by the use of a heuristic. The right decision is one that is... 

Principlism and the four principles with scope approach to medical ethics is one of the most useful, practical tools to aid decision making in ethical dilemmas within medicine and health care. One significant advantage of this system is its supposed universality. In theory, it is independent of personal philosophy, political beliefs, religion, morality, or life stance. As the principles reflect universally valid norms, they allow intercultural and cross-cultural judgments to be made. 

If you have ever made a list of pros and cons to help you make a decision, you have used the utilitarian method of moral reasoning. One of the main ethical theories, utilitarianism posits that the key to deciding what makes an act morally right or wrong is its consequences. 

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