7111 Ethics / Values / Theories / Models

Question 1

Values

Answer 1

Principles or standards considered desirable by an individual, group or culture

• Provide direction in everyday living and guide work of practitioners
• Individuals / groups / societies have value systems about what people ought to do
• Broader / less specific than ethics

Question 2

Ethics

Answer 2

A system or set of beliefs, moral principles and perceptions about right & wrong

• narrower than values
• relates to actual rules / guidelines of behaviour
• often codified (i.e. Code of ethics)

Question 3

Morals / moral philosophies

Answer 3

Views about what is right and wrong
- moral philosophies are broad schools of thought about how to think about what is right and wrong (Consequentialism, deontology, virtue ethics, critical theories)

Question 4

Why consider vales / ethics / moral thought?

Answer 4

• Ethical theory informs decision making
• Important to be able to demonstrate how we make ethical decisions and to be accountable for them
• Enhances critical reflection in practice

Question 5

Consequentialist theories
Ethical egoism
Ethical altruism

Answer 5

• the outcome of an action determines whether it is right or wrong
• considers the good and bad consequences of an action to see iof the good outweighs the bad
• ethical egoism: an act is morally right if the outcome is favourable for the individual concerned
• ethical altruism: an act is morally favourable for everyone except the person carrying out the action

Question 6

Utiltarianism

Happiness principle

Answer 6

• The most commonly used consequentialist theory
• Bentham & Mill
• Happiness principle: “Actions are right in proportion ad they tend to promote happiness, wrong as they tend to produce the reverse of happiness”
• The reverse of happiness being harming others
• Whatever action results in the most good and the least harm is the most favourable / most ethical
• Doesn’t matter the process which gets you to the outcome (i.e. The trolley dilemma)

Question 7

Limitations of utilitarianism (4)

Answer 7

1. How does one choose between the ‘greatest total sum of happiness’ & the best ‘possible distribution of happiness’
2. Who should decide the greatest good?
3. Gives more priority to ‘societal good’ than individual rights - can lead to oppression of minorities
4. We may not be able to determine the consequences of an action in advance

Question 8

Deontological theories

Answer 8

• Immanuel Kant
• argues that there is an objective moral order based on human reason and logic
• some moral duties are binding & absolute (categorical imperatives)
• Categorical imperative: the underlying rule of the act which is binding and absolute
• The categorical imperative of social work would be the intrinsic value of every human

Question 9

Deontology limitations (4)

Answer 9

1. Emphasis is on human rationality (are all humans rational?)
2. Can be an inflexible approach
3. Does not take into account the context of the situation
4. Moral duties may conflict with each other (i.e the rights of the mother vs the safety of their unborn child)

Question 10

Virtue ethics

Answer 10

• Aristotle and Plato
• focus is on the character of the agent not on the consequences of the action or a set of predetermined duties
• argues that if you cultivate desirable character traits & dispositions, ‘good’ & ‘right’ will follow

Question 11

Limitation of virtue ethics (3)

Answer 11

1. Does not provide principles or clear cut guidance for actions
2. Question of whether ‘desirable’ virtues are universal or whether they are contingent on context, place & time
3. Good intents by good people do not always result in good outcomes

Question 12

Critical moral philosophies

Answer 12

• Post-modernist philosophies
• Questions grand theories / the classical theories
• Rejects universalism
• Values subjective and unique understandings
• Critiques power relations

Question 13

Post-modern ethics

Answer 13

• key themes of subjectivity, narrative, diversity and difference
• rejects grand theories
• the ethics of each situation need to be considered to one understood in relation to the particularities of that situation

Question 14

Feminist Ethics

Answer 14

• committed to the elimination of oppressive power structures that lead to the subordination of women
• Values the reciprocity and balancing of traditional power differences
• commitment to an ideal of caring
• reasoning model is concerned with context of the situation

Question 15

Feminist critique of classical ethical theory

Answer 15

• its individualistic bias, assumptions about human behaviour & rationality & dominant focus on rights
• based on male norms of rights and justice
• neglects the relational aspects of ethics

Question 16

Ethics of care

Answer 16

• Feminist theory
• centrality of social relationships in ethics
• caring for rather than about people (taking action)
• care is the primary value which all other values are derived from
• context specific relationships and consider the particulars of each scenario
• care and justice are considered two sides of the same coin

Question 17

Limitations of the ethics of care (6)

Answer 17

1. Risks exploiting health professionals
2. Cultivates an over-developed sense of responsibility for caring for others (ties into exploitation)
3. ‘Care’ is not sufficient in and of itself to ensure adequate professional ethics
4. May idealise/ stereotype women
5. How does a practitioner choose between 2 people in need of care where their needs are relatively equal
6. Does not take into account the often oppressive environment which women work

Question 18

Social work values

Answer 18

• Value based profession
• Values serve as a guide to action
• Values are not neutral
• Can distinguish between professional, societal, agency and personal values, which may come into conflict with one another
• Practitioner requires a certain level of congruence between personal and professional values

Question 19

AASW Code of Ethics (2010)

• Core values (3)
• Sections (6)

Answer 19

Values:
1. Respect for persons
2. Social justice
3. Professional integrity 
Sections of AASW code of ethics 
1. General responsibilities
2. Responsibilities to clients
3. Responsibilities to colleagues
4. Responsibilities to workplace
5. Responsibilities in specific situations (i.e. Independent practice)
6. Responsibilities to the profession

Question 20

Ethical dilemma

Answer 20

Having to choose between 2 or more equally unwelcome alternatives which in turn involve moral values that appear to have equal validity

Question 21

Ethical issue

Ethical problem

Answer 21

Ethical issue: situation has an ethical dimension but does not necessarily involved decision making
Ethical problem: situation requires decision making & may involve making a difficult moral decision but there is no real dilemma (seemingly equal moral values of which you need to choose out of two or more equally unwelcome alternatives)

Question 22

Process models of decision making

Answer 22

• Present a series of steps / questions

- Often combine utilitarian and deontological perspectives

Question 23

The ETHIC model

Answer 23

Congress (1999)

1. Examine relevant personal, societal, agency, client and professional values
2. Think about what ethical standard of the relevant code of ethics applies to the situation, as well as relevant case laws and decisions
3. Hypothesise about possible consequences of various decisions
4. Identify who will benefit and who will be harmed in view of the profession’s commitment to the most vulnerable
5. Consult with supervisor & colleagues about the most ethical choice

Question 24

Reflective models of decision making

Answer 24

• Evolved from feminist/critical perspectives
• Advocate for client participation
• Self-reflection is important
• Relationships are important
• Minimises power differentials

Question 25

Feminist model of decision making (7)

Answer 25

(Hill, Glaser and Harden 1998)

1. Recognise the problem
2. Define problem in collaboration with the client
3. Develop solutions with the client
4. Choose a solution which has the best emotional and rational ‘fit’
5. Review the process with the client
6. Implement and evaluate the decision with the client and monitor it’s effectiveness
7. Continual critical reflection

Question 26

Cultural models of decision making

Answer 26

• Prioritise cultural factors and the cultural context of decision making
• use a series of steps
• cultural factors are assessed at each stage
• reflexivity of worker’s attitudes
• considers whether there are cultural barriers to implementation

Question 27

Critical questions when evaluating models of decision making (apply to ETHIC model)

Answer 27

• What are the meta-ethical assumptions that underpin the model?
• Does model seek to describe or to explain how people behave (descriptive ethics), or does it describe what people do?
• is the model by itself enough to ensure sound decision making (can add aspects of other models - i.e last 2 steps of feminist model)