Ethical Theories Chart Essay

Complete the chart below using information from the weekly readings and additional research if necessary. Include APA formatted in-text citations when applicable and list all references at the bottom of the page. Ethical Theory Utilitarianism Deontological Virtue ethics Definition â€Å"A system of ethics according to which the rightness or wrongness of an action should be judged by its consequences. The goal of utilitarian ethics is to promote the greatest happiness for the greatest number† (â€Å"Define Utilitarianism,† 2005). Utilitarianism is making a decision that benefits the most amount of people/society. Deontological means duty, honesty, promise keeping, and fairness no matter what the consequences are (Trevino & Nelson, 2011). â€Å"Virtue Ethics is a classification within Normative Ethics that attempts to discover and classify what might be deemed of moral character, and to apply the moral character as a base for one’s choices and actions.† (Gowdy, 2011). Ethical thinker associated with theoryThe ethical thinker/thinkers associated with utilitarianism are Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill. Emmanuel Kant (Trevino & Nelson, 2011).Aristotle (Trevino & Nelson, 2011). Decision-making processThe decision making process is to Identify all of the possible stakeholders and what would be the consequences the  harms and benefits. Make a list of pro’s and con’s and the best ethical decision is one that is of the greater good for the most amount of people. The decision making process is figuring out what values and or obligations are important to you, and base your decision on what is right not what is best (Trevino & Nelson, 2011).The goal here is to be a good person because that is the type of person you wish to be and keep moral values or virtues in any action or decision. (Trevino & Nelson, 2011). Workplace exampleA few employees inform their boss that they do not feel comfortable working with a co-worker who was blamed for talking about confidential information, and the manager decided to terminate that employee’s employment. A workplace example would be telling your boss the truth even though you might get a fellow co-worker in trouble. If we see a person being sexually harassed on the job it is our moral responsibility to help them and follow through with our decision. This is a virtuous action. Reference: Define Utilitarianism. (2005). In New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy. Retrieved from http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/utilitarianism Growdy, L. (2011). Virtue Ethics. Retrieved from http://www.ethicsmorals.com/ethicsvirtue.html Trevino, L., & Nelson, K. (2011). Managing business ethics: Straight talk about how to do it right (5th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley. Utilitarianism. (n.d). In Wikipedia. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utilitarianism