Task 5C

My personal view of professional ethics, has not been changed, by reading the references on this topic. In fact I have found that some of the reading material has obscured rather than clarified the issues.

In this blog I want other course participants and course supervisors, to understand the view I take on ethical matters and why.

I am clear that a formal philosophical analysis, and a theoretical ethical framework, do not for me, take the professional issues posed, by my inquiry further forward. As someone who holds to Christian values, there is no better ethical and moral guide for me.

The ethics I apply in my professional life are generally guided by those values.

That is not to say that some issues, in particular some human rights questions, have absolute answers. They are matters of opinion, which have arguments both in favour and against. Many of these questions are covered by law or conventions and rules and therefore are open to interpretation. So although on paper there is clarity about what should or shouldn’t be done, resolution of disputes still end up in a court of law and therefore subject to the uncertainty of a legal process. Sometimes justice is not actually done even if it is “seen to be done”. The practice of court decisions can sometimes lead to incorrect ethical decisions.

Going back to my original thought that my behaviour is guided by Christian values. That is my personal choice, and not one I advocate is right for everyone. Nor does it necessarily imply religious faith. Although I form ethical views on the basis of the values I have expressed, I have never had to take life or death decisions based on them. But that does not stop me having views on such matters. For instance at the time of writing this note, Muammar Gaddafi and his son have just been summarily executed by the Libyan freedom fighters. Many people believe that was the right outcome. I do not believe that execution can ever be right, even if it is carried out after a trial. “An eye for an eye” was never one of my guiding commandments.

There are other guiding principles, which I hold to, such as respect, integrity, having sympathy, always doing my best, not harming anyone and helping people in need. I do not ever need to worry over what is the right thing to do. That is not to say I always do the right thing. But I know when I am behaving badly and not according to my principles.

So in summary, what I have learned from the reading fits into the theoretical framework will provide a working approach to some of the ethical questions I am likely to face in my inquiry. However when the theoretical approach gives answers, which conflict with my answers, I will need to think through the implications and act accordingly.

I am also interested in the interplay between ethics and politics, which is not a matter covered in much detail in the readings and references. For example as many social and medical issues move into the realms of human rights and fairness they are often determined in an EU arena and context, rather than at national level. So over time and as the dominant political mood changes, and as the over-riding economic situation changes, ethical decisions do change. How people are allowed to be treated, depends to some extent on how well off we feel. This is particularly true in employment issues.

Also as the influence of pressure groups on political decisions, increases, the behaviour of governments is subject to ongoing change. Implementation of party manifestos becomes problematic for the government, particularly where sensitive social issues are concerned. So although ethical behaviour is a moving target, I believe that the underlying values I hold to still hold good. Wrong actions can never be justified by political correctness.

All this may seem a long way from my inquiry topic. However, recently, the play I am appearing in was accused of being too political for young children, even though it was written well over a hundred years ago. It is in fact a tale of ethical and moral behaviour, which was allegedly portraying unacceptably “old-fashioned” values. I and my cast colleagues did not enter into the argument.

My enquiry topic will need to involve a number of parties, including my employer, other cast members, school staff, pupils, and parents. So there will be a range of ethical questions to address, some of which, will be informed by the subject matter of the readings. So I will find them useful to use as a reference against my subjective approach.

The interplay between the parties will need sensitive handling in say focus groups, when they sit down together. Also writing up the views expressed through say questionnaires will need to be done with care.

I am also a little concerned about the size of sample groups, to ensure that the results are statistically significant. I will need to take advice on this issue. But the scope of the inquiry may have to be limited by the time available to do the “leg-work” to obtain results, which are statistically valid.