Question

1. Briefly discuss the folowing ethical theories:

Egoism, Utilitarianism, Kant and Deontology, Deontological Ethics, First Formula of the Categorical Imperative, Seond Formula of the Categorical Imperative, Virtue Ethics.

2. Which would be most applicable in addressing accounting ethical dilemmas, why?

Answer 1

QUESTION WHAT IS ETHICAL EGOISM ?

Ethical egoism is the normative ethical position that moral agents ought to do what is in their own self-interest. It differs from psychological egoism, which claims that people can only act in their self-interest. Ethical egoism also differs from rational egoism, which holds that it is rational to act in one's self-interest.^[1] Ethical egoism holds, therefore, that actions whose consequences will benefit the doer can be considered ethical in this sense

QUESTION : WHAT IS UTILITARIANISM ? .

Utilitarianism is an ethical theory that states that the best action is the one that maximizes utility. "Utility" is defined in various ways, usually in terms of the well-being of sentient entities. Jeremy Bentham, the founder of utilitarianism, described utility as the sum of all pleasure that results from an action, minus the suffering of anyone involved in the action. Utilitarianism is a version of consequentialism, which states that the consequences of any action are the only standard of right and wrong. Unlike other forms of consequentialism, such as egoism, utilitarianism considers the interests of all beings equally.

QUESTION : WHAT IS DEONTOLOGICAL ETHICS ?

In moral philosophy, deontological ethics or deontology (from Greek ????, deon, "obligation, duty"^[1]) is the normative ethical position that judges the morality of an action based on rules.^[2]

It is sometimes described as "duty-" or "obligation-" or "rule-" based ethics, because rules "bind you to your duty".^[3] Deontological ethics is commonly contrasted to consequentialism,^[4] virtue ethics, and pragmatic ethics. In this terminology, action is more important than the consequences.

The term deontological was first used to describe the current, specialised definition by C. D. Broad in his book, Five Types of Ethical Theory, which was published in 1930.^[5] Older usage of the term goes back to Jeremy Bentham, who coined it before 1816 as a synonym of Dicastic or Censorial Ethics (i.e. ethics based on judgement).^[6] The more general sense of the word is retained in French, especially in the term code de déontologie "ethical code", in the context of professional ethics.

Depending on the system of deontological ethics under consideration, a moral obligation may arise from an external or internal source, such as a set of rules inherent to the universe (ethical naturalism), religious law, or a set of personal or cultural values (any of which may be in conflict with personal desires)

QUESTION : WHAT IS KANT AND DEONTOLOGY THEORY ?

An act can be morally bad but may unintentionally lead to a favorable outcome. Kantis responsible for the most prominent and well-known form of deontological ethics.Kant's moral theory is based on his view of the human being as having the unique capacity for rationality.

QUESTION : First Formula of the Categorical Imperative?

The First Formulation: Formula of Universality and the Law of Nature

Act only according to that maxim whereby you can at the same time will that it should become a universal law.

QUSETION : Seond Formula of the Categorical Imperative ?

The second formulation of the categorical imperative is called the Formula of the End in Itself: “Act in such a way that you always treat humanity, whether in your own person or in the person of any other, never simply as a means, but always at the same time as an end.

QUESTION : WHAT IS VIRTUE ETHICS ?

Virtue ethics is currently one of three major approaches in normative ethics. It may, initially, be identified as the one that emphasizes the virtues, or moral character, in contrast to the approach that emphasizes duties or rules (deontology) or that emphasizes the consequences of actions (consequentialism). Suppose it is obvious that someone in need should be helped. A utilitarian will point to the fact that the consequences of doing so will maximize well-being, a deontologist to the fact that, in doing so the agent will be acting in accordance with a moral rule such as “Do unto others as you would be done by” and a virtue ethicist to the fact that helping the person would be charitable or benevolent

QUSETION :.Most applicable in addressing accounting ethical dilemmas?

1) Gather the relevant facts and identify the problems

• Do I have all the facts relevant to the situation?

• Am I making assumptions? If so, could facts be identified to replace these assumptions?

• Is it really your problem? Can anybody else help?

2) Identify the affected parties

• Who are the individuals, organisations and key stakeholders affected?

• In what way are they affected?

• Are there conflicts between different stakeholders?

• Who are your allies?

3) Consider the ethical issues involved

• Have you referred to ICAEW's Code of Ethics?

• What are the professional, organisational and personal ethics issues?

• Would these ethical issues affect the reputation of the accountancy profession?

• Would these ethical issues affect the public interest?

4) Identify which fundamental principles are affected

• What are the threats to compliance with the fundamental principles of:
• Integrity
• Objectivity
• Professional competence and due care
• Confidentiality
• Professional behaviour
• Have you considered the following threats?
• Self interest
• Self-review
• Advocacy
• Familiarity
• Intimidation
• If so, are the treats to compliance with the fundamental principles clearly insignificant?
• Are there safeguards which can eliminate or reduce the threats to an acceptable level? Safeguards can be created by:
• Profession, legislation and regulation
• Work environment
• Individual

5) Refer to the employing organisation's internal procedures

• Does your organisation's policies and procedure provide guidance on the situation?

• How can you escalate concerns within the organisation? Who should be involved, in what role and at what stage?

• Does the organisation have a whistleblowing procedure?

• At what point should you seek guidance from external sources such as ICAEW

6) Consider and evaluate alternative courses of action

• You should consider:
• Your organisation's policies, procedures and guidelines
• Applicable laws and regulation
• Universal values and principles generally accepted by society
• Consequences
• Test your proposed course of action. Ask yourself the following questions:
• Have all the consequences associated with the proposed course of action been discussed and evaluated?
• Is there any reason why the proposed course of action should not stand the test of time?
• Would a similar course of action be undertaken in a similar situation?
• Would the suggested course of action stand to scrutiny from peers, family and friends?

7) Implement the course of action and monitor its progress

When faced with an ethical issue, it may be in your best interests to document your thought processes, discussions and the decisions taken. Written records will be useful if you need to justify your course of action.

Other frameworks

In addition to ICAEW's framework for revolving ethical problems, there are a number of other frameworks for resolving such problems which you may find helpful.

• Carter McMamara - Ethics Toolkit for Managers
• Institute of Business Ethics - Simple Ethical Tests for a business decision
• Jon Pekel and Doug Wallace -The Ten Step Method of Decision-Making (PDF 101KB/13 pages)
• Josephson Institute of Ethics - Making Ethical Decisions
• Markula Center for Applied Ethics - A framework for thinking ethically