Showing papers on "Professional ethics published in 1981"

Business Ethics: Where Are We Going?

Abstract: Is the business community engaging in increasingly unethical behavior, or does it only appear to be because of more publicity and more regulations? Whatever the reality, corporations must choose between accepting more government interference, more consumer lawsuits, and more public ill will, or integrating ethical considerations into corporate guidelines. If they choose the latter course, the integration cannot be merely surface gloss or tokenism. Schools of business can contribute to developing an awareness of ethics by making changes in the curricula required of future managers.

Lawgiving for Professional Life: Reflections on the Place of the Professional Code

Abstract: If the adoption of a professional ethic constitutes a key element of profes sionalism, and a key step on the route to that status for occupational groups presently consolidating themselves as professionals, it would seem that an understanding of the relationship between profession and ethic will be crucial in understanding the nature and direction of professions and professionalism. It is my purpose in this paper to explore the problematic relationship between professions and professional ethics, with special regard to what have been called "emerging" professions. The latter term is somewhat misleading: all professions, in a changing society, are "emerging," or evolving, from a previous social role and function to one more appropriate for the society as changed. Proof of this condition, and of the intimate if inexact relationship between the state of a profession and the formal articulation of its professional ethics, is found in the fact that both the medical and legal professions have gone through the paroxysms of code revision this year. Some professions, though, are evolving more rapidly than others, and where that evolution brings them from a position of (relative) public obscurity to (relative) public recognition, we can speak of "emergence" in another sense, the sense in which a ship "emerges" from a fog: it was there all the time, but only now do we see it. There is also the biological sense of emergence, in which a type or species first separates itself out from its background and becomes itself. Each profession has emerged, in this sense, at some time in the past; the conditions for such emergence are discussed below. The thesis I want to explore is an equation: to be a profession is to have a professional ethic. I will attempt to elucidate the meanings of the two terms of the equation ? or, more modestly, to identify a few of their salient defining characteristics -and discuss the major sets of connections that make the equation true, for it is surely not true by the meanings of the terms. I will conclude with a brief examination of some of the implications of the equation, implications with special relevance for professions designated as "emerging."

Nursing Ethics, Physician Ethics, and Medical Ethics

Abstract: T he term “nursing ethics” is controversial. Some insist that nursing ethics is a unique field posing issues that cannot be understood fully by adapting the professional ethics of physicians. They insist that the term “nursing ethics” connotes the uniqueness of the moral problems that nurses face in the health care setting. On the other hand, others argue against the term. Some suggest that it is demeaning and has somewhat the connotation of watered-down ethics -the flavor of such textbook titles as ANATOMY FOR NURSES or PHARMACOLOGY FOR NURSES. Others critical of the term “nursing ethics” argue that there is really very little that is morally unique to nursing. The same ethical principles and the same moral issues emerge in the health care setting whether one is a physician, nurse or patient. This article puts forth the view that nursing ethics is a legitimate, if very limited, term referring to a field that is a sub-category of medical ethics.

Engineers Who Kill: Professional Ethics and the Paramountcy of Public Safety

Abstract: The work upon which this paper was based was supported in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Endowment for the Humanities under Grant Number OSS-7906980. Some of the ideas here were developed during participation in the National Project on Philosophy and Engineering Ethics (at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute), funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities. For comments and encouragement, I am indebted to Stephen H. Unger, David Davis, Sandra Ward, Robert Bruder, Vivian Weil, Patricia Werhane, T. Paul Torda, Andrew G. Oldenquist, Victor Paschkis, Edward E. Slowter, Win Nagley, Frank Tillman, Eliot Deutsch, Edward D. Harter, Fred Bender, Deborah Johnson, and Sara Lyn Smith. Earlier versions of this paper have been read at the American Society of Mechanical Engineers Century 2 Conference in San Francisco (August, 1980) and at the Conference on Business and Professional Ethics sponsored by Loyola University and University of Illinois at Chicago Circle (May, 1981).

Islamic Code of Medical Professional Ethics

Abstract: Medicine was defined by Muslim physicians such as Al-Razi (841-826 A.D.) and lbn Silla (Avicenna, 980-1036 A.D.) as the art concerned with the preservation of good health, combating of diseases and restoration of health to the sick. For many centuries, the world has witnessed and benefited from the great advances made by Muslim physicians in the area of health sciences. These advances were not just based on technical skill or intellectual superiority. They were equally well founded on a clear understanding of the role of the Muslim physician as derived from Islamic teachings and philosophy. For thousands of years, ethics has been recognized as an essential requirement in the making of a physician. Although the ancienl codes of ethics have to some extent stressed this requirement, 1 • 2 they are still deficient and contain grave errors. 3 Contemporary codes of ethics tend to be more liberal and less resctrictive. The Qur'anic ethics, on the other hand, stand out as a perfect model for all mankind, all professions and all time. The medical eLhical requirements proposed in this paper are primarily based on Qur'anic ethics. They include guidelines for the physician's behaviour and attitude, both at the personal and professional levels. The same standard of moral and ethical values should guide the physician in his/her private life and whiJe conducting his/her professional business. A person who lacks moral values in private li fe cannot be trusted in professional activities, even with the highest professional and technical qualifications. lt is impossible for a person to have two different ethical standards. "Allah bas not made for any man two hearts in his body ... ,,. The following verses from the Qur'an are most suited as a guide for the personal characteristics of the phyhsician:

Professional Ethics and the Public Interest: Sources of Judgment:

Abstract: 1111 onsideration of the proper understanding of the character of professionalism and personal ethics in the civil service has lead most writers to the concept of the public interest. That is to say, most students arrive at the conclusion that whatever else may be appropriate conduct for the public servant with respect to values, norms and rules beyond the self, only behavior consistent with the \"public good\" -somehow defined-can be allowed. The manner in which one's conception of the public interest comes to occupy the central position in the definition of ethical conduct in the public service is shown here through the arguments of respected scholars of personnel administration. In addition, an attempt is made to develop a framework for the consideration of the major contending perspectives on the public interest in order to allow both the practitioner and the academic to better understand the diverse foundations of contemporary conceptions of professionalism and personal ethics. The presence of contending views of the public interest can, and often does, result in the confusion and discouragement of students and practitioners who are seeking guidance in the area of personal professional orientation. Rather than being a cause for despair and discomfort, however, a usefully structured comparison of contending perspectives on the public interest can serve the interests of scholar and practitioner alike in their shared concern for responsible use of public authority in the civil service.

Towards a Code of Professional Ethics

Abstract: At the risk of sounding like an over‐cautious civil servant I should make it clear that any opinions or interpretations I give in this paper are mine and not necessarily those of the Library Association. The Draft Code of Professional Ethics—the green paper that appeared in the October L.A.R.—is not yet L.A. policy. Indeed as far as our members are concerned, the consultation that is now taking place is an integral part in the formulation of a code of professional ethics. It is my privilege as a Chairman of the Working Party to listen to, and respond to members' views and then to communicate them to our working group.

Confidentiality: medical ethics and professional morality

Abstract: (1981). CONFIDENTIALITY: MEDICAL ETHICS AND PROFESSIONAL MORALITY. Philosophical Papers: Vol. 10, No. 1, pp. 9-15.

Professional Ethics in Private Practice

Abstract: The engineer in private practice faces special problems in applying the broad concepts of the ASCE Code of Ethics to his activities. Areas of conflict include particularly the engineer-client relationship and the engineer’s activities in attempting to sell his services. Case studies are presented highlighting difficult ethical decisions and demonstrating the consequences of certain actions. Policing the Code of Ethics is discussed. With rare exception the members of the ASCE, including engineers in private practice, discharge their obligations under the code with honesty and integrity.

Women, ethics, and professionals: a review article.

Abstract: Reviews of six books that offer some perspective on the nature of women and their roles, the female‐dominated profession of nursing and its growth in research, professional ethics, and bioethics are presented. These particular reviews are offered as guidelines for persons interested in exploring the interrelationships of women, ethics, and professionals within the context of issues in providing health care for and by women.