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Deontology, Consequentialism, And Virtue Ethics

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Ethical theories and principles provide the foundation for all ethical behavior.1There are three ethical laws, Deontology, Consequentialism, and Virtue ethics. These ethical theories, each emphasize different viewpoints on how to reach a resolution according to the guidelines defined within the theory itself. It important in every organization but more importantly in healthcare, because they act as a viewpoint on which guidance is obtained towards a decision. The term deontology comes from the Greek word deon, meaning duty.2 In Deontology, actions and outcomes are always judged independently of their outcome and the act itself determine its rightness if it upholds the rules that apply and not the outcome. The theory of deontology states we …show more content…

As with each ethical theories, there are strength and weaknesses associated with them. Deontology stresses the role of duty and respect for an individual person and it is also easy to judge whether a person actions are moral not, simply by looking at whether the person is following basic rules or the guiding principles. It also allows society or people to be consistent in how they would perform an act regardless of the outcome associated with it. The disadvantage of Deontology is, it underestimates the importance of happiness, complexity of life situations and conflicting duties of people. The rules of Deontology are also vague and fail to offer moral guidance or take into account as to which rules or principles should take priority when conflict arises and While it is not necessarily wise to rely solely on outcome, it is not a good idea to completely ignore the outcome …show more content…

It provides an easy to understand guidelines stating that every act has a consequence, whether the consequence is good or bad. The argument against Utilitarianism are: The theory is too subjective and makes it hard to determine when a line should be drawn, some acts have too much a negative complication even for a greater cause that they can’t be done, and at times it might be time consuming and difficult. For example, you can’t calculate every action you

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Ethical theories are ways of telling right from wrong and include guidelines of how to live and act in an ethical way. For example when faced with a difficult situation in your life, you can use ethical theories to assist you in making the right decision. One key theory is consequentialism, which says that an individual’s correct moral response is related to the outcome/ consequence of the act and not its intentions/ motives. Early writers on this theory were Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill, a modern writer is Peter Singer. For example Brenda Grey has asked for the asthma specialist to visit her weekly, and to decide if this is necessary the professionals involved have to look at how it would affect her wellbeing.

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From a deontologist prospective an individual will focus his attention on the moral principles as duties. Individuals have moral duties to do things that are right to do and moral duties not to do things that are wrong to do and to a deontologist whether something is right or wrong doesn’t depend on consequences but rather whether an action is right or wrong in itself. For example if someone is a parent they have a moral duty to provide for their child. Not paying an individual who on most accounts are sacrificing their health and a majority of their time is wrong in itself and using them as a means to generate large sums of money for your school is unfair, which leads to the issue of fairness. Fairness is acknowledged as fulfilling an individual’s agreed upon role in a just system.

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Varsity spirit, a worldwide leader in all things spirit, once said, “It’s not about being the best. It is about being better than you were yesterday.” The world of cheerleading is a sport in which both boys and girls come together to perform a routine on a stage competing against another cheer team. There are many people who do not believe cheerleading is a sport, thinking that it is something others do for the fun of it. Sport by definition is an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or teamm competes against another or others for entertainment.

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Thus, Deontology has a broad approach and has many nuances to consider an action ethically correct or incorrect. Thus, according to my decision of bribing a foreign official the idea behind deontology doesn’t specify that my decision is

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Deontology which is derived from the Greek words Deon (meaning obligation/duty) and logia (science/study) combined to be also known as duty or rule-based ethics or the study of duties or obligations. It is a branch of ethical theories that deals with ethics of conduct, which theories are based on the sort of actions people must perform. It is based on non-consequentialism where the ends do not justify the means and thus deontology is an approach to ethics in which a sense of duty or principle prescribes the ethical decision (Preston, 2007). Deontology affirms duties must be obeyed regardless of the consequences. The theory of Deontology has its flaws as well and this essay will present three criticisms of deontology namely that deontology relies on moral absolutes, allows acts that make the world a worse place, two permissible duties that are right can conflict with each other and will demonstrate these flaws with relevant case studies and dilemmas.

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The divine command theory, utilitarianism, Kant’s duty defined morality, natural law theory, and Aristotle’s virtue ethics are the five types of ethical theories. The divine command theory states that what is morally right and wrong will be decided by God. Utilitarianism states that “Action “A” is morally right if and only if it produces the greatest amount of overall happiness. Kant’s duty defined morality states that what is important is acting for the sake of producing good consequences, no matter what the act is. Natural law theory states that people should focus on the good and avoid any evil.

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However, even though these are two opposing philosophies, with very different ideas governing their conclusions, we should look to learn from both and apply the knowledge we identify with, thus creating our own philosophies. In this essay I wish to do exactly that; to compare and contrast these two ideologies in order to better understand them and help others do the same. First we must understand what is Deontology. The word deontology when broken down to its roots literally means, the study of the nature of duty and obligation.

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As a Kantian, the ultimate goal is to focus on our maxims and not on how much pain or pleasure the act could possibly produce. So as a result, Kant would argue that Jim should not kill the Indian man, even if it would save the other Indian men. The reason why is because Kant does not believe in using people as mere means, it wouldn’t be considered a conceivable maxim, and it would be betraying a perfect duty. The definition of deontology is having the belief that you do what’s right because you have a moral duty.

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In this essay, I compared Utilitarianism and Deontology, and argued that Deontology is a better ethics system than Utilitarianism because, while Utilitarianism focuses solely on results, Deontology considers humans as more than just a means to an end and provides for a system of generally accepted

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The distinction between right and wrong has been a matter of discussion for centuries, whether expressed through philosophical essays, social organisation or artistic creation. Deontological ethics is a philosophical theory which dissects acts into right and wrong on the basis of the adherence of an act to a specific rule. One of the many formulations of deontology is Kantianism, a view introduced by Immanuel Kant, which argues that the basis for morality are motives for one’s action rather than the consequences of it and searches a justification for one’s duty to behave in a certain manner. One of the critiques or counter positions of Kant’s ethics is Sartrean existentialism as it denies the possibility of an absolute moral system and focuses on the individual morality rather than social one and bases on one’s commitment to his chosen values. Yet drawing parallels between the two positions is far from impossible, despite Sartre’s strong opposition to Kantian moral theory.

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Utilitarianism and Deontology are two major ethical theories that influence nursing practice. Utilitarian principles of promoting the greatest good for the greatest amount of people parallels the nursing tenet of beneficence. Deontological principles of treating individuals with dignity, and promoting the well-being of the individual parallels the nursing tenet of non-maleficence. Utilitarian and Deontological principles can be utilized to resolve ethical dilemmas that arise in the nursing profession. The purpose of this paper is to define utilitarianism and deontology, discuss the similarities and differences between the two, and to address an ethical dilemma utilizing utilitarian and deontological principles.

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The theory of deontology states we are morally obligated to act in accordance with obvious set of principles and rules regardless of results. Deontological ethics focuses on duties, and rights. The term deontological was coined by the utilitarian philosopher Jeremy Bentham, who described it as “knowledge of what is right or proper” Bentham thought that deontology points in the direction of principle of utility. But contemporary philosophers use the term deontological to indicate a contrast with the utilitarian focus on the consequences of action. Instead of focusing on consequences, deontological ethics focus on duties and obligation: things we ought to do regardless of the consequences.

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Margarita Rodriguez Philosophy of Nursing Millers College of Nursing October 16, 2015 How does deontology relate to an individual nurse?s professional practice of nursing? According to the American Nurses Association, Deontology, an ethical theory founded by Immanuel Kant, applies judgments based on the underlying morality, or the rightness or wrongness of an action. It is based upon adherence to rules.

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A limitation of Deontology stems from the fact that it is so strict on how one should or should not act, but yet humans need clearly defined laws to serve as guides. Although laws are not followed one hundred percent of the time, the mere fact that there are laws telling us what is right or wrong result in a higher success of people acting morally good because there is a strict guide of how to act and how not to act. Yet Deontology provides a strong ethical framework that enables moral agents to act in such a way that is towards good will and ethically correct

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As per the reading suggested by the instructor about the philosophical idea of Consequentialism (Utilitarianism) given by Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill and the other concept which is given by Immanuel Kant in the critics of Utilitarianism theory which is called Deontological Ethics. The reading given made understand about all these two concept and their possible application in the policy or law making like the universal law. Utilitarianism:- this is the concept used by Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832) and the John Stuart Mill (1806-1873). The core idea of this theory is the results comes from the action taken by the group of people or the individual. According to theory the outcomes will be judged weather the action was morally right or wrong.

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