Principles of Research Ethics

 Introduction

Ethics are the moral foundations and values that govern a person’s behavior while conducting an activity. They have an impact on how people lead their lives and their approach in making decisions. Principles of research ethics are the principles that should be used when conducting a research. They offer guidance when a research is being conducted and help to establish if something is right or wrong. Research ethics should be followed by researchers in their respective field of research.

According to Vanclay, Baines & Taylor (2013), respect for persons is one ethic that is very important when conducting a research. In terms of the interactions made, the person conducting the research should always interact with the highest level of respect. This includes the language used, making no judgments, no disapprovals, and considering every opinion of the participant. It is good to ensure that the participant is protected, including the people who are most vulnerable and those who are neglected. This means giving them the freedom to make a decision without any other influences. Respect for participants also ensures that the issues that will be spoken about are the ones that are confined in the research. Respecting people contributes to research ethics by allowing the participant feel valued therefore giving their opinions freely.

Non-maleficence means that no harm should be caused to the participant that may be resulted by their participation in the research. Vanclay, Baines & Taylor (2013) explain that participants should not be exposed to any harm of danger and there should be no detrimental repercussions as a result of their participation. The participant should be made aware of any possible risk and should be protected from any harm. Sometimes a research may cause a participant to reflect on their personal life and experiences and become emotional. The researcher should make sure that incase of any emotional distress that may have come up during the interaction, they should handle it and offer a resolution. They should also do a follow up on the participant and offer guidance and counselling to them. This contributes to ethics by taking care of the participant and of their well-being both psychologically and emotionally.

According to Al Tajir (2018), justice is a principle in research that is about the fair selection of research participants. It is the perfect distribution of benefits and risks of participation in a research. In order to distribute the benefits and risks equally, this concept makes it possible to determine the members of certain communities either well-off or vulnerable meets the qualifications and should participate in the research. All eligible participants should be given an opportunity to get involved and without being discriminated. Before a research begins, the research protocols must be submitted for review and approval by the research committee. In this principle, the interests and needs of the participant should always come before the purpose of the research. The ethics contribution by this principle is the equal and fair treatment of the participants.

Beneficence is a principle which its concerns are maximizing benefits of a research and minimizing the participant harm that is associated with a research. According to Al Tajir (2018), in this principle, each research study has to go through a benefit and risk scrutiny. In this analysis, benefits are weighed against the possible risks. Benefits are all the participants and risk involves all the types of possible harm that could affect the participant during or after the research. The types of harm that could be possibly experienced and should be considered include psychological, emotional, financial, social, reputational and physical among others. Risk reduction measures should be included when developing the study. Risk evaluation includes not only the existence and non-existence of harm but also the cause, how severe the harm was, and to what extent it escalated to. This principle contributes to ethics by putting measures that prevent and protect the participants against harm and also boost the benefits of the research.

Gelling (2015) expounds on the fidelity principle which concerned with developing trust relationships between the participant and the researcher. When a person agrees to participate in the research, they trust the researcher who has the mandate to protect them from any harm that may arise. It is important for researchers to be open, clear and honest about the possible risks and burdens that could possibly occur during the research as a way of creating trust with the participant. When participants are being given information, it is important for the researchers to provide all the information to enable the participant to make a well- informed decision.

 According to Gelling (2015), researchers have to inform the participants that they can withdraw from the research when they feel that they can no longer continue. This creates a trusting relationship between the two. Some of the researches conducted normally explore personal experiences and therefore the participants are supposed to be honest in the information they give concerning the experiences. Fidelity is a two way principle whereby the participants need to trust the researchers and the researchers too need to trust the participants. In case there is lack of trust relationships from the two parties, the consequences will be the lack of quality research. This contributes to trust relationships which are very vital for both the participant and the researcher and the research activity as well.

Academic freedom gives researchers the right to study and research on the topics they choose and to take whatever conclusions they find relevant with their research. The aim of academic freedom is to ensure that researchers are able to do their research and gives their opinions according to their area of expertise. According to Silverman, Suckow & Murthy, (2014), academic freedom allows researchers to study and discuss, and publish ideas with no constraints. Researchers should have the freedom to research, evaluate to be able to gain new knowledge and understanding. The ethical contribution is to freely conduct research, evaluate and give their opinions.

The principles collectively contribute towards making the research yield benefits and at the same time protect the participants from any harm. Vanclay, Baines & Taylor (2013), explains that they also help to guide the participant and make them understand the purposes of the research and how they are conducted. They contribute towards honesty, openness and truthfulness between the researcher and the participant. The researcher should be transparent enough to the participant so that they will know exactly what they are getting their selves into and also make an informed decision. As a result of this principles, equality is met in terms of choosing the participants.

According to Vanishree & Umashankar (2018), healthcare progress is established from a research that has to include human subjects in order to understand the causes and the impacts diseases have and improve the diagnostic methods and procedures. The proven treatments too have to be assessed from time to time through research to prove how effective, safe, efficient, their quality and how accessible they are. The principles make all this to be possible and help to work for the good of the patients. They enhance and ensure respect for all human participants and protect their health rights and keep them away from any possible harm. The principles help the physicians who are involved in the research protect the health, life, integrity, and keep the participants information private and confidential. The principles guide the healthcare researchers to conduct the research in a way that there is very minimal harm to the individuals and the environment.

In healthcare, the principles guide the researchers to give opportunities to the groups that are known to be underrepresented to participate. Vanishree & Umashankar (2018), states that in terms of risks and benefits, the principles guide in the research that involves human participants which should only be performed if the importance of the aim exceeds the risks of the participant. In no way possible should the participant be exposed to any harm. Measures to the possible risks should be developed and a follow up on the risks should be done. Researchers should not conduct a research if they are not sure that the possible risks can be evaluated and managed. In a case where the risks exceed the benefits, the researcher should decide whether to go ahead, modify or stop the research immediately. The principles make research with vulnerable groups and participants only be justified if the research is aware of their health needs and interests. The research should benefit the vulnerable participants through knowledge and information from the research.

            According to Vanishree & Umashankar (2018), the principles influence the research involving the human participant to be described and prove to be reasonable in a research protocol. A protocol contains the ethical considerations that are to be used in the research, information about funding, and incentives for the research. It also includes information about the services that will be offered to the participant in case of any harm. The protocol must be submitted to the ethical committee for evaluation and consideration. The principles influence transparency for every concerned party in the research. This includes the committee members, the researchers and the participants.

            Al Tajir (2018) states that autonomy in healthcare is respecting a patient’s decision on their own body. In healthcare research, the researcher should respect the participant’s wishes and decisions regarding their body. Informed consent is the full disclosure of the research to the participant and it means that a participant will knowingly and willingly give their consent. It is a way by which the autonomy of a patient is respected and protected. Privacy means that the participant should be protected from being observed without permission or being intruded. Confidentiality means protecting information that has been given by a participant during the research. Precautions should be taken to protect the privacy of a participant and their information should be kept confidential.

Conclusion

Principles of research ethics makes the participants and the researchers get the knowledge of how it should be conducted and what should and not should be done. They makes both parties have a relationship which is important in terms of trusting one another and feeling free to share information. They ensure that a participant’s information is protected and their rights have been adhered to and their needs and wishes have been provided. They ensure that a participant voluntarily gets involved in the research.

References

 Email Scams and Auction Fraud

Introduction

Email scam is the intentional betrayal made to harm another person or for personal interests through email. Email scams mostly target individuals who are naïve and too trusting. They come in the form of someone sending a message pretending to be someone they are not or from a certain company. Mostly the intention of email scam is to take advantage of an individual by tricking them. Auction fraud is the scam brought about by misleading information of a product advertised for sale via the internet.

According to Rijnetu (2019), email and website scams include phishing email scams. These are scams established from communication through emails or social networks whereby the culprits will send an email trying to mislead people to provide important or sensitive data to them. The source of these emails looks like it is from an official source, for example, a legitimate organization. Normally they convince a person to click on a link to access a certain website that looks legitimate and looks like the real website but is actually controlled by them.

Anti-Working Phishing Groups (2019) educate users who fall for phishers by creating a webpage that notifies them that they have fallen for phishing. The phishing education landing page program diverts consumers who click on phishing sites to materials that explain to them ways in which they can avoid being victims in the future. So as to shut down a phishing site, any person who has power over a phishing page has to ascertain if the company being phished has approved to have the phishing site by using URLs. If the company has accepted the use of diverting when a customer gets to the URL, they are diverted to the webpage. The Anti-phishing working groups have developed a separate website for the company managers whose servers have been used in phishing attacks know how to initialize diverts to the webpage. Instead of serving an error page, all brand owners are encouraged to approve the process.

The Federal Trade Commission explains the different ways a consumer can protect himself from phishing. These include protecting your computer by security software that should update automatically and being aware of phishing scams such as clicking links that pop up in emails. This includes links asking for payments, personal information among others. Protecting your accounts by using two or more certifications to log in to your account. Consumers should back up their data, for example, copy their computer files to an external hard drive.

According to the Cyber helpline, to protect internet auction fraud, consumers should use good common sense and be smart before making a purchase. Checking out different auction sites to know their policies and rules is important. Prices should be compared because sometimes crazy discounts are offered and turn out to be a scam. It is important for a consumer to review the seller’s feedback. Safe payment methods should be insisted on when making payments. Safe shipping methods and insurance should be considered by a consumer. Records of transactions should be kept and this includes taking pictures of items to act as proof of their condition on arrival. For victims of fraud, crimes should be reported for investigation. A consumer can contact the payment platform to get their money back. They can contact the bank to know if the money can be recovered.

USA.Gov. (2019)helps to explain an example of a phishing case whereby an online banking customer is asked to follow a link to update his banking details and the link leads him to a program that records his details and sends it to a third party. When the third party gets all the details, they are able to transfer funds from the customer’s account successfully. For auction fraud, a customer purchases items from an individual that has been advertised online. After bidding is over the payment is discussed by the buyer and the seller and the money is sent to the seller. In the end, the customer never receives the item purchased meaning that the technology used was successful. The technology used for phishing is a software that is created and appears as a link that saves personal details. For auction frauds, the page that the item was advertised was not real and after the payments were made it could not be traced. Technologies used were software related and used the internet.

According to The Federal Trade, protecting the computer by using security software could have been used not to allow updating links in the email by not allowing protection over security threats. Being cautious and aware of the phishing scam links and not sending money or personal information before verifying the legitimacy of a page.

Conclusion

Phishing and auction fraud measures help a person not to fall victim to the scammers. They enable a person to be cautious with phishing links and secure their accounts and computers. The measures make a person aware of the internet purchase of items which should be done with a lot of caution. They give information on the correct steps to follow if one is making a purchase online.

References

Anti-phishing work groups (2019). Phishing activity Trends Report: http://www.antiphishing.org

Federal Trade Commission. (2020) How to recognize and avoid phishing scams. https:// www.consumer .ftc.gov

The cyber helpline. Dealing with online auction site fraud. https://www.thecyberhelpline.com

USA Gov. (2019). Online Safety. https://www.usa.gov                           

Ethical Dilemma in Clinical Setting

Introduction

As a clinician, I am bound to face ethical dilemmas that conflict with my values and beliefs as I continue to execute my duties which include offering primary care to patients. The below is a discussion on an ethical dilemma and most specifically, informed consent and how this ethical behavior conflicted with my values. I cared and decided for a patient who was in a critical state when I found myself conflicting over whether to administer medication on trial on a patient whose Acute myelogenous leukemia cancer was at the (Myelomonocytic leukemia) M4 stage. The medical condition of this patient was not changing, the cancer had continued to grow regardless of many chemotherapy sessions. I administered a medication used on patients from a clinical trial that had saved a few patients and helped prolonged their life for a few years.  I will utilize the theory of utilitarianism and deontology as well as the College of Nurses of Ontario (CNO) standards to discuss the dilemma presented by the tough decision I made.   It is important to recognize that ethical dilemmas have stood as a challenge for clinicians who are used to evidence-based practices. It is the personal nature of the ethical decisions making process that presents the conflict.  it is important to ensure the successful resolution of ethical dilemmas as this could interfere with the performance of clinicians and to avoid legal troubles and disciplinary actions that could arise from not maintain within the code of ethics.  

My desire to buy this patient more time with her family outweighed my ethical obligations of informing this woman before putting her on the medication. I did not consider what she wanted at that time, all I wanted was to do my job and try to save her life. Having studied her medical history I knew that the new medication would buy her time. I did manage to buy the patient another extra two years considering that when her time ran out, she came back to the hospital and was admitted for a month before passing on. I was afraid of how the patient would react after learning that I had introduced her to new medication to save and prolong her life.  She did react positively even after admitting to her my actions could have cost me my career had she disapproved of them.

A moral dilemma is an ethically challenging situation that presents an obvious ethical solution that conflicts with an individual’s beliefs and values (Sharma, 2011). When more than one ethical value applies to one specific situation a moral dilemma arises thus complicating the decision-making process (Paterick, et al., 2008). I felt a moral obligation to prolong the life of this patient. My desire to save the life of this woman conflicted with the obligation of informing her. This was a decision that could end my career or delay the death of a patient just a little longer.  As an individual who got into the profession with a focus on saving as many lives as possible, letting this patient die without even trying would not be what I hoped to accomplish.

According to the College of Nurses of Ontario (CNO), ethics are important in a clinical setting, CNO acknowledges that these dilemmas are unavoidable as a result of the constant changes taking place in the healthcare industry. CNO has provided a guiding ethical framework that can help nurses and physicians prevent ethical dilemmas. To make decisions about ethical dilemmas health professionals need to be aware of their values (College of Nurses of Ontario, n.d). Professionals need to develop the ability to thoroughly think over a problem and be able to reach a sound decision. Client choice and consent means that the client plays a major part in refusing or accepting medical care. Patients should decide for themselves following informed consent. According to CNO, the decision of a patient or the decision made on behalf of the patient by a substitute decision-maker should be respected (College of Nurses of Ontario, n.d). Deciding to indulge the patient in medical care that they had not chosen was an ethically wrong decision. Moreover, the act of not involving a substitute decision-maker to decide for the patient was also unethical according to the rules established by the CNO no matter how ethical the actions seemed to me. Many ways can be used to work out an ethical dilemma.

CNO presents a framework and approach that can be used to resolve the moral dilemma of an ethical situation. The first approach presented by the CNO is to develop a plan that accounts for all of the factors in the ethical dilemma, this includes all the options and consequences of the various actions that can be taken (College of Nurses of Ontario, n.d). Developing a plan is a conscious decision that helps in shaping the decision one takes.  After planning the next approach is deciding the best course of action. The third approach is consulting with others to see if they share the same opinion. Mostly, it is important to consult with an individual who differs with your decision. This gives rise to the need to further asses the situation.

Medical ethics has always been and will always remain an important part of moral philosophy that is responsible for dealing with conflicts that arise as a result of moral obligation to duty and the outcomes of these actions. The theory of utilitarianism argues that the outcomes justify the means, this theory has been contradicted by the deontological theory that argues that the result does not justify the uprightness of an action, it is the means used that determine how ethical a decision is (Amer, 2019).  It is fairly common for decisions to be made by nurses and physicians based on what is in the best interest of the patient. The theory of utilitarianism is based on the good for the greatest number of people.  An action of the greatest good is bound to produce good outcomes and as a result, the concept of consequentialism emerges (Stiggelbout et al., 2006).  Consequentialism is based on the framework that the morality of an action depends on the outcomes produced by the action. However, these two works only when the prima facie obligations are not conflicting.

According to the theory of utilitarianism, several factors stand as relevant when making an ethical decision. To dissect the moral dilemma involved in making the decision it is important as a medical practitioner to consider what is your moral obligation to the patient (Laakasuo, et al., 2016). While applying this theory to resolve the moral dilemma raised by the issue of denying the patient consent and administering treatment, according to this theory my actions are justified since they were for the greater good, as a medical practitioner I had an obligation to at least try and save the life of the patient. The utilitarianism theory is based on trying to maximize the length and quality of life regardless of the means used. However, this theory is not the only theory that justifies actions based on saving lives, the distinguishing factor that sets this theory apart from the rest is that the morality of actions taken are right if they aim to maximize human welfare (Laakasuo, et al., 2016). John Mill a famous utilitarian believes that the action is right if they fulfill their purpose which is to bring happiness and positive outcomes. Scholars have concluded that no matter how appealing this theory is in resolving ethical dilemmas, it has its implications, Scholars have argued that it is important to consider and think carefully about other factors at play apart from happiness and prolonging life.  

The deontological ethics theory of morality argues that the morality of an action lies on whether it is right or wrong rather than on the consequences of the action.  The approach used by this theory bases right and wrong on the adherence to set obligations and duties (Mandal, et al., 2016). If the deontological theory is used to judge my moral dilemma, my actions would have been considered unethical regardless that my actions helped in prolonging the life of the patient. The means used to get these results are more important than the consequences of the action while using this theoretical approach. These two ethics theories used to judge the morality of an action are different from each other, the means of judging the morality of an action depends on different factors in each theory. Despite this, these two theories present frameworks that are very useful in judging and resolving many moral and ethical dilemmas taking place in a clinical setting.  A balance between these two that is not likely to be achieved would go a long way in establishing harmony in medical practice (Mandal et al., 2016).

At the moment of making my decision, I justified my actions using the utilitarianism theory, my actions were for a greater good and my intentions were based on saving and prolonging her life. This way my actions are ethically right since I achieved the desired results of prolonging her life. Only the consequences of my actions mattered. CNO (n.d) outlines that in cases where one has a conflicting moral dilemma one should consult with other practitioners who do not share the same opinion as them. At this moment I did not do any consultation.

            Moral residue is regarded as the distress that occurs when an individual knows which action is ethically right but fails to implement that action.  Research conducted on the issue of moral residue has concluded that moral residue has dire implications on the professional and personal progress of the practitioner (Hardingham, 2004). Moral residue is as a result of regrets and moral distress.  The issue of moral residue revolves around an ethical debate. Ethical discussions are vital in a healthcare institution, engagement in these debates means that ethical conflicts are resolved and healthcare providers are listened to. However, the presence of moral distress signals that ethical dilemmas are not being addressed.  In my situation I did not experience moral residue for various reasons to include that I made the decision I thought was ethical, therefore I could not regret never making that decision.

Moral distress develops as a result of medical practitioners having their opinions and moral judgments being ignored. The continued understanding that one’s opinion is not acknowledged brings about moral residue (Epstein, et al., 2010). Moral residue occurs after many occurrences of moral distress. Another reason I could not have suffered from moral residue is that my moral judgment was not ignored and I did not experience the repeated situation of moral distress.   The level of moral residue rises each time the healthcare practitioner experiences moral distress.  Consequences of moral distress and moral residue include losing the ability to make decisions ethically during challenging situations, these healthcare providers start distancing themselves from situations that require moral sensitivity (Epstein, et al., 2009). The last and most severe consequence of moral residue is burnouts that make these professionals want to leave their jobs.

It is important to address the issue of moral distress and moral residue before it causes greater damage.  A few approaches to include speaking up, building support networks and focusing on changing the work environment are just a few. Shifting one’s focus from an individual patient to a general work environment, this way the healthcare provider will be able to understand that it is the system that needs to change (Epstein, et al., 2010). Lastly, it is important to participate in moral distress education. Attending forums and seminars that focus on discussing moral distress and moral residue is important in understanding how to deal with the problem.  To curb cases of moral distress and moral residue, most healthcare institutions have implemented hospital-wide moral distress consult services that help in addressing moral distress cases as they arise.

 I believe that if I were to be presented with an ethical dilemma similar to the one, I faced I would not do things differently. It is my belief that saving lives is the main reason I choose a career in medicine. I believe that saving the life of a patient should be the number one priority. The situation taught me that I will always choose what I believe is right over what others believe is right and am willing to save and prolong life when I can.  The only thing I would change in such a scenario would be to consult with other healthcare professionals that do not share my opinions not to change the way I would do things but to understand how their perspective is different from mine.

Inconclusion, ethical dilemmas, and moral conflicts are regular occurrences in the lives of healthcare providers.  Various ethic theories present frameworks and approaches that can be used to resolve moral conflicts and dilemmas. CNO has also established guidelines that can be used to resolve moral dilemmas. Moral residue is as a result of the distress caused by not taking and action one viewed as ethical.  The morality and ethical uprightness of an action depend on the method that has been used to evaluate it.

References

Amer, A. B. (2019). Understanding the Ethical Theories in Medical Practice. Open Journal of      Nursing, 9(02), 188.

College of Nurses of Ontario (n.d). Practice Standard Ethics. Retrieved from;             https://www.cno.org/globalassets/docs/prac/41034_ethics.pdf

Epstein, E. G., & Hamric, A. B. (2009). Moral distress, moral residue, and the crescendo effect.   The Journal of clinical ethics, 20(4), 330-342.

Epstein, R. J., & Rubinfeld, D. L. (2010). Understanding UPP. The BE Journal of Theoretical      Economics, 10(1).

Hardingham, L. B. (2004). Integrity and moral residue: nurses as participants in a moral   community. Nursing Philosophy, 5(2), 127-134.

Laakasuo, M., & Sundvall, J. (2016). Are utilitarian/deontological preferences unidimensional?   Frontiers in psychology, 7, 1228.

Mandal, J., Ponnambath, D. K., & Parija, S. C. (2016). Utilitarian and deontological ethics in       medicine. Tropical parasitology, 6(1), 5.

Paterick, T. J., Carson, G. V., Allen, M. C., & Paterick, T. E. (2008, March). Medical informed    consent: general considerations for physicians. In Mayo Clinic Proceedings (Vol. 83, No.   3, pp. 313-319). Elsevier.

Sharma, A. (2011). Ethical and Moral Aspects of Informed Consent: General Considerations.       Journal of Research in Medical Education & Ethics, 1(1), 11-14.

Stiggelbout, A. M., Elstein, A. S., Molewijk, B., Otten, W., & Kievit, J. (2006). Clinical ethical   dilemmas: convergent and divergent views of two scholarly communities. Journal of medical ethics, 32(7), 381-388.

 Ethics and roles of the APN

 First, it is important to note that many factors affect the Nurse Practitioner role sustainability. These factors include limited public/patient awareness, absence of legitimizing regulation, lack of government funding, lack of identified funding models, among other factors (Curry, 2005).  Focusing on the discussion, health practitioners needs to increase public awareness in the community and public settings. The practice of increasing public awareness is important in that, in the process of increasing awareness, the nurse practitioner identities the population needs,  the gaps in health care services,  and focus on how to integrate the NP role to improve the care (Curry, 2005).  Note that patients or rather the public are confused about the nurse practitioner role, and therefore it is important to let the public become aware of the unique contribution of safe nurse practitioners.  I understand that care and treatment require total involvement of the public and patients. Note that today, the healthcare needs are changing and therefore the healthcare professionals need to develop new ways of offering care (Curry, 2005).  In other words, nurse practitioners need to move across organizational boundaries to demonstrate competence and skills and prepare the public for the care.  Raising patients/public awareness is a path to promote social partnership and ultimately, this will enable the nurses to work with confidence, develop partnership working initiative, and promote people's health and wellbeing (Curry, 2005).  As a nurse practitioner, I would increase patient/public awareness using the following strategies or methods;

• Nurse practitioner's political power- this means that I would establish a relationship with legislators, and communities so that I get the support to visit local hospitals, residential communities, and other health organizations to increase visibility.
• Newsletter- I will use this strategy to spread awareness of information and target the people with specific interests in nurse practitioner roles. I believe that those interested in promoting the well-being of the community will work together with NP to identity preventive measures in urban and rural communities.  Thus, it is important to raise awareness of NP roles and focus on a specific group of people to encourage and motivate the group to help in educating the public.
• Brochure distribution- I would use this strategy to educate the patients. A brochure is an informational paper and in this paper, I would include summary information about the nurse practitioner roles and responsibilities, competencies, practice standards, qualifications and skills, and more.
• Local media coverage- I would raise public/patients awareness about the roles and responsibilities of NP through television, radio, newspapers, and other forms of mass media (Curry, 2005). I understand that many people use the news media to understand the world. Thus, I would make the NP role visible to the public eyes through the news media.  This method will improve public awareness and the politicians, community leaders, and other opinion leaders will offer their opinion toward promoting public wellbeing.
• Community presence- I would interact with the public to establish a trusting relationships. Through interaction, I would educate them, introduce them to the concept of the practice, the meaning of doctorate in nursing, among other things. This will promote open communication, and more importantly, the public with limited knowledge will develop a favorable perception. Finally, as a graduate, I would let the public know the meaning of different terms including nursing, physician, doctor, and more.  This will promote trust and credibility and promote visibility as well as the profession's recognition.

References

 Curry, L. (2005). The Future of the Public's Health in the 21st Century. Generations, 29(2), 82.

Chism, L. A. (2013). The doctor of nursing practice: A guidebook for role development and

professional issues. Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.

                        Ethics Assignment

Question One

Thinking comparatively, how might we analyze Abraham’s binding and near murder of Isaac in light of Medea’s violent slaughter of her children? Is either parent justified in his/her actions toward his/her respective children? Why or why not?

Violence against children is wrong and it can never be justified under any circumstances. Both Abraham and Medea were wrong and in justified in their violent actions against their children no matter their reasons. The children were innocent and did not deserve to be put through the violence that they experienced. The parents are always given the responsibility of taking care of their children at all times, in this case Medea and Abraham chose to go against the human law of protecting children. They made a decision of listening to a third party, that advised them to commit violence against their innocent children. In the case of Abraham, he was instructed by God to take his son and offer him as a sacrifice, ‘Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there: as a burnt offering on one of the mountains that I shall show you’ (Genesis 22: 2). Abraham did not take time to think about the instructions and how they contradicted his role of protecting his children as a parent. He did not see his actions as an act of violation against his son Isaac but rather a show case of devotion to his God. As for Medea, she was driven to murder her own children by the urge for revenge against her husband that was leaving her to marry another woman. It is good to note that Jason, Medea’s husband was not unfaithful to her and he wanted to get a divorce so that he could remarry. Medea was not ready to accept the separation; her main focus was on her sadness and desperation especially after she was banished from her home. She felt that she had no purpose in life and she forgot that she had a responsibility of taking care of her children and protecting them at all times. There are those that may argue that the actions of Medea were important because they helped bring the attention of the Corinthians to the issue of patriarchy. However the fact still remain that what Medea did was wrong and it was an injustice towards her innocent children. Both Medea and Abraham can best be described as unjust parents because of their violent actions towards their children. They may have had their reasons, but the fact still remains they defied their role of being loving and protective parents to their children.

Question Two

A friend of yours has recently finished reading Genesis and remarks that God is often the perpetrator of the injustices found therein. How would you “defend God”? Cite specific stories from Genesis, as well as lecture notes and/or secondary sources that you read in your course sections to support your argument.

Most of God’s actions may be perceived to be unjust given the effects that they have on the victims. However, everything that God does have a reason and it acts as a lesson for all humanity to understand concepts of life and how they should live righteously. A good illustration of this fact is with the story of Cain and Abel; it is evident that God always favored the offerings that were given by Abel than those offered by Cain. This may be perceived to be unjust; however it is a lesson about the arbitrariness of birth. Through this story, God helps to bring an understanding to the world that people are different and they have different paths in life.

There are those like in the case of Abel who are lucky and find themselves in better situations, not because they work harder than other but all because they are favored. There are those others like in the case of Cain who are not lucky and find themselves entangled in jealous feelings that lead them to commit crimes. Cain out of jealousy killed his brother Abel and it led him to be banished to live a life of misery (Genesis 4: 8-12). God may have been unjust in favoring Abel over Cain, but this was all so that He can teach about the best way to handle arbitrariness of life and educate on the negative effects of human jealousy.

In the story of Noah in Genesis (6-8), God punishes everyone because of the wicked ways of the people. God does not choose between the guilty and the innocent; He punishes even children because of the sins of their parents. This may be perceived to be unjust, but God is just trying to urge people to take of themselves and to also ensure that the society around them is acting in an ethical manner. People have a responsibility of acting ethically at all times and this includes guiding every member of the society to act in an ethical manner. God in punishing the innocent and the guilty illustrates that an individual that stands to watch other people engaging in unethical activities are just as guilty as the perpetrators. In punishing the children as a consequence of their parent’s sins, God demonstrates the importance of fraternity in human life. It helps to educate people that when they engage in unethical activities, they punish their children because they force them to suffer from their immoral activities. Everything that God whether it is just or perceived to be unjust is all for the good of humanity.

Question Three

In the trial of Jesus, the head priest Caiaphas reportedly says, “[I]t is better for you to have one man die for the people than to have the whole nation destroyed” (John 11:50). What does Caiaphas mean in the context of Jesus’ trial? Would Abraham agree with this statement? Would Rambert? Why or why not?

Caiaphas through his statement basically meant that Jesus was a threat to the Judean autonomy because he had the power to provoke the Romans. Jesus was in this case perceived as a risk for the Jewish culture being their leader and so getting rid of him meant that the rest of the Jews were safe from destruction. Caiaphas in this case saw it best to kill Jesus the leader of the Jews instead of destroying the whole Jewish society.

 Abraham would not really agree with the mindset of Caiaphas because he believed that a society has same beliefs and one individual should not as a scapegoat for the whole society. A good illustration of this is when Abraham requested his wife to lie to Pharaoh that she was his sister to save him from getting killed (Genesis 12:10). This lie allowed Abraham to live in the house of Pharaoh where he was provided with livestock and slaves. However when God rained his punishment, the whole household of Pharaoh suffered from the plagues without any exceptions (Genesis 12:17). This story helps to illustrate that Abraham did not belief in one man dying for the sake of others like Caiaphas dictates. Abraham evaded death by lying about his wife Sarah and this led the whole of Egypt to be destroyed by God.

Rambert a character from ‘The Plague’ by Camus would not agree with the beliefs of Caiaphas on sacrificing one man to save the whole society. At the beginning of the story, Rambert did not really believe in sacrificing one man for the sake of others, he tells Doctor Rieux, ‘You'll soon be talking about the interests of the general public. But public welfare is merely the sum total of the private welfare of each of us’ (Camus, p 42). This statement by Rambert reveals that he believes that the well-being of a society is based on the well-being of every individual and this means that hurting one individual is hurting the whole society. His belief is further evidenced at the end of the novel when he refused to save himself and leave the city to avoid contracting the plague and to reunite with his love in Paris, he illustrates that ‘This business is everybody's business’ (Camus, 101). Rambert believes in people sticking together even in calamities and hence his sacrifice to stay in the city even though it meant him risking getting infected with the plague.

Question Four

“I was attached to this city by the god—though it seems a ridiculous thing to say—as upon a great and noble horse which was somewhat sluggish because of its size and needed to be stirred up by a kind of gadfly. It is to fulfill some such function that I believe the god has placed me in the city. I never cease to rouse each and everyone one of you, to persuade and reproach you all day long and everywhere I find myself in your company” (Plato 30e).

A gadfly is a fly that bites livestock and sometimes people, annoying them through its bites. Why does Socrates liken himself to a gadfly in ancient Athens? What is it that he believes is his mission to fulfill in Athens? What does this say about Socrates’ notion of the good life?

Socrates likens himself to a gadfly because he believes that his role in Athens was to bring the truth to the people about their ignorance in regard to the knowledge that they believed to possess. Socrates in his metaphor believes that Athens was great and noble and that is why he refers to it as “great and noble horse”, it was however not developing because of its ignorance in regard to the knowledge that it possessed. Athens had great poets, artisans and politicians, an exemplification of the capacity of greatness and knowledge that Athens had. The people of Athens believed that they were powerful because of their knowledge and this caused them to have pride. They disregarded other people like Socrates who came to challenge their knowledge because they believed that they had the answers to everything. However there are limits to knowledge and this is what the people of Athens failed to understand. The people of Athens did not give themselves room to acquire more knowledge by acknowledging that they do not understand everything.

Socrates believed that Athens is asleep and needed to be awakened by him and that is why he defines himself as a gadfly; he says ‘perhaps you may be vexed, like the drowsy when they are awakened’ (Plato, p 14). One of the main missions of Socrates in Athens was to try and help the people of Athens understand that there was a limit to their knowledge and they needed to allow themselves learn more. The Athenians knew many things, but they ignored the fact that all they knew was not everything there is to know. Socrates believes that a good life is one where one is ready to question the limits of his knowledge and accept that they do not know everything.

An individual that believes that they understand everything lives a bad life because they do not create room to learn new things. Such individuals get stuck in their outdated knowledge and hence do not develop, this is what Socrates tries to avoid in Athens. Socrates believed that Athens would be left behind in development if the people did not acknowledge the need for them to acquire more knowledge to add to what they already know. He illustrates that if Athens do not acknowledge him, then they would remain undeveloped, he says ‘Then you would spend the rest of your lives asleep’ (Plato, 14). Socrates agrees with the saying in philosophy that illustrates that wisdom is acknowledging that you do not know.

Works Cited

Camus, Albert, and Tony Judt. The Plague. , 2013. Print.

The Holy Bible: New International Version. London: Hodder & Stoughton, 2012. Print.  

Plato. Symposium and the Death of Socrates. Ware, Hertfordshire: Wordsworth Edition

            Limited, 1997. Print.

Ethical Leadership

What styles of leadership are most effective in creating ethical environments?

For the organization to become successful, leaders are expected to demonstrate true leadership behaviors.  True leadership moves beyond the maintenance of activities to leading followers towards the organization's vision and mission (Aronson, 2001).  Another important point to understand is that in organizational leadership,   ethics and leadership should go together.  Note that the primary duty and responsibility of an organizational leader is to create the vision, mission, objectives, goals, beliefs and values, behavioral norms strategies, and policies (Aronson, 2001).  For followers to work towards these primary objectives,   a leader should have a moral principle and moral integrity.  In other, for the organization to achieve success, the leader should be ethically orientated to promote ethical behaviors.  Therefore,   the organization leader should be a moral leader.  The following are the most effective styles of leadership in creating an ethical environment;

 Transformational leadership

  The transformational leadership style is effective in that the leader influences the moral values and encourages followers to move beyond their interests and put the organizational interest into consideration (Aronson, 2001).  Therefore, a transformational leader must have strong values, such as justice and liberty.  They act as moral agents and follow a set of moral values in making ethical decisions.  Rather than controlling the followers, they motivate and help them develop their virtues (Aronson, 2001).  Transformation leadership is effective in creating an ethical environment in that a transformational leader will instill motivation and morality to followers.  In addition, a transformational leader creates a new vision, strategy, and organization structure and helps the followers meet future challenges.  This style of leadership will help the followers practice ethical behaviors in that as the leader meets the followers' need, they increase trust and respect, and become more empowered. 

  Transactional leadership

 In transactional leadership, there is a leader-follower relationship.  They agree on tasks to be accomplished, and they hold on to values of fairness and trust for them to reach the agreed goals.  In other words, there must be ethical values in order to achieve the objectives.  This style of leadership is related to teleological ethical theories, which state that an act is moral if it produces a great good (Aronson, 2001).  In transactional leadership, the leader and the follower follow rule utilitarianism, and conform to rules to achieve the best outcome.  A transactional leader also creates a system in which the followers adhere to standards and ethical values to improve personal safety.  If followers diverge from standards,   a transactional leader applies corrective measures such as creating impersonal rules.

 Directive leadership

 This type of leadership is effective in creating an ethical environment in that the leader values the subordinates' best interest and make the decision concerning their interest (Aronson, 2001).  In addition, a directive leader listens to subordinates' opinions and makes decisions.  This style of leadership also allows followers to participate in decision-making.  It is important to note that in a direct leadership style, the leader is not a dictator.  His primary role is to establish objectives and structure for followers.  At this point, the leader will clarify roles and responsibilities, provide guidance, offer psychological support, and state the ethical behaviors (Aronson, 2001).  This style of leadership allows the leader to communicate rules and regulations, and followers will follow specific rules and avoid errors.  With clear expectations, followers will behave ethically and improve performance.

Do organizations have an obligation to strive to provide meaningful work to employees? If so, why in your experience have been the most important characteristics of meaningful work?

Organizations should strive to provide meaningful work to employees.  This is because; employees spend almost 8 hours working.  Meaningful work is important than job security, salary, among other things.  This means that employees want job satisfaction and well-being, and both are achieved through meaningful work (Michaelson et al, 2014).  In some companies, hundreds and thousands of employees are not happy, and they feel burned out and discouraged.  This is because they do not see the work as meaningful and at the end of the day, and they find the work meaningless.  Organizations are not concerned with the well-being of workers as they focus on competition and making profits and wealth.  Thus, employees contribute to suffering from work-related stress.  If organizations want the employees to produce meaningful output, they should provide meaningful work.  Note that meaningful work benefits the organization in that employees increase performance, commitment, and satisfaction (Michaelson et al, 2014).  Therefore, organizations are obligated to provide meaningful work through designs of jobs, creating clear missions and cultures, and fostering interpersonal relationships.  Meaningful work matter as it brings desirable organizational ends.  Thus, the management of meaningful work should be a managerial duty (Michaelson et al, 2014).  For example, the organization should offer compensation,   respect employees' rights, recognize employees, promote mentorship, and connect meaning with mission and values.  In general, organizations should ensure that all employees perceive the work as personally meaningful

From personal experience, the most important characteristics of meaningful work include a sense of belonging, recognition, awareness of one's self, own sense of independence, respect, personal satisfaction,  and  the fulfillment of needs.  I believe that for a work to be meaningful, employees must experience these benefits from the organization management. Thus, the organization is obligated to create a workplace environment that provides benefits for employees to derive meaning.

References

Aronson, E. (2001). Integrating leadership styles and ethical perspectives. Canadian Journal of

Administrative Sciences/Revue Canadienne des Sciences de l'Administration, 18(4), 244-

256.

Michaelson, C., Pratt, M. G., Grant, A. M., & Dunn, C. P. (2014). Meaningful work: Connecting

business ethics and organization studies. Journal of Business Ethics, 121(1), 77-90.

Ethics in marketing

Success for a business is determined not only by the profits made but also by the nature of relationship it establishes with the community it conducts business and the people in it.  Its social responsibility is therefore focused on ensuring that all its activities, including marketing, seek to achieve the best interests not only for the business but also for its target audience.  Since marketers are responsible for influencing how a business' stakeholders perceive the organization, they ought to practice good ethics as this will help improve how shareholders, employees and the target audience view the organization. Ethical marketing therefore requires marketers to be fair, honest and take responsibility for their actions and this can be achieved by observing certain ethical values.

Ethical marketing requires marketers to be honest in their dealings with other shareholders and members of public.  As markets, most of the information that the public can access regarding a business is shared by marketers.  The role of marketers revolves around sharing information about a business' products and services (Calienes & Gringarten, 2019).  The approaches they take not only informs the target audience about a product or service but also encourages the consumers to purchase the them.  Since their input greatly contributes to the customer's purchase decision, honesty is an important factor as it ensures that only important information is shared.

Honesty on the side of marketers further helps to positively influence how consumers perceive an organization.  When ethical marketing is effective, the target audience is likely to associate the honesty practiced by marketers with the organization.  If the information shared by marketers regarding products and services is actually what the business offers, customers are more likely to have a positive image of the business (Calienes & Gringarten, 2019).  The efforts carried out by marketers translate positively for the business and makes it easier for the target audience to choose its products and services over others in the market.

Ethics in marketing further requires marketers to be responsible and accountable for their actions.  Whatever marketing practices they engage in should be directed towards sharing accurate information regarding a business and its products, and also ensuring that the information is not misleading in any way (Arnold, 2009).  Customers greatly rely on the information shared by marketers to assist in their purchase decisions.  The information is no only used to determine which organization to do business with but also what type of products to purchase.  In the case of a new product in the market, customers rely on the information provided by marketers to determine the impact that such a product will have on the consumer (Arnold, 2009).  When marketing consumables, information such as side effects, frequency of use and other restrictions determine the customer experience when using the product.  Ethical marketing must therefore place emphasis on accountability as the marketers influence how the consumers use and perceive a product.

In cases where information shared by marketers result in negative outcomes when the consumer uses a product or service, marketers must be accountable for the role they played when keeping the consumer informed.  New products in the market often require demonstrations or guidelines on how to use.  Failure to fully inform the consumer regarding a product should be addressed effectively and the marketers ought to take responsibility for the consequences that arise due to their failure to properly inform customers about a product or service (Arnold, 2009).  They must also ensure that the message being communicated is clear and easy to interpret to reduce the likelihood of misuse.  Since the aim is to improve the customer experience, ethical marketing ensures that marketers are just as committed to the consumer's interests and safety as they are towards marketing the business and the products and services it offers.

Marketers should also practice fairness in all their dealings with the stakeholders. For marketers, success in performing their duties is tied to the success of the business. As such, ethical marketing requires them to be fair and ensure that the approaches they take in marketing look out for the interests of the business and also its people (Sage, 2012). Other than creating a good name and image for a business and its products, markets must also ensure that the methods they use serve the interests of the target audience as well. To achieve this, the marketers should avoid manipulating the information they share with the public with the intent of gaining an advantage for the business. All actions and undertaken and any message communicated should seek to help the business reach the target audience and in return, provide the customers with important information regarding the business and its products (Sage, 2012). The activities engaged by marketers should therefore seek to empower the business as well as the customers by creating positive relationships that are based on trust and the common desire to achieve the overall best for all stakeholders.

In addition, marketers should practice transparency in their dealings as this helps to build trust and promote accountability. Unlike primary stakeholders, secondary stakeholders like the government and consumers rely on the information shared through marketing as their source for gaining a better insight on what a business is doing. As such, transparency becomes crucial especially for secondary stakeholders who have little influence over the decisions that a business makes (Dahl & Eagle, 2015). Despite having little control over business decisions, secondary stakeholders play a significant role in determining the approaches the business will implement because the secondary stake holders like customers control demand for products and services while the government determines the laws and policies that the business has to abide to (Dahl & Eagle, 2015). Despite not being part of the decision making team, transparency helps to build trust with the secondary stakeholders and other relevant people that may not be kept in the loop on the internal operations of a business. Transparency also makes it easier to identify areas that cause problems for the family, the people or processes responsible and what can be done to remedy the situation.

            In the age of technology, ethical marketing also involves safeguarding information collected about the customers and the target audience. Most business achieve success by assessing what the consumer wants and what they are likely to need in the future and then designing a product or offering a service to meet this need (Dahl & Eagle, 2015). Identifying, customers’ current and potential needs often requires deep research on the target audience’s shopping history, their tastes and preferences, sites frequently visited and other relevant information needed to segment the market into sections that a business can serve. While such information is ideal in understanding the customer profile, some of the data is sensitive and could result in negative repercussions if it falls into the wrong hands (McKinley, 2011). As marketers, good ethics will involve protecting such information and ensuring that the customer’s privacy is protected. Marketers must therefore invest in the most effective data protection tools to ensure that the information used to build customer profiles is safe and secure.

            Lastly, marketers should ensure that they abide to the campaign limitations set to protect vulnerable consumer groups such as children, the elderly and people with disability. The marketing approaches used should be designed in such a way that they seek to benefit the consumer as much as they benefit the business. Instead of taking advantage of the vulnerable consumer groups, marketing strategies should seek to keep such people informed and equipped with the information needed to make good purchase decisions (McKinley, 2011). The goal should be to help those in such groups make informed decisions and purchase products that will satisfy their needs. Since people in such groups require a different marketing approach, marketers should ensure that they design the message with the needs of the people in vulnerable consumer groups in mind.

Conclusion

Marketers play a crucial role in determining success for a business as they influence the message and perception that people have of the business. For a business that seeks to satisfy the interests of its people, ethics is often used to determine the nature of activities that the business undertakes. In marketing, the ethical responsibility lies in ensuring that all marketing activities undertaken seek to benefit both the business and its consumers. Other than informing customer about a product or services, marketers must also ensure that the message they communicate to the target audience is designed to help both the business and its people.

References

Arnold C, (2009) “Ethical marketing and the new consumer” John Wiley & Sons

Calienes F and Gringarten H, (2019) “Ethical branding and marketing: Cases and lessons”           Routledge

Dahl S and Eagle L, (2015) “Marketing ethics and society” Sage

McKinley M, (2011) “Ethics in marketing and communication” Springer

SAGE, (2012) “SAGE brief guide to marketing ethics” SAGE

Ethics in the Navy

People employed by the navy often have to work in the harshest of environments that test their morals and ethics. On a regular basis, men and women in the navy have to make quick and ethical decisions while still following orders as required. Despite the demanding nature of the work, navy personnel are also regarded as the most disciplined and moral individuals and those in the profession are respected not just for the part they play in protecting the nation, but also the discipline and ethical code of conduct displayed when fulfilling their duties. While most individuals follow their own moral compass, the navy core values and integrity influence the sailors’ good conduct and discipline not just while on duty but also when engaging with other members of society.

All members of the navy are required to observe and maintain a higher standard of behavior as each individual is held accountable for their actions. All sailors are expected to carry themselves with dignity and respect and engage in ethical conduct both when on duty and also when in public (USNI, 2017). As such, the ethics taught while the sailors are in training and as they carry out their duties teaches them to be accountable for their actions and consider their ramifications before making the decision to act. Even in intense situations such as war or when engaged with an enemy, any action taken by the sailors has to be ethical as each individual is held accountable for every action taken (USNI, 2017). Living in such an environment where morals are a priority helps the values to have a bigger impact and therefore influences the decision to only engage in good conduct and maintain discipline at all times.

Sailors are also taught the importance of integrity and why they ought to have strong moral principles and practice honesty. Navy personnel are honorable and whatever actions they engage in are governed by the principles and values taught while still in the navy (Greenert, 2015). Despite having different backgrounds and cultural practices, sailors are taught how to work as a team and why it is important to trust each other. Learning to look out for the interest of others helps the sailors take into account how their actions affect others and what they can do to ensure that their actions yield the most ethical outcomes (Greenert, 2015). By learning to coexist with other sailors, those in the navy also learn how to coexist with people from different backgrounds. It is through the training and experiences while at the navy that each individual sailor learns the importance of discipline and how to maintain good order.

The core value that has the biggest impact on navy personnel has to be the respect they have for the chain of command. As part of their training, sailors are taught to respect those in authority and not just the top management but even the person immediately in a higher position. The orders given by someone who is at a higher position are expected to be followed without question (Greenert, 2015). There are however measures put in place to ensure that those in authority do not misuse their power and that sailors do not end up following unethical leaders. The commitment to follow orders to the letter while respecting the chain of command is one of the many virtues that sailors get from the navy and through it, they become more disciplined and are able to maintain order, regardless of whatever situation they are in.

Other than the chain of command, navy personnel are taught to be leaders and make fast decisions even under pressure. In line with the chain of command, the navy is structured in such a way that there is someone to take over in case someone in authority dies or cannot fulfill his duties (Greenert, 2015). In such a situation, all sailors are trained and equipped with the skills needed to not only follow orders but also step up in time of a crisis and take on a leadership role. Since some of the characteristics of a leader are having good morals and maintaining conduct, the skills that sailors pick up in the navy realty influence their moral compass. It ensures that they are mentally prepared to take on new responsibilities at a moment’s notice and lead others into situations that need proper guidance and mentorship (Toner, n.d). The realization that leading often requires making of ethical decision and issuing orders that put other sailors’ lives at risks pushes those in the navy to engage in ethical conduct as a way of ensuring that the decisions made result in the general good of all those affected by the decision.

Structures set in place to determine the way navy personnel go about performing their duties requires individuals to not only follow the orders issued by superiors, but do so in such a way that is ethical and achieves the most desirable results. While all sailors are expected to follow the commands issued by their superiors, implementing some of these orders requires them to think outside the box especially when the commander may be issuing orders that are questionable (Toner, n.d). Since orders are to be followed to the letter, regardless of the ethical ramifications that will follow, sailors have to find way to make the right choices and find a middle ground between following an order and maintaining good morals (Toner, n.d). As such, sailors often learn to think outside the box and seek out alternatives to achieving what is expected of them. Seeking different alternatives gives the sailors a chance to be innovative which in turn ensures that they engage in good conduct, regardless of what orders are issued to them.

Like most soldiers, sailors in the navy have to work in testing environments where the enemy may not necessarily be concerned with their well-being. However, since sailors are taught to view war as a necessary evil, their actions in war are only carried out when necessary and that they are ethical in all aspects (Toner, n.d). The ability to practice good morals not just when engaging an enemy but also in the general public is therefore enhanced by the virtues and policies that govern sailors while in the navy. Other than learning about the best way to survive while in battle, the navy also teaches the sailors the importance of maintaining good conduct, leading by example and why individuals should have good morals, regardless of the nature of environment they live or work in.

References

Greenert J, (2015) “The moral component of leadership” U.S Navy

Toner J, (n.d) “Morals under the gun: The cardinal virtues,military ethics and American society” University Press of Kentucky

United States Naval Institute, (2017) “The Bluejacket’s manual” United States Navy

 The prevalence of Resume Fraud

Resume fraud is a major issue for organizations and it is important that it be dealt with. Resumes are what help organizations to understand the qualification of a candidate for a job position. This means that if the details that they give in the resumes or in their educational documents is deceitful, the organization end up employing an under qualified individual for the job position. The individual may not be able to effectively conduct the roles that he or she is expected to do and it may cause the organization to incur loss because of this employee’s inefficiency (Berman-Gorvine & Nadel, 2014).

It is important for candidates in various job positions to have the required qualifications in order to ensure efficiency in the output. There are some careers that are very critical and one needs to have the right training in order to be able to perform them effectively. Some career positions like those in the medical sector, matters to do with machine operation, teaching among many others are all courses that require intense training for one to be considered as a qualified candidate (Berman-Gorvine & Nadel, 2014). These are people whose roles are delicate and an individual who has attended the courses but did not qualify is not considered for the job positions.

It is important to ensure that only qualified individuals in various career paths perform the jobs to avoid any risks poor work results and in some cases even injuries and even in worse case scenarios death (Hannan & Shaw, 2010). A fraudulent doctor or nurse for instance is someone that does not really understand his role properly; he or she does not understand how he is supposed to handle different medical conditions. This is an individual that will make wrong diagnosis and administer wrong medication which could be harmful to the patients. This irresponsibility will harm the reputation of the hospital and it will affect its ability to offer services to its consumers (Hannan & Shaw, 2010).

Companies today have become aware of the issue of fraudulency and they try to take precaution measures to help them detect any form of fraud during the recruitment period. One of the ways that is used to help detect fraud is by doing background checks on the candidate this includes verifying their degrees and their past experience (Hannan & Shaw, 2010). In US, the National Student Clearinghouse helps verify student records and their graduation information for a fee and it is something many organizations are willing to use to verify their candidates. This is a lengthy but a worthy process that companies should positively embrace in order to prevent fraudster in job applications.

Figure 1: Showing various jobs and the required fraud checks

As is evident from the above, there are some fraud checks that are much more important than others and they apply for all job types. One example of this is the criminal record check, it is important for a company to have an employee who has never been involved in any criminal activities because that way they can be trusted to conduct themselves in an ethical manner. Another check that is important for any employee in any sector is the medical record which verifies an individual’s overall physical and psychological health. This helps the company to understand if there is any special attention that the employee requires and if they are capable of offering that attention.  

The fraud check matrix above can be used by employers to understand some of the background checks that they can do on their candidates in various sectors. This is a matrix that is easy to use because it easy to understand and it helps verify the job applicants resume information.

References

Berman-Gorvine, M., & Nadel, S. (2014). Resume Fakery Is Rampant and Global, Can Cause

Myriad Problems for Employers. HR Focus, 91(12), 1–3. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=102663580&site=ehost-live

Hannan, J., & Shaw, N. (2010). lies, lies, lies -- fraudsters: how to identify and deal with

resume fraud? Human Resources Magazine, 15(5), 4–5. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=55698863&site=ehost-live

 Ethics are moral principles that deal with right and wrong. Today, business encounter ethical issues that lead to baffling situations, and thus, it is important for the organization to come up with ethical principles that lead the corporate organization. Ethics and values are not only a moral responsibility but also an organizational priority. Since organizations are in the midst of complexity and a highly competitive world, managers should make ethics a priority or in other words, they should define ethical values as the most important factor in the organization.   The importance of ethics and values is that they are the backbone of the decision-making and institutional culture. To achieve effectiveness in these areas, ethics and values must be aligned with mission, vision, and goals. In addition, ethics and values must align with internal relationships and external relationships so that an ethical culture can emerge. Ethics play a critical role in the organization as they help the member understand between right and wrong conduct, and fair and unfair decisions. On the other hand, values are the things that people perceive as important in life. In the organization, core values are the things which the organization believe to important.  Example of core values is integrity, teamwork, loyalty, commitment, honesty, reliability, and more. The core values are believed as important and that they should be shared by organization members, and they should focus on these values when taking actions and when making decisions.

Today, ethics and values in the professional world need to be improved or in other words, they need to advance so that they may shape the future in a positive way. Organization leaders should improve ethics and values so that the organization can manage the challenges and failures that come across.  The following are ways in which ethics and values can be improved;

 Improve leadership-First, it is important to focus on leaders' behaviors since they will determine how the organizational members will behave. In other words, leaders should be ethical and should demonstrate the appropriate behaviors, and set the ethical tone and as a result, the followers will make an effort to ensure the organization success (Ferrell et al, 217). Note that followers look up to the organization leaders for guidance and this means that leaders may affect the ethical culture positively or negatively. Thus, to improve the ethics and values, the top leaders should uphold ethical ways so that the employees may observe the behaviors and be encouraged to behave diligently and ethically (Ferrell et al, 217). It is important to understand that the top-management-support is very important and leaders should in the forefront to demonstrate honesty and openness and show commitment to ethics and values so that employees can emulate the behaviors.

 Improve training- in order to improve ethics and values, the organizational leaders should educate the followers about ethical behaviors. There should be ethics programs for the purpose of reminding the employees about ethical decision-making, laws and regulations, codes, and guidelines (Ferrell et al, 219). As a result, the employees will understand between the right and wrong and they make an ethical choice.

 Improve communication- to improve ethics and values, managers need to communicate clearly and effectively. This is because much ethical concerns occur due to poor communication. Thus, it is important to provide enough information on both positive and negative things.   Speaking up will play a significant role in solving ethical dilemmas and more importantly, build an ethical work climate (Ferrell et al, 226). Managers should also communicate clearly about the policies and procedures so that employees can know the expected ethical behaviors.  It is also important to communicate the discipline and consequences so that employees can make ethical choices to avoid negative consequences.

 Create explicit ethics policies-this means that leaders should come up with codes of ethics so that employees can understand the expected ethical behaviors, norms, and rules (Ferrell et al, 223).  Employees will learn the specific guidelines, they will gain an ethical sensitivity, and as a result, they will build a positive ethical climate. The explicit ethics policies should state clear objectives and expectations so that employees can have a clear picture of what is expected from them.

 Build a diverse network- to improve ethics and values, it is important to consider diverse opinions. In other words, managers should create a culture of diverse so that all members can participate in business practices and work in diverse teams (Ferrell et al, 224). As a result, diversity will be built a safety culture where members behave in an ethical way to achieve goals and objectives.

Work cited

 Ferrell O.C., Fraedrich John., & Ferrell.  Business Ethics: Ethical Decision Making & Cases. Cengage

Learning, 2012

Fernando, A C. Business Ethics and Corporate Governance. Delhi: Dorling Kindersley (India), licensees of

Pearson Education in South Asia, 2010. Print.

Should Abortion Be Permitted?

Annotated bibliography

Westlund, A. C. (2004). A Defense of Abortion. Journal of Moral Philosophy, 1(3), 378–382. https://doi.org/10.1177/174046810400100311

 The article reviews the work of David Boonin on ‘A defense of Abortion' in raising an argument for abortion. Beckwith (2006) asserts that according to Boonin, abortion is an act that is morally permitted. The first moral reasoning is that the fetus does not have value-making properties. Second, the fetus is not a moral agent and it does not have brain activity.  By reviewing Boonin's arguments for abortion, the author concludes that it is morally right to terminate a pregnancy since the fetus lack certain functions.

Hardwig, J. (2015). Men and Abortion Decisions. Hastings Center Report, 45(2), 41–45. https://doi.org/10.1002/hast.432

The article explores the issue of abortion and the author assert that women have the right to have or not to have the baby. The author includes the bioethics views in her works to argue that men do not have a voice in abortion decisions and thus the pregnant mother should make the abortion decision.  The mother bears the unbearable changes during pregnancy and for this reason, she should decide whether to become parents or not.  The author's standpoint is that if both the father and the mother of the fetus are not ready to become parents, the mother should have the right to abort.

Taneja, A., Nagaraja, S. B., Padubidri, J. R., Madadin, M., & Menezes, R. G. (2018). Abortion of Fetus with Down’s Syndrome: India Joins the Worldwide Controversy Surrounding Abortion Laws. Science & Engineering Ethics, 24(2), 769–771. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11948-017-9926-y

In this article, the author discusses the issue of abortion focusing on abortion laws in India.  Women have the right to terminate a pregnancy under particular circumstances.  For example, in India, abortion is only allowed until 20 weeks under certain circumstances.  Considering the factors such as Down's syndrome and other serious threats to the fetus and the mother, the author concludes that women's decisions to abort should not be biased.

Gibson, S. (2004). The Problem of Abortion: Essentially Contested Concepts and Moral Autonomy. Bioethics, 18(3), 221–233. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8519.2004.00391.x

 In this article, the author intends to shed light on the issue of abortion and asserts that abortion is a debatable issue, and people focus on fetal moral status when raising arguments.   The author focuses on women's right and argues that individuals have moral autonomy and thus, women have the right to choose abortion.

Jones, K. (2007). Ethics of abortion: the arguments for and against. (Cover story). Nursing Standard, 21(37), 45–48. https://doi.org/10.7748/ns.21.37.45.s54

The author reviews the topic on abortion and asserts that in order to understand the ethics of abortion, the health care professionals should use various perspectives including the health care perspective, community perspective, and individual perspective; that is the women carrying the pregnancy. By considering these perspectives, it will be easier to inform into an acceptable conclusion.

 Corporate responsibility

Corporate responsibility or corporate is defined as the way a business assumes responsibility for its own operations & actions, and the actions of its employees, stakeholders, and communities. Corporate responsibility also includes the way a company conducts its business, how it manages the impact their businesses have on the environment, and how it gives back to society.

2. Ethical corporate social responsibility

The society holds the normative expectations that laws are essential but they are not sufficient. In addition to what the law requires of a company, society expects businesses to be conducted in a manner that is ethical. Taking on the burden of ethical responsibilities shows that organizations will ensure they follow activities norms and live up to certain standards despite the fact that they are not demanded by the law but the society expects them to do so. Part of the ethical expectation of the business is that they will conduct their affairs in a manner that is fair and objective even in cases where the law has not dictated the course of action to be taken. Therefore, the work of ethical responsibilities is to embrace the standards and conditions that are expected or prohibited by society but not codified by the law. This goal ensures that businesses are responsive to the requirements, norms, conditions, and standards that reflect the honor accorded to customers, employees and the stakeholders since it protects their moral rights (Carrol, 2016).

While meeting these ethical responsibilities the businesses are expected to; carry out their day to day activities in a manner that is consistent to the expectations of society, accord recognition to the new and ethical norms that arise in society, ensure that they do not in any circumstance compromise ethical norms as they carry out their business, do what is morally and ethically expected of them which in turn makes them good corporate citizens. They should also know that ethics go beyond their compliance with the law (Carrol, 2016).

3. 3. The 21st century CR surge

Corporate social responsibility can be regarded as one of the earliest and key concepts in the study of businesses and their relation to society. The key interest in this concept is the question whether the interest of the business and society will merge in the long run. Corporate responsibility in the 21st century can be said to be an ongoing process of sensitizing business to various changes taking place in governance, and the changes that are taking place yet they go beyond the laws set by the government, Corporate responsibility is increasingly being incorporated in many businesses in the 21^st century Lastly, CSR are being used to mark the developments that are being made by businesses as organs of society. In the 21st century, CR is rapidly becoming a primary imperative to businesses and communities at a national and international level (Horrigan, nd).

4. Corporate social responsibility and the media

Media attention has an impact on how frequent firms engage in CSR activities. Management scholars investigating the role of media attention in CSR found out that media attention is responsible for influencing the behaviors and the activities that business involves itself in. Highly visible firms, that is firms that are given much attention by the media tend to invest more in CSR activities than less visible firms, that is firms receiving little attention from the media. Firms receiving attention from the media tend to receive high expectations from their stakeholders thus they are forced to involve in CSR more in order to meet these expectations, and because they are more vulnerable to crises, they will engage more in CSR  in order to build a good reputation (Zyglidopoulos, Stelios, Georgiadis, Carroll, and Siegel, 2012)

5. The upside of corporate responsibility

Engaging in CSR is a good thing for many firms. It creates a good image of the business but it creates risks for the business. An insincere CSR can make a business ruin its reputation and incur unnecessary costs. Financial profits are spent on CSR just for a no or little returns. CSR creates internal bureaucracy that in turn slows down the internal operation of the business which affects its performance. The resources spent on CSR could have been spent on more profitable opportunities. CSR has been put in place to appease stakeholders and critics that would likely led to collapse of the business (Harrison, Myron, Rapporteur. 2007). CSR is a way of increasing sales and increasing the reputation of a firm but it brings about risks that many businesses are reluctant to embrace.

6. Reputation risk management

In many instances, CSR has been used as a reputation risk management. Taking a scenario where a firm is impacting the environment it is expected that a negative environmental impact will be penalized with a bad reputation while a firm impaction the environment in a positive way will be rewarded with a good reputation. Environmental management is a driver of corporate reputation; therefore, it can be used as a tool for reputation and risk management (García-Madariaga, and Rodríguez-Rivera, 2017).

7. Brand differentiation

Brand differentiation is among the reasons why firms choose to embrace CSR. When CSR was first used companies such as Timberland found their voice and incorporated its values into its business model.  Currently, Coke and Pepsi brand have been competing for a long time they are adopting slightly approaches to CSR. Both companies are using plastic water bottles, both of these companies are very much trying to differentiate their brand from the other with the aim of grabbing a larger market share the problem is that they are adopting a slightly similar approach. In the end, consumers will only see a slight difference but in the long run, it proves that CSR is not an enthusiasm that will be short-lived (Reeves, 2012).

8. Talent attraction and retention

CSR helps improve the working conditions of employees thus the firm is able to attract and retain employees. These are the main areas that employees address in order to attract new talents and retain the employees working for them; recognition of the welfare of the employees by valuing their contribution, aligning the company’s principles to be in line with the values of the employees. lastly, CSR requires employees, in the process of volunteering employees can feel more valuable and satisfied (Yadav, Dash, Chakraborty, & Kumar, 2018).

9. CR and corporate reputation

Issues relating to the responsibility of a business are the key attributes from which the reputation of the firm is judged. Corporate reputation is the concept that stakeholders have concerning the organization. CR plays a very important role because it helps build the reputation of a firm and stakeholders make decisions based on the reputation of the business. CR is an intangible asset that firms should carefully manage and strategic importance understood due to the fact that is associated with the reputation of the firm (Yadav, et al, 2018).

10. Consumer values and expectations

Consumers expectations have been known to drive marketers to incorporate social consideration in the practices they use when marketing CSR concerns itself to fulfill and exceed the expectations of their consumers. Consumers often tend to have high expectations on businesses and their engagement in CSR, these expectations tend to be even high for highly visible firms (Harrison, et al 2007). Always the expectation of consumers has an impact on the business.

11. Investor pressure: the growth of socially responsible investing

Socially responsible investing is developed according to the demands of investors. According to the market, the need for investors has extended with a new extra-financial investment criterion, this criterion is referred to as environmental, social and governance criteria (ESG). This criterion makes SRI related to CSR as they are encouraging each other. Individual and institutional investors are considering ESG when making their investment decision (Harrison, et al 2007). 

12. Responsibility inside and out: employee involvement in Corporate responsibility

Employees play an important role in Corporate Responsibility. The employees are responsible for supporting a broad CR strategy, by ensuring the practices of the organization align with their values and culture. Employees play an important role in embedding CSR into the core of its Human Resource practices such as recruitment, communication, and diversity. Employees are responsible for leading community-based schemes, such as employee volunteering programs (Yadav, Dash, Chakraborty, & Kumar, 2018).

13. Being green

Everyday consumers are becoming more aware of the negative impacts that businesses have on the environment. CSR helps companies adopt advanced human resource management practices, reduction of environmentally hazardous substances thus preserving the environment (Albus, and Ro, 2017). Sustainability efforts under corporate social responsibility include green practices that aim to safeguard the environment.

14. Communicating about corporate responsibility

Communication is an important aspect of CSR. It ensures greater corporate transparency and enables better engagement with multiple stakeholders. Communication should be voluntary and should be guided by market pressure. Depending on the organization communication is shaped by different factors such as national culture, employees, community and environmental concerns (Golob, and Bartlett, 2007).

Reference List

  Albus, H. and Ro, H. (2017) ‘Corporate Social Responsibility: The Effect Of Green Practices In A Service Recovery’, Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research, 41(1), pp. 41–65. doi: 10.1177/1096348013515915.

Carroll B 2010, Carroll’s pyramid of CSR: taking another look, Retrieved from; https://jcsr.springeropen.com/track/pdf/10.1186/s40991-016-0004-6

DeAngelis S 2017Corporate Social Responsibility in the 21^st Century. Retrieved from; https://www.enterrasolutions.com/blog/corporate-social-responsibility-21st-century/

García-Madariaga, J, and Rodríguez-Rivera, F 2017. Corporate social responsibility, customer satisfaction, corporate reputation, and firms’ market value: Evidence from the automobile industry. Spanish Journal of Marketing-ESIC, 21, pp.39-53.

Golob, U. and Bartlett, J.L., 2007. Communicating about corporate social responsibility: A comparative study of CSR reporting in Australia and Slovenia. Public Relations Review, 33(1), pp.1-9.

Harrison, Myron, Rapporteur, 2007, Global environmental health in the 21st century: from governmental regulation to corporate social responsibility: workshop summary. Washington, D.C.: National Academies Press. http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=11833#toc.

Horrigan B 2007, 21^st Century Corporate Social Responsibility Trends-An Emerging Comparative Body of Law and Regulation on Corporate Responsibility, Governance, and Sustainability. Retrieved from;  http://unpan1.un.org/intradoc/groups/public/documents/apcity/unpan033581.pdf

Reeves E 2012. Six Reasons Companies Should Embrace CSR. Retrieved from; https://www.forbes.com/sites/csr/2012/02/21/six-reasons-companies-should-embrace-csr/#6ece9cc63495

Schettino, A. 2016. What is Your Role in Corporate Social Responsibility? Retrieved; https://www.legal-island.com/articles/uk/features/hr/2016/feb/what-is-your-role-in-corporate-social-responsibility/

    Yadav R, Dash S, Chakraborty S, & Kumar M 2018, Perceived CSR and Corporate Reputation: The Mediating Role of Employee Trust. Vikalpa, 43(3), 139–151. https://doi.org/10.1177/0256090918794823

Zyglidopoulos, Stelios C., Andreas P. Georgiadis, Craig E. Carroll, and Donald S. Siegel. "Does media attention drive corporate social responsibility?." Journal of Business Research 65, no. 11 (2012): 1622-1627.