We show you examples of ethics that will help you better understand what ethics is, how it is put into practice and its importance.
Ethics is reflected in various acts of daily life.
What are examples of ethics?
They are examples of ethics the values that we practice in our daily livessuch as tolerance, commitment or honesty, which are reflected in our actions and in the way we live and interact in society.
Ethics is important because it is a discipline that reflects on people’s behavior. It does not focus on determining which action is good and which is bad, but rather on seeks to understand what norms and beliefs support the meaning of people’s actions, both good and badTherefore, ethics helps people to reflect on how they conceive what is right or wrong, and allows them to evolve and modify old customs that are harmful to people.
Below are some examples of ethics to better understand its importance in society:
1. Respect
Respect is the value of recognizing, accepting and valuing others as they are.
For example: a student who pays attention to a teacher who explains in class, even if the subject is not one of his or her favorites, is recognizing the value of the person who gives his or her time and knowledge.
2. Justice
Justice is the moral principle that guides all human virtues towards the common good and in an egalitarian manner. It establishes a set of rules that regulate coexistence in a society.
For example: the laws of a community establish that if someone vandalizes the games in a public park they can be punished with a monetary fine and community service.
3. Honesty
Honesty is the value of demonstrating transparency and sincerity in a kind way.
For example, an appliance repairman who only does repairs and not sales of appliances tells his customer that he needs to replace a very expensive part. However, he recommends that the customer buy a new appliance instead of trying to repair it.
4. Freedom
Freedom is the quality of acting based on what one wants, guided by one’s own reason, without the imposition of others and without altering or affecting the freedom of others.
For example: a journalist decides to publish opinion columns about political issues on a personal blog, because some well-known media outlets did not allow him to express his ideas.
5. Responsibility
Responsibility is the quality of fulfilling acquired commitments and objectives, and is related to the ability to have self-control and determination.
For example: a high school student who attends class regularly, in addition to studying for exams.
6. Tolerance
Tolerance is the quality of accepting the ideas or customs of others, even if they are different from one’s own, as is the case with religion or political ideology.
For example: a fan of a football team who is respectful of fans of other teams. Rivalry between football fans is common, but it should not be a reason for intolerance, insults or confrontation.
7. Empathy
Empathy is the quality of recognizing what another being feels and sharing their emotions, without making distinctions based on their species, gender, condition or beliefs.
For example: a person who identifies with other animal species and therefore decides to avoid consuming industrialized products that promote animal exploitation, because he recognizes that everyone has the same capacity to feel both pain and pleasure.
8. Integrity
Integrity is the value of acting honestly and respectfully, and also having a clean record of never having committed immoral or dishonest acts.
For example: an area director who for several years demonstrated professionalism and confidence when handling sensitive data linked to the company and was appointed as vice president of the company.
9. Compassion
Compassion is the quality of recognizing the suffering of others, understanding it, and acting kindly toward it. It involves putting aside selfishness and acting to contribute to the well-being of others.
For example, a person decides to help another person who is homeless, offers them food and tries to talk to them to understand how they got into this situation. Then, they look for an institution that provides support and assistance so that they can reintegrate into social life.
10. Equity
Equity is the quality of recognizing and meeting the needs of people who are at a disadvantage, with the aim of equalizing conditions or achieving equality among others in their group.
For example, a school incorporates technological devices capable of translating in real time so that young people with visual and hearing disabilities can understand and be understood during classes.
11. Commitment
Commitment is the value of fulfilling an established obligation, in the form of an agreement, which may be formal or verbal.
For example: a supplier who agrees to deliver a job within fifteen days of the order being requested is committed to fulfilling the contract in a timely manner. If the supplier does not comply with the agreement, the supplier must keep the client informed of any eventualities that may delay delivery. The lack of commitment may mean that the client will not contact the supplier or recommend the supplier again.
12. Loyalty
Loyalty is the quality of being faithful to oneself, another person, a group or a cause, and is based on moral logic to justify this feeling of fidelity. It differs from fanaticism, which is an excessive and blind adoration towards someone or something.
For example, a consumer is loyal to a brand that offers quality products at a slightly higher price than the competition. However, if the quality of the product declines, the person will stop consuming that brand because it does not maintain the quality standard.
13. Equality
Equality is the value of recognizing that all people should enjoy the same rights, opportunities and freedoms.
For example, inclusive language aims at the equal and conscious use of words so as not to encourage stereotypes or discriminatory discourse. Inclusive language has to do with the conscious choice of certain words, because saying “the history of humanity” is not the same as saying “the history of man” to refer to the evolution of the human species.
14. Solidarity
Solidarity is the quality of collaborating with other people to assist and help others who need it.
For example: a person who promotes a solidarity action through social networks to donate non-perishable food, clothing and furniture for several families who lost almost everything they had in their home due to a flood.
15. Altruism
Altruism is the quality of being generous, even if it means giving up some personal interest, in order to achieve a greater benefit or show solidarity with others.
For example: a person who teaches low-income families living in vulnerable areas how to create and maintain their own garden. This person offers the supplies, tools, time and knowledge to instruct people on how to produce their own quality food and give them tools that allow them to overcome the situation of malnutrition.
16. Kindness
Kindness is the natural quality of being benevolent, and has to do with doing good to the environment and to other people.
For example: a person who, while walking along the public road, picks up the waste thrown by other people and deposits it in garbage cans.
17. Generosity
Generosity is the quality of acting selflessly towards others, without expecting a reward or payment in return. It consists of being compassionate and sharing what one has, in order to help others.
For example: a person who dedicates one day a week to collaborate with a community kitchen that delivers food to children who live in a vulnerable neighborhood.
18. Humility
Humility is the courage to accept and acknowledge our own limitations and weaknesses, not just our attributes and gifts.
For example: the marketing director of a company received an award for her performance. In gratitude, she highlighted and praised the work done by each of the members of her team who made it possible to meet the goals.
19. Temperance
Temperance is the quality of moderating our actions, in a balanced way and without excess. It has to do with the ability to maintain self-control and to know how to determine what is good or bad.
For example, a person who works as a manager at a bank receives an alert about a suspected criminal attack on the computer system. The first thing he does is stay calm and follow the security protocol.
20. Frankness
Frankness is the quality of telling the truth and is characteristic of people who act sincerely and loyally in all aspects of their lives, both personally and in work relationships.
For example: a person who admits to their friends that they don’t feel like meeting up on the day that most of them suggested, because they feel tired, and they agree that the rest of the group should meet up anyway.
Types of ethics
Ethics is divided into different branches according to its object of study and among the main ones the following stand out:
- Metaethics. Studies the language that expresses ideas, that is, the language that philosophers use to talk about morality, meanings and their interrelations in theoretical language.
- Normative ethics. Studies the norms and principles that regulate human behavior.
- Applied ethics. Studies the application of ethics in specific fields, such as business, government, and medicine, among others.
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References
- Azcarate, D.P. (1942). Moral; the great moral; moral to Eudemus. Austral Collection. Espasa-calpe SA
- Smith, Prudence. World Health Organization (29/09/2016). Press release: Geneva. Negative attitudes about ageing and discrimination against older people can affect their health. https://www.who.int/
- BBVA social, quality education (05/11/2021). Eight practical examples of how to apply inclusive language when speaking or writing. https://www.bbva.com/
- Coa, JA (04/10/2018). Fans over consumers: brand loyalty at its finest. https://www.linkedin.com/