Ethics

Please review the original post from three classmates. Please read each one of my classmate’s posts and provide a response to each. You can respond with 75-100 words for each classmate’s post. Please start off with the full name of the classmate (not just their first initial from their name) and put all three responses on one page (paragraphs separated and double-spaced). This does not require any citations/sources. In each response, provide comments on your classmate’s topic idea and ask a question that prompts your classmate to think more critically about how to explore the research topic in more detail.

Student 1
Being ethical involves maintaining a set of moral standards and principles that define our behavior in various aspects of life, from personal relationships to work and academic settings. Ethics involves being respectful, honest, and responsible in the choices we make and the actions we take. On a personal level, ethical behavior helps us cultivate meaningful relationships based on trust and integrity. In an academic setting, being ethical means striving for academic excellence without cheating or plagiarism. Professionally, ethical behavior involves being reliable, accountable and committed to upholding the highest standards of business practices. Adopting ethical behaviors in all areas of life promotes personal and professional growth by helping us gain trust and respect from those around us. It also helps us build healthy relationships and make positive contributions to our community.
One ethical dilemma I have encountered was when I was expected to submit a research paper in which the draft version contained plagiarized content. A revised final draft was a requirement for the course and I was struggling with the deadline. Although I was tempted to submit it without revisions, I decided to take the ethical route and make the necessary changes to avoid plagiarism. I consulted with my professor and worked hard to complete the paper in time, which was then approved and accepted. This experience taught me that ethical behavior is always the best choice, even when it is difficult and time-consuming.
My general education courses have had a huge influence on my ethical values. From classes on communication and sociology to philosophy, I have learned the importance of being honest and truthful, of treating everyone with respect and dignity, and of making decisions with integrity and responsibility. I have also gained a better understanding of the consequences of unethical behavior, including the potentially damaging effects on a person’s reputation and career. These courses have helped me to appreciate the significance of staying true to my moral values and ethics in all areas of life.

Student 2
Ethics is the discipline of dealing with right and wrong with a moral duty or obligation. Being ethical on a personal level means that you act in a certain way based off a set of principles or values that guide your behavior. It means taking responsibility for your actions, and treating others how you would want to be treated. It relates to academia in that, as students, we are called to maintain honesty and integrity in all that we do. That includes purposeful or unintentional plagiarism that can be avoided by properly citing sources. Ethics relates to professional growth in that each company has a set of rules and standards that each employee is to adhere to. Being ethical in our profession means following these rules and standards. As we comply, this will establish us as a loyal, hardworking, and ethical employee.
In my line of work, we are faced with ethical dilemmas often. I work in the IT (Information Technology) department at a nuclear engineering firm. There is a lot of classified information that we come across daily and have access to. Our company is government run; therefore, we have a strict policy when it comes to who needs to know certain information. If the person you are interacting with does not need to know the information, you are not to share it. On our security badges we must wear, it indicates our level of classification. These levels are what differentiate how much information everyone is allowed to know. There is also another strict policy that we are not allowed to share information with friends and family. I have been in situations where there were situations that happened while at work and my first reaction was to share it with my husband. Most people working in unclassified situations can share their workday with their significant other, so this was hard for me to get used to. Thankfully, I have a high moral and ethical compass, so I have never shared these situations with anyone. It does take some self-control at times, but thankfully I love my job and never want to jeopardize it.
My general education courses have influenced my ethical values. In my personal life, I have strong principles and values that I daily live by. I am a rule follower, so coming under ethical guidelines brings me comfort. I would like to know where we are going and how we are going to get there. However, courses like philosophy, personal and organizational ethics, information logic, and information literacy classes, have taught me to think in a new way. These courses have challenged my black and white type thinking and taught me that sometimes there is a little gray that needs to be considered in life. These classes have challenged me to learn how to critically think and process information in diverse ways then I am used to. I am super thankful for it too because these are invaluable skills that I will take with me into my career.

Student 3
Hello Classmates
Upon reflecting on what it means to be ethical as it relates to my personal, academic, and professional growth, the moral good of deontological theory comes to mind as it is to have the instinctive principle of duty to do what is objectively correct (Zúñiga y Postigo, 2015). For my personal growth, doing the right thing for people, the community, and the planet, even when no one is looking, is vital because strong ethics define me as an honest and trustworthy person. As a student and professional, it is essential to use the sources ethically, respect the author’s work, avoid plagiarism, and maintain academic integrity.
I encountered an ethical dilemma at my place of employment when a manager asked his assistant to categorize expenses to benefit him financially. Since I was coaching her on different company policies, I quickly noticed the dilemma. The manager has been expensing items he should pay personally for years, so approaching the situation took a delicate touch. I had to gather the expense policies for each transaction to educate his assistant. The next time he gave her a list of expenses to clear, she was able to let him know that they went against the policy and that she felt uncomfortable processing them. She also included me in the email to help answer any policy questions.
Learning and understanding each general education course have taught me to avoid the pitfalls of fallacies and biases in my academic and professional career growth so I can learn from others. Especially the Informal Logic and Personal and Organizational Ethics courses have influenced my ethical values to become a better logical thinker, be more ethical in my reasoning, have more meaningful conversations, and foster healthier relationships.