Growing up in a multi-racial community, my parents felt that it was their obligation to ensure that we grew up in a manner that showed appreciation for the community around. I was taught to be appreciate everyone in the community and to consider our culturally diverse neighbors to be my brothers and sisters. Additionally, my parents ensured that I was able to appreciate religion right from a young age. I grew up in a family that had strong Christian values and the basic values of love was instilled in me right from a young age. This is in line with the observations of MacKinnon & Fiala (2016) who observe that the ethical values for many people are usually based on their views of religion. Throughout this coursework, the study of different ethical frameworks enabled me to be able to advance my understanding on the issues of ethics and ethical decision-making. The purpose of this self-reflective paper is to analyze the personal learning I have by describing my personal understanding of my core values and beliefs and how it affects others.
Personal Values and Ethics
My values have always been based on family, love, honesty and integrity. My values begun with religion and it became centered on these principles. When growing up the statement that my parents constantly told me was “do unto others as you would have them do unto you” (Mathew 7:12). This statement marked the basis of my understanding of love and shaped how I would treat my family, friends, and neighbors. I grew up in a multicultural community and the statement taught me that I should treat anyone the way I would want to be treated. I learned to love others and show respect with genuineness, honesty, and passion. These values have guided me right from the time I was young and currently shapes how I interact with other people.
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The value of family, friendship, and forming positive relationships was also instilled when growing up. My parents were quite busy with their career when I was young but they always found time to be with family. They would counsel me frequently and guided me closely when making any decision. My parents also valued holidays as this was a time where we would get together as a family with a few friends. I was also guided on making the right friends and having the right peer group. The interest that my parents had on the kind of friendships I formed taught me that forming the right friendship was important.
I learned the values of honesty and integrity from my parents and the church. I went to church every day when growing up and one of the principles values that was taught was that of being an honest, truthful and integrity. Most of the decisions that my parents made regarding their workplace were also based on these virtues. This made me desire to do what is right no matter what it may cost. According to Palanski et al. (2015), integrity involves showing moral courage and this can help one become a leader. I have noticed that this is applicable as I have had the moral courage to do what is right despite the consequences. The result is that I have been trusted in various leadership positions in different groups.
Ethical Perspective
The coursework undertaken throughout the past few weeks has made me learn a lot about values and ethics. The lessons that have been learned throughout this course have shaped my point of view regarding the topics of utilitarianism, virtue ethics, Kant’s deontology theory, moral differences, individual justice rights, and egoism and objectivism the different approaches to punishment. However, the ethical perspectives that stood out for me was egoism and objectivism utilitarianism, deontology, and ethical relativism. Ethical relativism observes that morality is different to the norms of one’s culture (Hrenyk, 2016). Whether an action is right or wrong depends on the norms of the society where it is practiced. The United States is an example of a multicultural society. There are people of various religions, cultural backgrounds, ethnicity, and beliefs. I grew up in a strong Christian background. However, when I started interacting with other individuals throughout school, I realized that different people have different ethical perspectives. I was sometimes involved in arguments regarding what was right or wrong regarding various topics that were taught in the Bible. Learning about ethical relativism made me understand that different cultures have different social norms and the right or wrong actions are based on the perceptions of a specific culture. Adopting this ethical perspective made me understand and appreciate the values that other cultures have.
Egoism and objectivism was a theory that made understand moral differences. Egoism and objectivism follows that every person should act on their best interest and should be a beneficiary of their own moral action. People should thus seek to assist others so that they can be ultimately happy (MacKinnon & Fiala, 2016). What I observed from this theory was that it is human nature to seek the best interest for oneself. People are naturally oriented to take part in activities that will make them happy. While I found this ethical perspective true, I found that it contradicted with the perception of utilitarianism.
Utilitarianism is based on the principle that the most ethical choice is the one that produces the greatest good for the greatest number of people. The view contradicts egoism and objectivism which is based on people undertaking actions that will mostly benefit them. Even though utilitarianism is also based on happiness, it observes and advocates for the need for others and involves taking actions that would not hurt others (Bell et al., 2017). Kant’s deontology can also be applied when considering the outcome or consequences as a result of performing some activities. The right actions are the ones that will have the least amount of consequences.
How and Why I adopted the Perspectives
The perspectives that I have been able to adapt are based on utilitarianism and Kant’s deontology. When working and interacting with other people, I mostly choose to undertake actions that result in a greater good for the greater number. I have also been able to assess my bias towards the principle of egoism and objectivism which considers that men are selfish. This has made me become a selfless person that is more willing to give and serve others. The principle of Kant’s deontology has been applied by analyzing the consequences of my action. I have been able to motivate myself to manage my time adequately through this theory. Poor time management can result in negative consequences such as stress. This has helped me manage my time well and I have been able to concentrate on my studies.
In conclusion, this coursework has enabled me to evaluate my values and virtues and it has shaped the ethical perspective which I view the world. I can describe myself today as loving and honest person. I want to continually embody this values and have the ethical perspectives continually shape my actions and view of the future. I want to make a significant use of the theory of utilitarianism and apply it in order to serve others better in the future.
References
Bell, G. G., Dyck, B., & Neubert, M. J. (2017). Ethical Leadership, Virtue Theory, And Generic Strategies. Radical Thoughts on Ethical Leadership , 113 .
Hrenyk, J., Szymanski, M., Kar, A., & Fitzsimmons, S. R. (2016). Understanding multicultural individuals as ethical global leaders. In Advances in global leadership (pp. 57-78). Emerald Group Publishing Limited.
New King James Bible. (1982) Thomas Nelson .
MacKinnon B. & Fiala A. (2016). Ethics: Theory and Contemporary Issues. (9th ed.). United States of America.
Palanski, M. E., Cullen, K. L., Gentry, W. A., & Nichols, C. M. (2015). Virtuous leadership: Exploring the effects of leader courage and behavioral integrity on leader performance and image. Journal of Business Ethics, 132(2), 297-310.
