Values, Morals, and Ethics Biology Rene LaMontagna

Critical and Ethical Thinking in Science…

Values: are qualities that signify what is important and worthwhile. Values serve as the basis for moral codes and ethical reflection. Each of you has your own values based on family, religion, peers, culture, race, social background, gender etc. Example: Life is to be valued, in other words life is sacred.

Morals: Are codes of conduct governing behavior. They are an expression of values reflected in actions and practices. What you do or don’t do based on your values. Morals can held at an individual or community level and are culturally bound. Example based on values: “One should not kill”

Ethics: Provides a systematic, rational way to work through dilemmas and to determine the best course of action in the face of conflicting choices. Ethics attempts to find and describe what people believe is right and wrong, and to establish whether certain actions are actually right or wrong based on all the information available. Example: “If killing is wrong, can one justify the death penalty or kill in self-defense?”

Bioethics: Is a subfield of ethics applied to the life sciences. The discipline of bioethics helps us, as a society, make decisions about how best to use scientific knowledge, how to make policy decisions regarding medicines or treatments, and how we should behave with each other

What is an ethical question? Involve the words “ought” or “should” implying a difficult decision must be made. There are several alternative solutions, none that is without some challenging or problematic aspect They contain conflicting moral choices and dilemmas, and the underlying values of the people may clash. They have no right or wrong answer which satisfies all parties, but better or worse answers based on well-reasoned justifications.

There are different types of questions besides ethical… Pertaining to law (legal) Pertaining to science (scientific method) Pertaining to Religious/Cultural (what’s in line with a particular belief) Pertaining to Personal Preference ( influenced by cultural bias)

Which of these are ethical questions? What are others? A. Is it legal to sell human kidneys in the United States? B. How does a kidney function inside the body? C. What does my religion say about whether or not it is acceptable to donate a kidney? D. Should individuals who donate a kidney choose who their organ should go to? E. What type of diet allows for the best athletic performance? F. Is killing someone always illegal? G. Should people select the sex of their child in advance? H. Are same sex marriages constitutional? I. What is the most appropriate way to worship? J. Do kidneys taste good?

8 Key questions   Fairness - How can I act equitably and balance legitimate interests? Outcomes - What achieves the best short- and long-term outcomes for me and all others? Responsibilities - What duties and/or obligations apply? Character - What action best reflects who I am and the person I want to become? Liberty - How does respect for freedom, personal autonomy, or consent apply? Empathy - What would I do if I cared deeply about those involved? Authority - What do legitimate authorities (e.g. experts, law, my religion/god) expect of me?

Pandemic Flu Exercise What type of question is the following?: Who should be saved during a flu outbreak when there is not enough life-saving vaccine available for everybody? Fill out form.

I present topic for ethical thinking questions, but I don’t give specifics until after I ask them to determine which of the 8 key questions are most critical to processing the issue. Then I lead them through filling out the “tug sheet”, which has been revised by adding 8 key questions to certain sections. Then I help them map “tug sheet” to questions for the assignment.