Reference no: EM133088080

IT Service Management and Professional Culture

Contracts-Based and Character-Based

Objective:

1. Analyse an ethical situation and apply a contracts-based (rights) approach
2. Analyse an ethical situation and apply a character-based (virtue) approach
3. Discuss examples from popular culture of ethical dilemmas

Question 1: Describe the difference between a legal contract and moral obligation. Which is your preferred approach? Why?

Question 2: Consider the case of Kitty Genovese (Tavani, 2015). Why might social contract theory be considered a less robust theory of ethics?

Question 3: Describe an ethical dilemma where you have observed the participants adopting acontract-based approach. Detail the facts of the situation, and how contractarianism was applied to resolve the issue.

Question 4: Describe the character-based ethical approach. Which is your preferred virtue? Why?

Question 5: Nominate someone you consider to be a good person. What characteristics (virtues) do you believe best describe this person? Provide an example (brief story) which illustrates this person applying their virtue(s) in practice.

Question 6: Describe the modern ethical approach.

Case Study - Nimal'sEthical Dilemma

Question 7. Using a contracts-based (rights) approach:

a. Whose rights does Nimal have to take into consideration? In each case indicate whether these rights are legal (L) or moral (M).

b. Apply legal based contractarianism, using the list of legal rights prepared in question 7 (a), decide, how Nimal should resolve this ethical dilemma? Give your reasons.

c. Apply moral based contractarianism (social contract theory), using the list of moral rights prepared in question 7(a), decide, how Nimal should resolve this ethical dilemma? Give your reasons.

Question 8. Using a character-based (virtue) approach:

a. What virtues should Nimal be calling upon in this dilemma?
b. Imagine you are in Nimal's position. What does your character/intuition/'gut feeling' say to you about how Nimal should decide? What are the important factors in your decision?

Question 9. Apply the modern ethical decision making approach to this case and provide an answer to Nimal's ethical dilemma. Mention a regard for consequences, the categorical imperative and possession of a caring character in your response.

Question 10. Compare approaches:

a. Compare your answers to week 3 questions 7, 8 and 9 (see above), and week 2 questions 6 and 7 (see last week's tutorial sheet). In particular, identify the differences in the ways your decisions were made.

b. On the balance of your comparison in question 10 (a), what, in your opinion, is the ethical approach that Nirmal should take? Why?

Question 11. Watch the following videos. For each video describe the following: author(s), aim, intended audience, key points, organisation, and the strengths and weaknesses.

Attachment:- Contracts-Based and Character-Based.rar