Unethical behavior Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Unethical behavior - Essay Example Above all, the Golden Rule and Ethical Education are suggested to solve these ethical fallacies. In order to preserve the ethical standard of the world at large, the discussion of the misconceptions and rationalizations is crucial to preserving the standard of ethics and social norms. Using Jack Marshall’s list of ethical fallacies, let’s discuss five common reasons as handpicked. First, if there is a Golden Rule, there is a Golden Rationalization, as well. Apparently, it is the opposite of the former. This rationalization is not new. It began as early as the beginning of the civilization. It was believed that when the majority of the people performed a certain action – the judgment whether the action is right or wrong is determined through it. In other words, if everybody does it – you can therefore do it, as well. If the majority of the society had committed adultery, then it is implicitly all right for you to commit the same. However, a person who used this reasoning is aware of his misconduct. Since everybody does it, he would argue that he should not be singled for condemnation, although he is conscious that adultery is illegal. Secondly, another common rationalization is called The Compliance Dodge. If a person had complied with the rules, it is obviously driven by the punishments enumerated therein. Put it another way, ethics is about the individual’s decision to do what is right. If a person has the genuine intention to do the right thing without any given sanction – it is therefore ethical. That is to say that compliance with the rules is not the same with ethics. Individuals who were using this rationalization had been finding loopholes in a set of rules to justify unethical behaviors as right. Thirdly, The Slippery Slope is an insidious fallacy. Several people believed that if a misconduct or unethical behavior had brought no harm to anybody – it could not be considered a wrongdoing. Another key thing to