Applied Ethics

What is Applied Ethics?

Think about a situation where you have to choose between telling the truth, which might hurt someone’s feelings, or keeping a secret to make them happy. Deciding what to do in that moment is where applied ethics comes in. It’s the part of the big subject of ethics that is all about using our ideas of right and wrong in the real world. We use applied ethics to figure out how to behave in everyday life. Let’s break it down to two simple definitions:

First, it’s like a GPS for making choices. Applied ethics gives us directions on how to act in ways that are fair, nice, and thoughtful. Think about it as getting advice on how to be a good person when you face tricky problems. Second, it’s like a bunch of tools in a toolbox. Each tool is a different rule or idea about what’s good or bad, and we pick the right tool for the job when we run into complicated issues like how to protect the environment or take care of sick people.

It’s not just about thinking deep thoughts or having good intentions, either. Applied ethics is about rolling up your sleeves and putting those good thoughts into action, whether you’re in a hospital, a courtroom, a business, or just in your daily life.

How to Guide to Applied Ethics

Let’s make a four-step plan to use applied ethics:

Spot what’s going on and what the problem is.
Think about who will be impacted by what you choose.
Bring to mind the values and rules you know, like being just or true.
Decide the best you can, using all that thinking and the details of the issue at hand.

This plan is like a map that helps you navigate through tough decisions. By following these steps, we can try to fix problems in a way that sticks to ethical rules and shows care for everyone involved.

Types of Applied Ethics

Applied ethics has a bunch of different types, each focusing on certain areas of life:

Medical Ethics – Decisions in hospitals and clinics belong here, like who gets treatment when there’s not enough to go around.
Business Ethics – This is about how companies act, ensuring they’re fair to workers and customers and make safe products.
Environmental Ethics – This one’s about caring for Earth and all its living things.
Legal Ethics – Judges and lawyers use this to keep the law fair and respectful.

Examples of Applied Ethics

When a doctor decides who gets a new medicine when there’s not much of it, that’s medical ethics because they are using fairness and care to choose.
If a business has to pick between making more money or keeping their workers from getting hurt, that’s business ethics since they’re balancing success with people’s safety.
When a town chooses whether to build houses on a park, it’s environmental ethics because they’re looking at what’s best for people and nature.
If a lawyer defends someone they know did a bad thing because everyone has the right to a defense, that’s legal ethics. They follow rules about justice, even when it’s hard.

Why is it Important?

Applied ethics is a big deal because it helps us not be selfish and to think about others and the results of our actions. It guides us to make choices that are fair and keeps us from just doing whatever we want without caring if it’s right or wrong. For instance, when we follow rules in sports or games, it’s so that everyone has a fair chance to play and enjoy. Without those rules and fair play, the game wouldn’t be fun or fair. That’s kind of what applied ethics does for all of life.

Origin of Applied Ethics

People have been asking what’s right or wrong for thousands of years. But this idea of actually using ethical thinking for real-life problems got a big push in the 1970s when new medical technologies created situations no one had faced before and needed ethical thinking to solve.

Controversies in Applied Ethics

But there’s no perfect answer in applied ethics. People have major arguments about tough topics because everyone has different values and ideas. These debates show why applied ethics is both necessary and challenging.

When is it ever okay to end a life? Like in hard choices about euthanasia or putting someone to death who did a terrible crime?
Can we use animals to test medicines that might save people?
Should companies be able to know private stuff about us if it helps them make money, or is that crossing a line?

Final Thoughts on Applied Ethics

So, applied ethics is our tool for tackling real situations using what we believe about right and wrong. It’s like having a wise friend to help us think through tricky choices so we can do good things and be fair and kind. It’s key to our lives because what we decide can make a wave of change, good or bad, for others. This part of ethics goes beyond the classroom; it’s an everyday guide to living in a thoughtful, respectful way.

As we face knotty problems and make choices, applied ethics is our compass. It helps us see the different sides of an issue and guides us in making thoughtful choices. It’s not just philosophy; it’s a real-life tool for making the world a fairer place, one decision at a time.